Conservative Councillors are calling on Southeastern trains to reintroduce “loop” services from Mottingham and New Eltham to Woolwich and Charlton at the weekends, including special services for Charlton Athletic match-days.
Weekday commuter services on the loop - from Mottingham and New Eltham on the Sidcup line to stations on the Woolwich line - were reintroduced at the end of last year following the success of our “Save the Loop” campaign. Over 2,500 people signed our petition to restore the services, which provide a way for commuters in the south of the Borough to link up directly with Elizabeth Line trains from Abbey Wood.
Conservative councillors are now calling for “loop” services to be restored at weekends too, and have suggested Charlton fans in the south of the Borough could benefit from additional match-day services on the route.
Councillor Charlie Davis raised the suggestion with senior Southeastern managers at last month’s meeting of Greenwich Council’s transport scrutiny panel. In response, Southeastern’s director of operations said he would consider the issue and seek intelligence on the likely demand for the service to inform the decision.
Responding after the meeting, Councillor Davis said:
“It’s great news that Southeastern will consider the introduction of match-day services for Charlton fans in the south of the borough to get to the Valley. We’ve seen before that these decisions only get made when there is clear demand from passengers, so I’m planning to work with the Club and Charlton fans to demonstrate to Southeastern that the demand is there.”
Councillor Davis’s exchange with Southeastern at the scrutiny meeting can be seen on the Council’s YouTube channel (link).
