London has a new 'outer circle' railway from today, as the last stretch of the London Overground opens between Surrey Quays and Clapham Junction. It's the final phase of a five-year project that's seen various suburban rail routes knitted together to form one of the country's most reliable and regular train services.
The new section is almost seven miles long, with stops at Clapham Junction, Wandsworth Road, Clapham High Street, Denmark Hill, Peckham Rye, Queens Road Peckham and Surrey Quays. A further stop at Surrey Canal Road, next to Millwall's ground, is earmarked for future development. Transport for London reckons the link will take thousands of passenger journeys out of central London, easing the burden on the Jubilee Line, among other services.
The opening of the new rail link isn't universally popular. Apart from a short section to the east, it follows existing rail tracks, which means some established services have to give way. Particularly galling for some passengers will be the loss of direct services into central London, such as Queens Road to Victoria or Denmark Hill to London Bridge.
Diamond Geezer recently walked the entire route, and gives an overview of its impact on Clapham and Clapham Junction, Denmark Hill and Brixton, Peckham and Surrey Quays. To give DG one final link, today's opening marks the last anticipated change to TfL's transport map until 2016, following several years of frenetic activity.
See also:
- A 2-minute cab's-eye-view of the entire route.
- Walking the new section of track