Wapping railway station

Wapping
Wapping Location of Wapping in Greater London
Location	Wapping
Local authority	London Borough of Tower Hamlets
Managed by	London Overground
Owner	Transport for London
Station code	WPE
Number of platforms	2
Fare zone	2
London Underground annual entry and exit
2007	1.561 million
2008	0 (closed) million
2009	0 (closed) million
National Rail annual entry and exit
2010–11	0.719 million
2011–12	1.081 million
2012–13	1.271 million
2013–14	1.371 million
2014–15	1.569 million
Key dates
1869	Opened as Wapping and Shadwell
1876	Renamed Wapping
1884	First Underground service
27 April 2010	Reopened
Other information
Lists of stations	DLR Underground National Rail Tramlink
External links	Departures Layout Facilities Buses
London Transport portal UK Railways portal

Wapping railway station is on the northern bank of the river Thames in Wapping, East London, England. It is in Zone 2, and on the East London Line of London Overground between Shadwell and Rotherhithe.

After recent temporary closures for remodelling, the station reopened for preview services on 27 April 2010 for services to New Cross and New Cross Gate, and from 23 May 2010 trains to/from New Cross Gate were extended to West Croydon / Crystal Palace.

History

Construction

A 1908 Railway Clearing House map of lines in South East London, including the southern portion of the East London Line

The station occupies the north end of the former Thames foot tunnel built by Marc Isambard Brunel between 1825–1843, and subsequently adapted for railway traffic. Access to the station is by lift or a flight of stairs built into one of the original access shafts of the Thames Tunnel.

London, Brighton and South Coast Railway

Locomotive exiting the Thames Tunnel and arriving at what is now Wapping station. Illustrated London News 8 January 1870.

The station was originally opened as the northern terminus of the East London Railway on 7 December 1869 as Wapping and Shadwell, and the station was renamed Wapping on 10 April 1876, when the line was extended northwards to Liverpool Street, via a new station at Shadwell. The earliest trains were provided by the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway, whose system connected with the line at New Cross Gate.

London Underground

Wapping station as it appeared in 2006 with London Underground branding. The entrance has since been moved from the corner to the front.

Underground trains of the Metropolitan and the District Railways first served the station on 1 October 1884, but the station was last served by District trains on 31 July 1905.

The station was extensively remodelled between 1995 and 1998, when the entire East London Line - including Wapping station - was closed due to repair work on the tunnels under the Thames. Vitreous enamel panels by Nick Hardcastle showing the station and the area in former and modern times were installed on the platforms.

London Overground

London Overground train at the northbound platform of Wapping station in 2015. The station's narrow and curved platforms have been identified as a safety hazard.

The East London Line closed on 22 December 2007, and reopened on 27 April 2010 when it became part of the new London Overground system. During this time the station was heavily refurbished.

The proposed extension of the East London Line raised concerns that the station would have to be closed due to its platforms being too short (only four cars long) to accommodate the new rolling stock planned for the extended line (which could be six or eight cars long). The narrowness of the platforms was also a concern. The station does not fully meet the safety standards for an underground station but is permitted to operate under a derogation from Her Majesty's Railway Inspectorate. Despite this, on 16 August 2004 then-Mayor of London Ken Livingstone announced that the station would remain open.

Services

London Overground East London Line
Legend
Highbury & Islington    Canonbury Dalston Junction Kingsland Viaduct ▼ Haggerston Hoxton Kingsland Viaduct ▲ Shoreditch High Street Whitechapel Shadwell Wapping Thames Tunnel under River Thames Rotherhithe Canada Water Surrey Quays Queens Road Peckham New Cross Peckham Rye New Cross Gate Denmark Hill Brockley Clapham High Street Honor Oak Park Wandsworth Road Forest Hill Clapham Junction Sydenham Crystal Palace Penge West Anerley Norwood Junction West Croydon

All times below are correct as of the December 2010 timetables.

London Overground

East London Line

Mondays to Saturdays there is a service every 5–10 minutes throughout the day, while on Sundays before 13:00 there is a service every 5–9 minutes, changing to every 7–8 minutes until the end of service after that. Current off peak frequency is:

• 8 northbound to Highbury & Islington
• 8 northbound to Dalston Junction
• 4 southbound to Clapham Junction via Peckham Rye
• 4 southbound to Crystal Palace via New Cross Gate
• 4 southbound to New Cross
• 4 southbound to West Croydon via Norwood Junction

Connections

London Buses routes 100 and D3 serve the station.

References

Bibliography

Preceding station		London Overground		Following station
Shadwell towards Highbury & Islington or Dalston Junction		East London Line		Rotherhithe towards New Cross, Clapham Junction, Crystal Palace or West Croydon
	Former services
Preceding station		London Underground		Following station
Shadwell towards Amersham, Chesham, Uxbridge or Watford		Metropolitan line (1884-1906) (1913-39)		Rotherhithe towards New Cross or New Cross Gate
Shadwell towards Wimbledon, Richmond, Ealing Broadway or South Harrow		District line (1884-1905)		Rotherhithe towards New Cross Gate
Shadwell towards Shoreditch		East London line		Rotherhithe towards New Cross or New Cross Gate