This is one of my longest-standing campaigns - 4 years old! - and it is close to fruition, with longer trains scheduled to arrive this December. As your MP I can work to ensure there is minimum disruption while the upgrade works are completed and there is no slippage in the timescale. You can read more about the campaign and the latest plan below and to the left.
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Those of us who use Earlsfield station in the morning and evening rush-hours are all too aware of the extreme over-crowding on the platform and in the carriages at these times.
While 8-carriage trains may have been sufficient many years ago, the popularity of Earlsfield and the rise in local population have meant that 10-carriage trains are now a necessity. Looking at the experience of nearby Balham, where 10-carriage trains were introduced a few years ago, I have seen the positive impact that an extra 25% capacity at peak times can bring.
Therefore, by building on the success of our previous campaign for the upgrade to Earlsfield station, I am now working with your local Conservative councillors, Charles Lescott and Angela Graham, to develop a plan to bring 10-carriage trains to Earlsfield.
Changes to the rail network provide us with an opportunity to bring longer trains to Southwest London, for example the relocation of Eurostar from Waterloo to St Pancras and the additional platform capacity this has released at Waterloo. There is also a lot of investment going into the railway network across London and the UK, but with strong competition for these funds it’s absolutely vital that this campaign can get the large majority of Earlsfield residents behind it and in doing so ensure that we are considered a priority by the rail authorities.
While I don’t expect this to be a ‘quick win’, I do know that it is only with your support that we will bring 10-carriage trains here and ease the pain of the rush-hour commute. So please visit the survey we have set up and register your support for this campaign:
www.surveymonkey.com/s/EarlsfieldStation
I would also be pleased to hear any other general feedback you have about the rail service at Earlsfield and so have provided an opportunity for you to do so in the survey.
July 2014
I met with Stephen Hammond MP, Minister for Transport, and Tim Shoveller, Managing Director of South West Trains on 9th July and below is update on the situation and our campaign.
http://www.danwatkins.org.uk/news/update-earlsfield-train-campaign
