Southern Rail: Commuters' fury as south London station is left without any trains

Southern Rail woes: Trains no longer call at Birkbeck station on weekdays
Hatty Collier13 July 2016

Commuters today vented their anger after arriving at a south London station - to find it was no longer served by any trains.

Southern Rail has axed services to and from Birkbeck station in Bromley, leaving travellers with no direct rail link into central London on weekdays.

Trains will not call at the Zone Four station for at least a month as part of the crisis-hit operator’s revised timetable, which has seen almost 350 services cancelled across the network each day.

The timetable, introduced amid a continued shortage of staff and threat of industrial action from conductors, has left passengers crammed onto packed trains or replacement buses.

Southern Rail apologised for the difficulty that passengers faced but said that its timetable was targeting the busiest lines and comparatively few used Birkbeck.

Cancellations: A sign at Birkbeck station warning passengers

The Standard spoke to commuters who arrived at Birkbeck station this morning to find that services no longer stop there.

'It's just so infuriating'

'Infuriated': Dionne Bright

Dionne Bright, an executive assistant, travels to work from Birkbeck to Blackfriars each day, paying about £180 for a monthly ticket.

The 46-year-old said: “We are having to travel back in the wrong direction to get connections and get to where we need to be and having to rely on trams with no exact timetable.

"It's just so infuriating and it's making us so angry. It's gone on for far too long. I am paying £180 a month for this service.

"I have lost all compassion for the reasons why Southern are doing this."

"I had absolutely no idea"

Travelling to Gipsy Hill: Peter Green

Peter Green, 59, was already patiently waiting on the station platform for a train when the Standard spoke to him.

Mr Green, who pays £1064 for a season ticket, works in local government and was trying to travel to his office in Gypsy Hill, near Crystal Palace.

He said: “There are no trains from here? I had absolutely no idea. It's not been very well publicised.

"I checked this on my journey planner before I set off and there was no suggestion that there weren't going to be trains.

"Luckily, I set off really early today. Let's go and see how many buses I have to catch to get to Crystal Palace.

"You hear these stories about people who aren't getting home to see their kids at night. Something has got to give.”

'A poor service'

Annoyed: David Boyd

David Boyd, a finance worker, commutes from Birkbeck to Mile End from Monday to Friday.

The 25-year-old, who pays £1966 for a season ticket, said: “I am pretty annoyed, I just turned up here this morning not knowing. I've had no advance notification.

“This is the one of the only ways to get to Crystal Palace and pick up the Overground to get to where I work.

"Southern already provides a really poor service. The trains were being cancelled from here all the time.

"And that's why this is the first day I’ve come here this week because I’ve been trying to find a different route."

'A real nuisance'

Robin Lonsdale said the cancellations were a 'real nuisance'

Robin Lonsdale, 41, an architect, said: "I didn't know [the trains were cancelled]. It's a real nuisance because this service already got cut down in the first place.

"The only route in from here is to London Bridge anyway. It's really frustrating."

'An extra expense on my travel'

Southern Rail commuter: Daniel Harrison

Daniel Harrison, 35, who works for London Fire Brigade, said: “This is my first day back into work this week and I've arrived to find there are no trains.

“I just didn't expect them all to be cancelled. This is my home station. I am now going to have to walk to Elmers End.

“That is going to be an extra expense on my travel. I pay £1,300 for a yearly ticket. It's a total inconvenience."

Passengers who normally travel from Birkbeck are being advised to use Tramlink services to connect to other rail stations or local buses where their tickets will be accepted.

A Southern Rail spokesman said “We put in place this temporary timetable to target available traincrew to the busiest lines and times of day to give our passengers a better service they can plan around. Trains are also now much more punctual as a result.

“We know it can be difficult for some of our passengers and for that we apologise but comparatively few use Birkbeck, which has a tram stop outside the station for trains from Beckenham Junction six minutes’ away and Elmers End rail station just 800 yards distant for services to London Bridge.”

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