The Anonymous Widower

Tracing The Goblin Extension – Peckham Rye To Bexleyheath And Abbey Wood

This is the last leg, although I skipped the last bit from Bexleyheath to Abbey Wood, as it’s just a turn round the corner towards the station, that will be one of the termini of Crossrail.

Peckham Rye is not one of London’s best stations. It always reminds me of being two separate  stations  or two separate lines that happen to be chose enough together, to be able to be connected by a maze of dingy passages and steep staircases to a rather nice building.

It is one of the worse eyesores on the UK rail network.

I had arrived from Tulse Hill and to get to Bexleyheath I needed to get a Dartford train. This was not an easy walk down and then up two of the worst public staircases I know.

It also meant, I had to wait twenty minutes or so, in a station, where the only toilet was locked.

If the Goblin Extension happens, there will of course be no change of train, if for instance you wanted to go from Tulse Hill to Bexleyheath. And like I found, you won’t have to waste twenty minutes.

I took these pictures on the journey.

One point to note, is that on the whole journey, the stations are two platform ones and there would appear to be few places to have a turn back facility. The latter would probably mean that you’d have difficult finding somewhere to turn an interim service, until Crossrail is opened.

If you look at the details of the Crossrail station at Abbey Wood, you might wonder how everything will fit together there. But I’m not really worried, as I doubt TfL would mention the Goblin Extension in their 2050 Transport Plan, if it wasn’t possible.

August 6, 2014 - Posted by AnonW | Transport/Travel | Crossrail, Goblin Extension, Trains