SE23 Forum

First journey home tonight on an extended overground train. I even got a seat when I boarded at Canada Water at 6:00 tonight - oh happy day.

That's great, looking forward to that. Only catch is we only have a month to enjoy this before Thameslink engineering work changes kick in for a year and fills the Overground up again. Oh and, could be wrong here, but is there just one 5 car unit right now?

Yes, only the one unit at the moment. They'll be gradually introduced onto the ELL in the next year.

I wonder if they will spread its use around or keep it to one time slot.

A second day of seated journey bliss. Maybe it is assigned to the Crystal Palace line for that timeslot?

This sounds great - and the lifts will be done soon at HOP station also.

I still remember the first few days \ weeks of the overground. Seat everyday, magic I thought. Then the trains I'd always got started coming in empty and the overground rammed - typical I thought!

It seems so short sighted to extend by only one carriage, and surely it would have been cheaper and less disruptive to extend by 2, 3 or 4 carriages all in one go.

I assume, although I could be wrong, that the extensions are limited by what can be done with the stations that are underground. Without boring new tunnels, how can you make the platforms at, say, Canada Water, longer by 2, 3 or 4 carriages?

I frequently hear announcements along the lines for certain stations make sure you are in the first four carriages. I don't think it is a problem if people are warned in advance.

There have been some platform extensions to the core of the ELL. Some stations such as Surrey Quays and Shoreditch High Street will open all the doors on all 5 carriages, where as Canada Water has had work done, so that most of the doors will open but not on all of the 5th carriage.

Whitechapel will get it's platform extension as part of the Crossrail works. Until then, the 5th carriage doors won't open.

Why not bore the tunnel?

When the original project for the Canada Water platforms started, I would have been surprised if a 10 year plan including expansion wasn't considered, including future costs and practicalities.

As others have pointed out, you could also run a longer train and not open all the doors, as already done elsewhere.

Thinking again, I would guess extra pressure on the Jubilee line from longer Overground trains stopping at Canada Water would be too much for the transport network to handle though...

According to the Sunday Politics the Overground to Crystal Palace will be the transport taking visitors to the proposed new Crystal Palace building. I am not sure how many visitors they are expecting!

Sounds wonderful, I must give it a go.