London's Newest Station Opens Next Week

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By M@ Last edited 20 months ago

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London's Newest Station Opens Next Week
An orange and white Overground train pulling into a platform
The new station lies at the end of a brand new bit of railway. Image: TfL

Barking Riverside station will open on the Overground network on Monday 18 July.

The new station lies at the end of a brand new bit of railway — a 4.5km stretch that leads out from Barking to the Thames-side area where once stood Barking Power Station. 10,000 homes will be built here.

The step-free station will be a boon to the development's residents who currently face a 25-minute bus journey to Barking. The new rail route will do it in just seven, with trains every 15 minutes. Plus, there's also now the option of a river bus service into central London from the recently opened Thames Clippers pier.

Barking Riverside station. A glass box with dark brown wooden panelling.
Image: TfL

The homes would not be viable without the rail link, and the rail link would not be viable without the homes — hence the route has been a hand-in-glove joint venture between the Mayor of London and developer L&Q. Only a small section of this new residential quarter has so far been built, and the arrival of the station will be a fillip for further construction.

Two diggers on a grassy hill. Various stones, one pyramidal, stand in foreground
How the site previously looked. Image by the author, Matt Brown

This is the first new addition to the orange network since 2015, when the routes out from Liverpool Street to Enfield, Cheshunt and Chingford were bolted on. It's likely to be the last for some time. Projects to hook up Thamesmead, as well as the growing rail hub at Old Oak Common are under serious consideration, but will struggle to move ahead while TfL remains in financial doldrums.

It's been quite a year for London's transport network. We've had the opening of the Elizabeth line, the improvements at Bank station and, late last summer, the opening of the Northern line extension to Battersea Power Station. The good news has been somewhat tempered, however, by unprecedented cuts to bus services and the possibility of further cost-saving measures in the near future.

Barking Riverside orange roundel on a platform
Image: TfL

As is now traditional (see also the Elizabeth line), the brand new line will immediately be hit by engineering works. Don't try and ride it on 23 or 24 July, when the whole Gospel Oak to Barking Riverside section of Overground is closed for maintenance.

Last Updated 14 July 2022