London Bridge Rebuilding Works

Thameslink Programme

London Bridge

Now onto the main subject at hand, London Bridge, the site of the capital’s first ever terminus station, which served its first trains as long ago as 14th December 1836. It was not at the end of a grand main line; rather, it served a humble three-mile-long route which initially terminated at Deptford. It is a site which has undergone many transformations – the last of these culminated in a rather ugly rebuild, formally opened on 15th December 1978, of a station which still showed the scars of World War II bombing raids. Much interesting and historic architecture was swept away, particularly on the South Eastern Division platforms, but beyond retention of the viaduct arches, two key features did remain:

• LB&SCR’s trainshed over the Central Division terminating platforms, completed in 1866.

• SER’s offices in Tooley Street, along the station’s northern perimeter.

On 27th June 2011, Network Rail submitted a planning application to Southwark Council, seeking permission for the following:

• Demolition of Grade II Listed trainshed over the terminal platforms

• Demolition of those arches along St Thomas Street, which resided directly under the trainshed. This was to make way for a new concourse entrance, which would be built in sympathy with the remaining arches.

• Demolition of ex-SER offices in Tooley Street, to enable provision of a new façade and a new circulating area on this side of the station.

• Closure of Stainer Street, which ran from north-to-south underneath the station complex

• Closure of that northern portion of Weston Street, which also ran underneath the site. The road closures tied in with the provision of a new street-level concourse and fresh station entrances along Tooley and St Thomas Streets.

• Construction of new platform canopies.

In the early stages of the programme, credence was given to the idea of dismantling the trainshed and subsequently storing it, pending reassembly elsewhere. Unfortunately, it later became clear that complete destruction was the order of the day. Resistance was met on the demolition of the Tooley Street offices, the structure of which was not Listed. Nevertheless, Network Rail’s scheme was given the ‘’green light’’ by Southwark Council on 20th December 2011. The proposed demolition of the offices in Tooley Street had been referred to English Heritage. The organisation reported back, claiming Network Rail had not demonstrated that it was necessary for the building’s destruction as part of the scheme. Evidently, this fell on deaf ears, for tenants were instructed to vacate the premises and, in February 2013, windows started to be boarded up.

The existing layout comprised nine terminal platforms, eight of which were covered by the trainshed, and six through platforms. Sandwiched in-between the terminus station and through platforms was also a passing loop, bringing the station’s cumulative line total to sixteen. The programme sought to invert this arrangement, whereby a completely new track layout would provide six terminating and nine through platforms. Of the through platforms, running north to south, two would be dedicated to Cannon Street trains, the next pair used by Thameslink services, and the final two devoted to Charing Cross traffic. All platforms, bar No. 15, were to be made capable of handling twelve-vehicle formations. The location of the existing signal box precluded building platform No. 15 to anything beyond ten-vehicle capacity.

West of London Bridge, a triangle upon arches is formed between Cannon Street and Charing Cross routes. At the eastern end of this once existed Borough Market Junction, which was abolished in 1991 when switching between routes was confined to the east of London Bridge station. Heavy engineering works were planned here as part of the scheme to increase the number of through platforms at the station from six to nine. These would involve the construction of a 400-metre (437.45-yards) viaduct south of, and running parallel with, the Charing Cross tracks, through Borough Market. The viaduct was to accommodate two-tracks, these of which would become dedicated to Charing Cross trains. The shifting of Charing Cross services over to the new lines enabled the existing double-track on the southern side of the triangle to be used solely by Thameslink trains. However, these tracks required realignment to make room for the new Charing Cross lines, necessitating the widening of the existing viaduct on its northern side, in the fork of the converging Cannon Street/Charing Cross lines at the western end of the triangle. A consequence of this was to be the temporary closure of the western side of the triangle. This comprised just a single-track and was used by empty stock movements, some late night services from Charing Cross, in addition to serving as a useful diversionary route via Cannon Street when engineering works occupied the southern part of the triangle.
 

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