Features

robert
I wish TFL had thought about the alternatives people have to the closed East London line. I live in Shadwell where there are precious few buses to get anywhere. The DLR has been closed at weekends and they are effectively closing Bank/Monument station for escalator refurbishment. I think when our travel options become so limited we should be offered a reduction in our travel card cost.

David
FYI TfL is withdrawing Route ELP from Saturday 23rd Feb 2008 and increasing frequencies on Route 381. Valid tube tickets will be accepted on route 381 between Surrey Quays and Bermondsey.

Henry
I live in New Cross Gate and I am really annoyed on two issues. The New Cross Gate to Canada water replacement bus doesnt stop at Deptford DLR Bridge! My alternative is use the train service from NCG to London bridge but they wont accept prepaid oyster! I have pay £4 for a single journey.

David Perkins
Commute=Purley Oaks to Shadwell & return, shift work At Wapping print works. The bus replacement puts 3/4 hour on my time to 1&3/4 hours. I could use the DLR from Deptford Bridge or go into Ldn Bgd but the extra cost is about £12 per week return. The irony is I retire when the line reopens, so the upgrade serves no purpose for me, but I suffer badly. Why Tfl (Tumour for London) did not allow the using the DLR at Deptford rather than Canary Wharf beggars belief, but shows no Tfl employees used this line.

Charlie
In 1995-ish the East London Line was shut down, and I had fond memories of catching the 'ELT' which the equivalent of the current 'ELP' - except that the ELT DID STOP on all 381/C10 bus stops along the way. PLEASE can TFL rehaul the ELP service, let it stop at all stops!!!

Baderni (Canada Water)
I agree totally with MS. The ELP replacement bus is a joke, there is virtually no demand for a non-stop service between Canada Water & Rotherhithe stations. Yet as MS says, during rush hour, the queues for the C10 and 381 buses (which go from Canawa Water to Rotherhithe, stopping in the heavily populated areas in between) are always huge! They should scrap either the ELP, put on extra 381/C10 buses, or..the best idea yet...allow the ELP to stop between Canada Water & Rotherhithe, and serve the very busy areas in between!

Alan Griffiths, Froestr Gate E7
I'll be affected very little, apart from a slightly slower return from a football match at Selhurst Park on 15 March 2008. What I don't understand is why the closure has to last so long. Lots of re-signalling is being fitted to the underground. Most of that work is done during overnight and occaisional weekend closures. Why can't most of the new signalling for the Overground bw fitted to the former East London Line in that way?

MS
When was the last time any TFL/government project was completed on schedule? 3yrs?My money's on 4yrs closure. Moreover, the replacement services are desperately inadequate. Who in the world actually agreed to these plans?! Clearly they weren't a resident. Today my wife and I took the ELP bus from Canada Water to Rotherhithe. We live half way along Rotherhithe Street, but the ELP doesn't stop at all between the two stations!! What were they thinking?! There were queues of people at every single bus-stop begging the bus to pull-over, but he wouldn't! At rush hour, Rotherhithe could really do with an extra bus. There were three of us on a double-decker (carbon-footprint?!), and about 40 people wanting to get on to make their trip shorter. Is it REALLY such an inconvenience for the bus to stop 5-6times along the way to reduce congestion at Canada Water tube, and on the C10 and 381. Residents not consulted, under-resourced, and planned by people with a very basic understanding of the transport demands of our area.

Ace
Another senseless decision made by people who are too wrapped up in their own self importance to use an ounce of Commonsense,why as Bill has made clear would they chose to close the line before the New Year, as January is a slow time,people who want to connect to the markets in southeast London during the xmas period, are now going to be messed about with badly connecting buses,and paying train fares for buses

Jeroen
Christmas is actually one of the quietest periods around the network, and there are huge works taking place at Liverpool Street for that reason, too.It seems a bit silly having four separate replacement services instead of two (one below, one above the river). I guess that most people will be able to get by just fine using buses and the DLR, but the fact that this line was closing for over two years was the main reason I did not even consider moving to the ELL area when I had a chance to do so.

Rob
Don't worry, they'll soon have the Tube running Christmas day again, just like it did until the end of the 70's...

Bill
The closure of the East London Line will a real nuiance to people especially as they are closing it before Christmas. Why not leave it open till after the New Year. Also as the East London Line it ran on Boxing Day, will it continue to do so when it reopens or will it be shut like the reat of the overground network leaving South East London without some sort of train service?