East London line

East London line
1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification	750 V DC third rail
Route map (Click to expand)

The East London line is part of the London Overground, running north to south through the East, Docklands and South areas of London. It was previously a line of the London Underground.

Built in 1869 by the East London Railway Company, which reused the Thames Tunnel intended for horse-drawn carriages, the line became part of the London Underground network in 1933. After nearly 75 years as part of that network, it closed on 22 December 2007 for an extensive refurbishment and expansion, reopening as part of the Overground network in April 2010.^[4][5][6] Phase 2, which links the line to the South London line with a terminus at Clapham Junction, opened on 9 December 2012, creating an orbital railway around inner London.^[7][8]

History

Establishment of the East London Railway

The East London Railway was created by the East London Railway Company, a consortium of six railway companies: the

• 7 December 1869: New Cross Gate (then New Cross) to Wapping opened, operated by the London, Brighton & South Coast Railway (LB&SCR), with intermediate stations at Deptford Road (now Surrey Quays) and Rotherhithe.
• 13 March 1871: A spur opened from just south of what is now Surrey Quays station to the South London line's Old Kent Road station. Passenger services were withdrawn from 1 June 1911 and freight last used the line in 1964; the track was subsequently removed. This alignment was relaid and restored to passenger service by London Overground in late 2012.
• 10 April 1876: Wapping to Shoreditch, through a cut-and-cover tunnel constructed in part along the bottom of an infilled dock. At Shoreditch a connection was made with the Great Eastern Railway to Liverpool Street. Intermediate stations were at Shadwell and Whitechapel.
• 1 April 1880: A spur to New Cross (South Eastern Railway) opened.
• 3 March 1884: A spur to the Metropolitan and Metropolitan District Railways opened south of
  St Mary's Curve. This enabled Metropolitan Railway and Metropolitan District Railway (District) trains to commence through services to the East London Railway later that year. Although passenger services via this spur ceased in 1939,^[13][14][15]
  it was retained to transfer empty trains to the rest of the sub-surface network.

v t e East London Line
Legend
Richmond or Clapham Junction transfer track (unelectrified) Highbury & Islington Victoria line to Brixton│to Walthamstow Central Northern City Line to Moorgate via Old Street│via Finsbury Park East Coast Main Line via Peterborough Canonbury Newington Road & Balls Pond Mildmay Park Dalston Kingsland North London line to Stratford Dalston Junction Haggerston Regent's Canal Hoxton Shoreditch Broad Street Bank│via Stratford Shoreditch High Street Liverpool Street Great Eastern/West Anglia Main Lines via Stratford/Hackney Downs link to main line closed 1966 Shoreditch Paddington│to Abbey Wood or Shenfield Whitechapel St Mary's Curve to District/Hammersmith & City lines London, Tilbury and Southend line to Fenchurch Street│to Shoeburyness Docklands Light Railway to Bank or Tower Gateway│via Limehouse Shadwell Wapping Thames Tunnel Rotherhithe Stratford Canada Water Jubilee line via Waterloo Surrey Quays Silwood Triangle Sidings South Eastern Main Line & Greenwich line to Cannon St via London Bridge South Eastern Main Line to Charing Cross via London Bridge London Bridge or Blackfriars South London line to London Bridge South Eastern Main Line & Greenwich line to Dartford via Greenwich Surrey Canal Queens Road Peckham Peckham Rye New Cross Depot New Cross South Eastern Main Line to Dartford, Hayes or Orpington via Lewisham   New Cross Gate Flyover New Cross Gate Carriage Sidings New Cross Gate   to Peckham Rye Nunhead to Lewisham Link to Dartford via Lewisham   Brockley   to Peckham Rye Catford Loop Line to Sevenoaks via Bromley South   Honor Oak Park Forest Hill Sydenham Sydenham Junction Victoria│via Bromley South Penge West Crystal Palace Crystal Palace line to Balham Junction Anerley Crystal Palace line to Beckenham Junction Norwood Junction Selhurst Railway depot Victoria Selhurst East Croydon South Croydon West Croydon Sutton and Mole Valley lines via Sutton

The East London Railway Company owned the infrastructure but it was operated by its controlling railways. Steam trains were initially operated by the GER, LB&SCR and the SER. The LB&SCR used its

(MDR) to New Cross (LB&SCR).

