Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of reinstating direct trains from Greenwich and Woolwich to London Charing Cross.

The train operator Southeastern are responsible for the detailed planning and operation of their timetable. The realignment to Cannon Street, as the terminal station for Woolwich Line services, was required to reduce congestion at the busy Lewisham Junction and delivers the most benefit for the greatest number of passengers by improving punctuality, reducing cancellations, and improving the network’s ability to recover from disruption.

Passengers on the Woolwich Line wishing to travel to Charing Cross now need to change at either Lewisham or London Bridge where there are frequent connecting trains.

I understand that this structural change is fundamental to delivering the operational and performance benefits of Southeastern’s new timetable.