Hundreds back Thameslink petition (From Wimbledon Guardian)
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Hundreds back Thameslink petition
Hundreds of people have backed a petition against plans to terminate South London's Thameslink trains at Blackfriars Station.
Hundreds back petition against plans to terminate Thameslink trains at Blackfriars
The Department for Transport is consulting on the new seven year Thameslink franchise, with recommendations trains serving Merton on the Wimbledon loop should terminate early.
This would mean the borough will have to direct link to the City, St Pancras International and Luton Airport.
Campaigners, including councillors in Sutton, Lambeth and Merton submitted a petition to ministers on Thursday.
Merton Councillor Mary-Jane Jeanes said: "So many people have told us they've bought homes and put down roots in local communities based on the train services along the Wimbledon Loop.
"The proposals would cause further hardship and delay for passengers especially with considerable overcrowding at Blackfriars station if passengers have to change trains.
"Many residents living near to Thameslink stations do not have access to other services or the underground."
Anthony Fairclough, a campaigner, of Wimbledon Chase, said: "Local shop owners told us that Network Rail's proposals would also damage their business - many have employees or customers that come from beyond Blackfriars to Merton. Making it more difficult to get here isn't going to encourage them to come.
"We've been fighting these proposals since last year, and we won't be giving up just yet, the next stage of the campaign will begin after officials make their recommendations to ministers."
The Department for Transport has said the consultation will be extended until September 14.
Comments (6)
01/09/12
Michael Pantlin says...
01/09/12
mangad says...
Simple.
* overall allows a substantial increase in frequency for through trains using the line
* reduces complexity by meaning the curtailed Sutton trains don't have to cross the tracks used by through trains
* increases the speed trains can get through the south of Blackfriars station due to the reduced complexity of the tracklayout
* reduces the risk of delays
If you've ever wondered why trains go so slowly at the south of Blackfriars it's due to the technical complexity of routing trains all all over the place.
Put simply, curtailing the Sutton loop at Blackfriars will make things much simpler and much more reliable. It would even allow the frequency of the Sutton loop to be increased should someone want to (well if they can sort out the lack of platforms at Wimbledon anyway)
All these benefits for the matter of minutes changing at Blackfriars.
The benefits to this move are huge. Unfortunately no one is trying to sell the benefits.
01/09/12
mangad says...
I get the tube to work and have to change every day. It's just something you do.
01/09/12
Michael Pantlin says...
03/09/12
Nick of Muster says...
Sutton loop could be served by a very frequent tram with some new stations at junctions to meet buses. It is like the old Wimbledon-Croydon train at the moment. Miss one and you could be waiting a very long time, if it shows up and no station staff to help. But hey, who wants frequent tram service. No one I guess!!!
04/09/12
Michael Pantlin says...