United Kingdom legislation

East London Railway Act 1876
Act of Parliament
39 & 40 Vict. c. lii

United Kingdom legislation

East London Railway Act 1877
Act of Parliament
40 & 41 Vict. c. clvi
Dates
Royal assent	2 August 1877
Text of statute as originally enacted

Before the development of the

When the Metropolitan District Railway was electrified in 1905 it ceased using the ELR, the last trains running on 31 July 1905;[13] the Metropolitan Railway suspended its service after 2 December 1906.^[13] LB&SCR and GER services continued, and SER services recommenced on 3 December 1906.

The line was electrified, with the controlling railways funding the upgrade and the Metropolitan Railway providing the rolling stock. Electric services began on 31 March 1913 and ran from the two southern termini to Shoreditch and

After the 1923 grouping the goods service was operated by London and North Eastern Railway (as successors to the GER), with the Metropolitan Railway continuing to provide passenger services.

London Underground era

v t e East London line
Legend
London Underground
to Liverpool Street Great Eastern Main Line to Norwich Shoreditch Whitechapel to District line and Hammersmith & City line St Mary's Curve Docklands Light Railway │ Shadwell Shadwell Wapping Thames Tunnel Rotherhithe Canada Water Surrey Quays to London Bridge New Cross Depot New Cross Gate New Cross South Eastern Main Line Brighton Main Line

In 1933, the East London Railway came under the control of the London Passenger Transport Board. Although the infrastructure was still privately owned, passenger services were operated as the "East London Branch" of the Metropolitan line. The railways were nationalised in 1948, and became part of the British Transport Commission along with the Underground. Goods services continued to use the line until 1962, with occasional passenger trains from Liverpool Street until 1966. The short length of track connecting Shoreditch to Liverpool St was removed in 1966. The service to Shoreditch was reduced, with Whitechapel becoming the northern terminus for much of the time; by the time Shoreditch station closed in 2006, it was only open at peak times on weekdays and most of Sundays (for Brick Lane Market).

Services to and from stations further west were curtailed during the early part of the Underground era. The service to Hammersmith was reduced to peak hours only in 1936 and withdrawn in 1939,^[13][14][15] leaving the East London branch as an isolated line. Until 1999, its only passenger interchange to the rest of the Underground was at Whitechapel, with interchanges to main line trains at the two New Cross stations. In the 1980s and 1990s, the line gained two important new connections: Shadwell became an interchange with the Docklands Light Railway in 1987, and a station was added at Canada Water in 1999 for interchange with the Jubilee line. The line was closed entirely between March 1995 and March 1998 for major maintenance and refurbishment works,^[20] during which time a rail-replacement bus service operated.

The identity of the East London line changed considerably during the London Underground era. On Tube maps between 1933 and 1968 it was depicted in the same colour as the Metropolitan line.

It connected with South Eastern Main Line services at New Cross and Brighton Main Line services at New Cross Gate. Underground connections were at Canada Water (Jubilee line) and Whitechapel (District and Hammersmith & City Lines). A non-contiguous connection with the Docklands Light Railway was at Shadwell, with the DLR station some 160 feet (49 m) away on a viaduct. Although the interchange was via the street, through ticketing was permitted.

