An 87-year-old South London resident has been unable to go to hospital appointments in Central London after a controversial timetable change by Southeastern in December 2022.

Southeastern Railway put in place a new train timetable on December 11, meaning trains on the Woolwich line now terminate at London Cannon Street instead of Charing Cross.

Trains on the Bexleyheath line now only go to Charing Cross during peak times.

The changes mean commuters are encouraged to switch trains at London Bridge station if they wish to travel to Charing Cross or London Waterloo.

Labour Councillor Lauren Dingsdale, chair of the transport scrutiny committee for Greenwich Council, said in a letter sent to the head of Southeastern Railway: “Just this morning, an 87 year old woman with a bad leg called me to say that she had attempted travelling to Charing Cross for her hospital appointments from Eltham station, but changing in London Bridge was just too much for her.”

Cllr Dingsdale asked for Southeastern representatives to attend a meeting with the transport scrutiny panel for Greenwich Council, to compare statistics on delayed and cancelled Southeastern trains before and after the timetable change.

The councillor said in her letter that she has received reports of “numerous delays, cancellations and overcrowding” on Southeastern trains, but also called the evidence she had seen anecdotal.

Labour Councillor Sammy Backon, representing Eltham Town and Avery Hill ward alongside Cllr Dingsdale, said that he was concerned about vulnerable and disabled individuals changing trains at London Bridge.

Cllr Backon also said the difficulties residents have faced getting to work from the new timetable has put some workers’ “employment under threat”.

The comments were made in a letter sent to Steve White, managing director of Southeastern Railway.

Cllr Backon said: “This strips some people of their independence, as they are more reliant on hospital transportation, being driven by family or friends, or drives people into their own cars.

"I urge you to revert to the previous timetable as soon as possible.”

Southeastern representatives met with the Greenwich Council transport scrutiny panel in October 2022 to discuss changes to their timetable.

Cllr Dingsdale, who chairs the panel, said at the meeting: “What worries me about the rationale you’ve given is that I can understand punctuality and reliability are incredibly important, but you haven’t asked if people would prefer that to having Charing Cross taken away from them.”

In response, Mr White said at the meeting that the current timetable was was “hardwired in” and could not be changed due to agreements with train operators.

He said: “Tonight I can only describe to you why we have made the changes that we have made, what we hope to achieve by those changes and be honest about the impact it has, and how we want to ensure that the changes at London Bridge are robust, safe and effective for you.”

A spokesperson for Southeastern and Network Rail said: “We’re sorry to all our customers who have had disrupted or uncomfortable journeys recently. It wasn’t the start we wanted or had planned for, nor what our customers deserve.


“Together, Southeastern and Network Rail are committed to providing a low-cancellation, on-time railway and we’re working around the clock to improve our infrastructure, our trains and our timetable. We believe that over the next few weeks our customers will see a steady improvement.”