Better Journeys
Now and for the future
We all like a bit of good news, whether it’s big or small. So, we wanted to let you know about the improvements we’re making across our network.
From sprucing up our trains to give you that extra bit of comfort, to improving accessibility at some of our stations so that you can move more freely.
We’re investing in improvements right across the network to help make your journey better, little by little.
Better metro
How we’re improving journeys on our inter-city London routes.
Get comfy, whatever the weather
Stay comfy, whatever the weather, in one of our three new waiting rooms at Eltham station. These areas have been completely enclosed from the elements with glazed panelling and automatic sliding doors for accessible entry, following completion of the £120,000 project.
Find out about all the improvements we’re making to stations.
Move more freely with improved accessibility across some stations on our network
Get around easier in one of our four new lifts at Petts Wood station. The lifts are now open following completion of the £10.79m project, and more stations are lined up for improvements:
Bexley, Plumstead and Shortlands stations will also become easier to use following the installation of new lifts at each station.
As part of an ongoing £2.6m programme of station upgrades taking place, Ladywell, Albany Park, Dunton Green, Westcombe Park, Slade Green and Otford will be receiving new or replacement tactile paving and stair treads.
And at Beckenham Junction, Woolwich Dockyard and New Cross, we’re installing new or replacement handrails as part of our ongoing commitment to making our stations as accessible as possible.
Find out about all the improvements we’re making to stations.
Times are changing from 2 June
Enjoy a better journey with trains every 15 minutes to and from Charing Cross on the Sidcup line following our timetable change on 2 June.
And on the Woolwich line, trains will arrive every 10 minutes at the busiest times in the morning across many stations.
If you live on the Bexleyheath line, then you can make the most of the weekend with late-night trains on Saturdays from Charing Cross.
Check your journey using our online journey planner
Better mainline
How we’re improving journeys on our Kent routes.
A spruce up
Look forward to a bit of a spruce up with new LED lights and refreshed interiors on many trains across our network as part of our £10m upgrade to our mainline train fleet.
All 112 of our Class 375 ‘Electrostar’ train fleet, which operates on our routes serving Kent, East Sussex and mainline London stations are receiving at-seat power sockets, including USB points and new energy-efficient LED lighting.
LED lights use around 80% less energy, helping lower greenhouse gas emissions, and they last 40 times longer than normal bulbs – that’s over six years!
The full refresh is due to complete this spring. Find out more about our train improvement programme.
Move more freely with improved accessibility across some stations on our network
Get around easier in one of our two new lifts at Herne Bay station. This £6m project is due to complete at the end of the year and includes a new footbridge and staircases too.
As part of an ongoing £2.6m programme of station upgrades, the waiting room will also become accessible, all toilets will be refurbished, there’ll be extra customer information screens and level boarding for bus interchange as well.
Find out about all the improvements we’re making to stations.
Skip the heavy lifting
Skip the heavy lifting and push your bike upstairs on cycle rails at our stations on the Medway Valley line; Yalding, East Farleigh, Maidstone West, Maidstone Barracks, Aylesford and Halling.
More cycle rails are coming this spring at stations on the Maidstone East line; Charing, Lenham, Harrietsham, Hollingbourne, Barming and Kemsing.
A railway for nature
We want to have a long-term positive impact on the biodiversity that we manage, and already have many station gardens to create welcoming environments for you, our local communities, and of course biodiversity, which is all the different kinds of life you’ll find in one area that work together to maintain balance and support life, like animals, plants, and fungi.
We’re aiming for a net gain in biodiversity across our estate by 2035, and so over the past year we’ve been working with the Kent Wildlife Trust on our plans.
To start with, our work will focus on improving biodiversity at 10 stations and depots that are close to important habitats for wildlife. We’ve carried out an ecological audit of local habitats close to our stations and identified the focus areas of Swale, Swanscombe, Headcorn, Cuxton, Chilham, Tonbridge, Ashford, Dover, Ramsgate and Gillingham.
We’re now developing survey forms to help record the wildlife that lives around our stations so we can understand how best to enhance the biodiversity we manage.
Better highspeed
How we’re improving highspeed journeys between Kent and St Pancras International.
A spruce up
Look forward to a full interior refresh of our highspeed trains as part of our £27m upgrade including new carpets, new seats, power sockets at your seat for mobiles and laptops, enhanced LED lighting, more CCTV, and a change to the layout that will make it easier to get around. The full refresh is due to complete in 2025.
Find out more about our train improvement programme.