A link with the Metropolitan and District lines was made just south of Whitechapel via

Seven four-car trains operated the line (six off-peak, seven during peak hours when Shoreditch was open). Off peak, train seven became the spare. The line operated some of the shortest trains on the network, necessitated by short platforms. The small number of trains made the line particularly sensitive to disruption caused by vandalism, train faults or staff shortages. Sometimes in the early 2000s only two trains were running. Trains were operated by just a driver: the decision to withdraw the guards prompted an unsuccessful strike by the National Union of Railwaymen in May 1985.^[25]

Light maintenance and stabling took place at a small depot near New Cross, with heavier work at the main Metropolitan line depot at Neasden. Between 1985 and 1987, D78 stock operated the line before being replaced by A60 and A62 stock. During the 1970s the line was operated by

Stations

The stations in operation during most of the London Underground era, in order from north to south, were as follows:

Station	Opened	First Underground service	Notes
Shoreditch (replaced by Shoreditch High Street)	10 April 1876	31 March 1913	Closed on 9 June 2006, prior to whole line's temporary closure for conversion to Overground.
Whitechapel	10 April 1876	31 March 1913	Interchange with District and Hammersmith & City Lines.
Shadwell	10 April 1876	1 October 1884	Interchange with Docklands Light Railway.
Wapping	7 December 1869	1 October 1884	Thames Tunnel link to Rotherhithe
Rotherhithe	7 December 1869	1 October 1884	Thames Tunnel link to Wapping
Canada Water	19 August 1999	19 August 1999	Interchange with Jubilee line opened 17 September 1999.
Surrey Quays	7 December 1869	1 October 1884	Station was opened as Deptford Road, renamed Surrey Docks in 1911, and again renamed in 1989.
line splits
New Cross Gate	7 December 1869	1 October 1884	Interchange with Southern mainline services. Mainline station was opened as New Cross in 1839, and renamed in 1923.
New Cross	1 April 1880	1 October 1884	Interchange with Southeastern mainline services. Mainline station was opened in 1850.

Conversion to Overground

Engineering work on the East London line extension started in 2005 and the underground service ended in December 2007.

In 2007 London Buses route ELW Whitechapel – Shadwell – Wapping was introduced, operating every 10 minutes, every 15 minutes at evenings and weekends.^[26] It was operated with route-branded single-deck buses.^{[citation needed]} Starting on 23 December 2007 it was extended from Whitechapel to Shoreditch (Monday-Friday 07:00-10:30 & 15:30–20:30, Sunday 07:00-15:30) from 19 July 2008.^{[citation needed]} The frequency of the route was cut to four buses per hour in September 2009.^[27] It was reduced to weekends-only from 28 April 2010, and withdrawn on 9 May 2010.

Between 2006 and May 2008 other rail replacement buses were provided. Route ELS Whitechapel – Shoreditch (Monday-Friday 07:00-10:30 & 15:30–20:30, Sunday 07:00-15:30) commenced 10 June 2006 and was withdrawn on 19 July 2008. It was replaced by a peak-hour extension of route ELW.^{[citation needed]}

London Buses route ELC New Cross Gate – New Cross – Surrey Quays – Canada Water (Monday-Friday every 5–10 minutes, weekends every 15 minutes)^[26] started on 23 December 2007. It was withdrawn on 25 September 2009 following a 40% drop in passenger numbers. Transport for London estimated that this saved around £1 million over the period to June 2010.^[28]

London Buses route ELP Canada Water – Rotherhithe (every 15 minutes) began on 23 December 2007 and was withdrawn on 24 February 2008 due to lack of use: tickets were valid between Bermondsey and Canada Water on standard

Unlike the previous East London line closure, no replacement bus service was provided across the River Thames through the Rotherhithe Tunnel. London Transport was concerned that demand would be so high and buses would be so small that the frequency could have to be one bus every 30 seconds. There was also an issue that the Rotherhithe Tunnel is restricted to vehicles with a width no more than 7 feet (2.1 m), which had been employed on previous occasions. However, by 2007 no such vehicles were commercially available that were low-floor compliant: the only ones with this width, as previously used, were minibuses with higher floors. As bus policy by this time was 100% low floor, it meant that no such service could be provided.

