An extra four trams an hour to serve the local area
Passengers travelling on the Wimbledon tram service will be taking advantage of more frequent services from Monday (April 4).
Services between Wimbledon and Croydon will rise from eight to 12 trams per hour. The increase in frequency follows the completion of work to build an extra tram platform at Wimbledon station late last year.
Rory O’Neill, TfL’s Director of Trams, said: “The Tram network is a crucial transport link to the community it serves and we are committed to continually improving our services. The extra trams will help meet increasing passenger demand and make a real difference to the customers who use the service every day.”
The Tram network has experienced rapid growth in passenger numbers since it opened in 2000, from 18.5 million passengers in its first year of operation to over 32 million in 2014/15, and demand is forecast to increase to around 60 million by 2030.
A number of improvements have already been made in recent years including adding new track between Mitcham Junction and Beddington Lane which allows trams to travel in both directions simultaneously, resulting in more frequent and faster journeys for customers.
But local resident Anthony Fairclough warned about the impact on the local roads network: "Great to have extra trams, but no changes/improvements have been made to the junction of Kingston and Hartfield Roads to go with this - sitting traffic is already bad here, and will get worse with the extra trams on the level crossing," he said.
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March 31, 2016