Between Walthamstow Central And Canning Town Stations On A 69 Bus
I have a feeling, that the 69 bus route, which currently runs between Walthamstow Central and Canning Town stations, could be usefully extended to become.
- A new route through the Silvertown tunnel.
- A formal connection between the Eastern ends of the Victoria and Jubilee Lines
- Part of Superloop
I took these pictures from the front of the top deck.
Note.
- I was sitting at the front of the bus on the right side of the top deck.
- Walthamstow Central station is served by the Victoria Line and the London Overground.
- The 69 bus runs every few minutes.
- Walthamstow Central station has a well-connected modern bus station.
- Leyton Midland Road station is on the Gospel Oak to Barking Line.
- The Leyton Engineer appears to be a beautifully restored pub.
- The six-lane A12 East Cross Route is crossed on a bridge just before Leyton station.
- Leyton station is on the Central Line.
- Maryland station is on the Elizabeth Line.
- The Great Eastern Main Line and the Elizabeth Line are crossed on a bridge at Maryland station.
- The prominent church is St. John’s, Stratford.
- Plaistow station is on the Metropolitan Line.
- Canning Town station is on the Jubilee Line and is a hub for the Docklands Light Railway.
- Canning Town station is suffering a degree of refurbishment at the moment and is a bit of a nightmare on foot at the moment.
The 69 bus route connects eight railway stations and at least eight railway lines.
The roads are generally wide and there are more trees than in other parts of London.
Along The Reopened Gospel Oak To Barking Line
The Gospel Oak to Barking Line reopened after its major upgrade on Monday.
The stations generally need need work in several areas
- Gantries – Some overhead gantries have not been erected.
- Lifts – Some stations need lifts.
- Platform Extensions – Some stations need platform extensions to be completed
- Ticket Gates – Ticket gates might need to be installed at some stations.
- Wires – Wires need to be installed.
These are some pictures I have taken along the line.
Barking
Barking station is more or less complete.
Might need – Lifts, Platform Extensions
Note the unique step-free double cross-platform interchange to Gospel Oak and c2c services.
Woodgrange Park
Woodgrange Park station is more or less complete.
In progress – Platform Extensions
Needs – Lifts
Note the excellent refuges enclosing the new ticket gates.
Wanstead Park
Wanstead Park station needs a fair bit of work.
In progress – Platform Extensions
Still to do – Gantries, Wires
Needs – Lifts
Leytonstone High Road
Leytonstone High Road station needs a fair bit of work.
In progress – Platform Extensions
Still to do – Gantries, Wires
Needs – Lifts
The station’s brickwork has been sympathetically restored.
Leyton Midland Road
Leyton Midland Road station needs a fair bit of work.
In progress – Platform Extensions
Still to do – Gantries, Wires
Needs – Lifts
I’ve used the station many times and the builders had done a very good job in improving the station with imaginative use of brickwork.
Walthamstow Queens Road
Walthamstow Queens Road station is more or less complete.
In progress – Platform Extensions
Still to do – Gantries, Wires
Migh need – Lifts
Needs – Ticket Gates
I think adding lifts is going to be difficult, but aren’t strictly necessary due to the long ramps.
Blackhorse Road
Blackhorse Road station is more or less complete .
In progress – Lifts, Platform Extensions
Still to do – Gantries, Wires
South Tottenham
South Tottenham station is more or less complete.
In progress – Platform Extensions
Still to do – Wires
Harringay Green Lanes
At Harringay Green Lanes station needs a fair bit of work.
In progress – Platform Extensions
Still to do – Gantries, Wires
Needs – Lifts, Ticket Gates
Crouch Hill
Crouch Hill station needs a fair bit of work.
In progress – Platform Extensions
Still to do – Gantries, Wires
Needs – Lifts, Ticket Gates
There might also be a serious problem with not enough clearance under the station bridge.
Upper Holloway
Upper Holloay station needs a fair bit of work.
In progress – Platform Extensions
Still to do – Wires
Needs – Lifts, Ticket Gates
Gospel Oak
Gospel Oak station is more or less complete.
Might need – Platform Extension
I was glad to see the coffee hut hat been reinstated.
Passengers Comments
Speaking to other passengers, all seemed pleased that the line was back in service and a couple remarked how neat and tidy it all was.
No-one seemed to be bothered work was still ongoing.
I even got praise for the Class 172 trains, which will be replaced by new Class 710 trains in 2018. One guy said there’s no need, although when I told him, they will be bigger, he liked that.
Between Walthamstow Queen’s Road And Leyton Midland Road Stations
These pictures show the Gospel Oak and Barking Line (GOBlin) between Walthamstow Queen’s Road and Leyton Midland Road stations.
This part of the route isn’t as interesting as the section I covered in The Bridges Of Walthamstow.
Note.
- In my peek at Walthamstow Queen’s Road station, nothing much seemed to have happened at the station.
- The track in the Gospel Oak direction appears to have been removed and track replacement seemed to be happening in the region of the Baker’s Arms Bridge.
- The cutting is well-buttressed between the Shrubland Road Bridge and the relatively-new Alobert Road Bridge
- You can see pairs of piles for electrification gantries east of Queen’s Road Bridge.
- The embankment that carries the line through North East London appears to start around the Boundary Road Bridge.
- The railway arches don’t seem to be in the worst of conditions, even if they do have a touch of the Arthur Daley’s.
What I find strange about this line is the lack of a station at Bakers Arms. It’s not that there ever was one, but as the line crosses the major Lea Bridge Road and on this line, that is usually a good enough reason for a station, I’m surprised the Victorians didn’t build one.
The Barking Gospel Oak Rail User Group suggest one in this page on their web site.
There may be a lot of reasons to build a station at Bakers Arms.
- It is near to several new hotels and housing developments.
- It is better positioned than the two adjoining stations.
- It is well served by lots of buses.
- It is on a busy main road.
But contrary to that.
- The buses can take you to the better connected stations of Walthamstow Central and Lea Bridge, in under fifteen minutes.
- It might be a difficult site on which to build a station.
- Reopening the Hall Fsrm Curve may be a better option.
It should probably have been built, when one of the adjoining developments was constructed.
Before GOBlin Electrification – Leyton Midland Road
Leyton Midland Road station is a tidy station, but it has steep stairs and no lifts.
As the pictures show, the platforms are probably long enough for the new four-car trains.
The Anonymous Widower 