A limited train service was introduced on 27 April 2010 and full service began on 23 May 2010.^[29]

History of the extended route

Mostly on viaduct, the route from Highbury and Islington to Shoreditch was opened in 1865. It was constructed by the

At its peak, Broad Street was the third-busiest station in London (after Liverpool Street and Victoria). At the start of the 20th century, more than one train per minute arrived or departed Broad Street during rush hour, with over 27 million passengers in 1902. Intermediate station traffic stagnated due to bus and tram competition, and Haggerston and Shoreditch stations were closed in 1940 following bomb damage in World War II. The line remained busy up to the 1950s, receiving traffic from the East Coast Main Line, West Coast Main Line and other routes. However, it declined following the war and was closed on 30 June 1986. While Broad Street station's site was immediately sold for office use, becoming the Broadgate development, the route north was mothballed. The present Haggerston and Dalston Junction stations have been built next to and on the original sites, but Shoreditch High Street station is on a new alignment connecting the two routes.

Extension

Phase 1

The former line was extended northwards from Whitechapel, with new stations at Shoreditch High Street, Hoxton, Haggerston and Dalston Junction using 2.2 miles (3.5 km) of new trackbed between Whitechapel and the Broad Street viaduct, and disused trackbed for most of rest of the distance. A further extension to Highbury & Islington was opened in February 2011.

It was extended south to connect to the London Bridge arm of the Brighton Main Line, linked via a northbound flyover north of New Cross Gate. Other than the new flyover and some associated works around New Cross Gate, it uses almost entirely existing track, running south to West Croydon via Brockley, Honor Oak Park, Forest Hill, Sydenham, Penge West, Crystal Palace (by way of a branch), Anerley and Norwood Junction.

The official opening of most of phase 1 of the

The track and the northern extension remain under TfL ownership, and the stations from Dalston Junction to Surrey Quays are part of the London Overground network.^[33] The extension runs northwards from Whitechapel to Dalston Junction, and south to Crystal Palace and West Croydon.

Highbury & Islington extension

v t e Phase 2 Extension
Legend
East London line to Highbury & Islington Surrey Quays East London line to New Cross, Crystal Palace & West Croydon Surrey Canal (proposed) South London line to London Bridge Old Kent Road Queens Road Peckham Nunhead to Lewisham Link Peckham Rye Sutton and Mole Valley lines Denmark Hill Thameslink East Brixton Clapham High Street Wandsworth Road Waterloo to Battersea Park West London Line to Willesden Junction Clapham Junction Brighton and South West Main Lines

The line was extended northwards to Highbury & Islington on 28 February 2011,^[34] two months earlier than previously announced, with eight trains per hour during most of the day. The first train, with headcode 9A20, was the 09:55 Highbury & Islington – Crystal Palace, which departed on time from platform 2 and was formed of a four-car class 378 unit.^{[citation needed]}

East London line extension phase 2

A further 6.7 miles (10.8 km) link opened in 2012 from south of

The combined East London and South London line service is described by Transport for London as the Highbury & Islington to New Cross, Clapham Junction, Crystal Palace and West Croydon route.[36] As of the December 2023 timetable the typical off-peak service pattern is:^[36]

A Friday and Saturday night service was introduced between Dalston Junction and New Cross Gate (initially not stopping at Whitechapel) from December 2017.

Renaming

In July 2023, TfL announced that it would be giving each of the six Overground services unique names by the end of the following year.

Various sources have been used in the creation of this article, including the external links below, email conversations with the ELL Project Team and emails from the ELL Project Team update newsletter.

Further reading

• Wayne Asher. 2015. A Very Political Railway – the rescue of the North London Line.
  ISBN 978-1-85414-378-5
• John Glover. 2013. London's Overground.
  ISBN 978-0-7110-3524-9

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to East London Line.

• East London line Project (official home page)
• Video Flyover of Phase 1
• Photos of the East London Line and Thames Tunnel Archived 14 April 2016 at the Wayback Machine while still London Underground