Streatham Area Committee (29 October 2003) 268/03-04 6

Streatham: Public Transport Services

Streatham has the potential to become a major public transport 'node'. That is, a place where key public transport services merge. If that were to happen, it would:

assist the regeneration of the area;

improve the vitality of the retail sector;

curtail the growth of car traffic on the A23;

and provide the residents of the area with a wider choice of public transport services.

This report considers each of these factors, but first it outlines the possible public transport improvements.

Rail Services

There are three stations serving Streatham, each with its own catchment area.

Streatham Hill There are 4/5 trains an hour, with fast services to Victoria, via Balham and Clapham Junction. In the other direction the links are with Norwood, Crystal Palace and Croydon.

Streatham Common There is a 15 minute service to Victoria via Balham and Clapham Junction. In the other direction the links are with Norbury, Thornton Heath and Croydon.

Streatham Served by both Thameslink and Connex SouthCentral trains, the service is less regular than at the other Streatham Stations. The key destinations are London Bridge, Blackfriars and, to the south, Wimbledon. There is an occasional train to Croydon.

In the pipeline:

South London 'Metro': Govia, the company that runs Connex SouthCentral, plans to introduce a 'metro' service in South London. It is looking to provide a train at least every 10/15 minutes, to be introduced over 2003/4.

Thameslink 2000: The original Thameslink 2000 scheme that first appeared in the Central London Rail Study (published 1989) was designed to improve the rail service in South London. The latest scheme, though, would have done nothing for Lambeth. It concentrated on providing more fast services to the South Coast. It would not have resulted in one extra train stopping in Lambeth. But this scheme was thrown out at a recent Public Inquiry (largely on the grounds that it would have effectively destroyed Borough Market in Southwark). A revised scheme would almost certainly need to be subject of a new Public Inquiry. The view from the Mayor and TfL is that Thameslink 2000 is now 'on the back burner'.

Improvements to press for:

South London 'Metro': A minimum 10 service at each of Streatham's stations would provide something much more like a 'tube-type' frequency. It would seem essential, particularly bearing in mind the importance of the evening and leisure economy to Streatham, that this frequency was maintained until the last train in the evenings and throughout the weekend. It is particularly important that lobbying takes place to ensure that Streatham Station gets a good, regular service without the irrational gaps that currently exist in some of its services.

Thameslink 2000: Thameslink 2000 would only be useful to Lambeth if it resulted in more stopping trains in the borough. Given the fact that the East London Line Extension will greatly enhance the service through Forest Hill to Croydon, there would be a strong case for a Thameslink 2000 service serving the Tulse Hill/Streatham/Wimbledon line.

Light Rail Services

In the pipeline:

There are two potential extensions which could service Streatham: -

Cross River Transit This scheme has been given the go-ahead in principle by the Mayor. It is second in the queue after the plan to build a tram scheme along Uxbridge Road. This may mean that the completion of any Cross Transit Scheme could be over 10 years away.

The original scheme was to run trams from Euston, via Aldwych to Waterloo. Its main purpose was provide an easy link between the tourist areas of Central London, such as Covent Garden, and areas on the Southbank, with the expectation that more tourists would thereby be attracted south of the river.

That original scheme was then developed further. Beyond the Elephant and Castle, 2 branches were proposed: one to Peckham via Walworth Road and Burgess Park; the other to Stockwell following the line of the Northern Line.

Under the last Administration, Lambeth commissioned a study to look at the potential of extending the tram to Brixton. This was incorporated by TfL into their final plan.

The current Administration asked TfL to assess the possibility of taking the tram to Streatham. A fairly basic study was carried out. TfL said that, if it were to go to Streatham, they favoured a route up Brixton Hill rather than via Clapham from Stockwell.

The most important section to Streatham of Cross River Transit would be the part connecting it to Brixton (or Clapham). It would provide Streatham residents with an attractive link to the underground and it would enable people from other parts of the borough to access Streatham more easily. I shall return to both these points. Croydon Tram Extension

A tram from Purley to Streatham This would largely run along the A23. In the narrower sections, this would involve choices to be made about allocation of road space.

This tram, particularly if linked with Cross River transit coming from the north, would make it much easier to reach Streatham. This should help with regeneration, leisure and retail vitality. But rigorous studies would need to be carried out into the overall benefit/disbenefits to Streatham of the Croydon tram link as the trams would also provide better links out of Streatham! For example to shop in Croydon. But, on balance, it is likely these tram links should be of benefit to Streatham. If TfL is reluctant to extend Cross River Transit south to Streatham, the possibility of extending the Croydon tram north to Brixton or Clapham should be considered.

A study to be published shortly by the South London Partnership has highlighted the ways in which the Croydon tram has:

helped regenerate the areas it serves;

linked unemployed people to jobs in other areas;

resulted in property values increasing along the route;

attracted business people out of their cars (in a way buses rarely do);

opened up new travel opportunities for socially-excluded communities (including disabled people as the trams are fully accessible).

The attraction of the tram is its reliability, its style and cleanliness, its accessibility and the fact that it is providing good, new orbital links.

The new study is suggesting four possible extensions (in no particular order): Sutton-Tooting; Sutton-Wimbledon; Purley-Streatham; Birbeck-Crystal Palace. The idea is that, eventually, all four extensions could be taken forward to form the basis of a South London tram scheme. At present, the ideas are just that, but a wide-ranging coalition is emerging to lobby both TfL and National Government to get behind them.

Buses

At present, Brixton Hill is one of the most heavily-bussed roads in London. This shows the importance of buses to Streatham at the moment. But these heavy flows of people could also ensure the financial viability of a tram, indeed even an underground line. The last study, by London Transport, in the early 1990s into an extension of the Northern Line to Streatham showed that, although the capital cost would be high, an extension, once up and running, would cover its revenue costs. But, at present, an underground extension appears to be off the agenda.

The areas where bus travel can be a problem are those roads coming off the A23 which are only served by one or two bus routes. If Streatham is to become a first class public transport 'node' these bus routes need special attention. In the longer term, if the light rail schemes are in place, the pattern of bus services would change. Buses would have much more of a function of feeding into the trams. But, over the next few years, buses will continue to be crucial to Streatham.

Regeneration

First-class public transport links can play a significant role in regenerating an area. The Croydon tram has done this. The rail/tram/bus interchange at Lewisham is having a similar effect. The evidence suggests that the same thing could happen Streatham.

John Stewart Co-ordinator Lambeth Public Transport Group