Further consultation opens on Barking Riverside Overground extension

Option A (Image: Archant)

Transport for London (TfL) is proposing a 4km increase – 1.5km of new track – operating four trains per hour from Barking station along the existing Tilbury line.

The route would then travel along a new section of railway, heading south after the railway passes underneath Renwick Road Bridge.

Currently two separate options exist – one using two viaducts, the other having both lines run on a single bridge – and residents can have their say before the consultation ends on June 21.

After passing under Renwick Road Bridge, alignment A would turn right and pass over a freight yard and Choats Road, before dropping under the power lines and continuing into Barking Riverside.

Option B (Image: Archant)

The westbound line back to Barking station would cross Choats Road on another viaduct and curve left near the existing houses, joining the Tilbury line west of the bridge.

This option requires fewer changes to the freight yard railway infrastructure and could cost less.

Although a second station between Barking Riverside and the town centre is not planned, alignment B leaves the option open for the future.

The single viaduct would pass over the freight terminal and Choats Road before dropping under the power lines and continuing into Barking Riverside, joining the Tilbury line slightly further west.

Both options would see the line switch from platform one to platforms seven and eight at Barking Station.

The extension is set to unlock 10,800 new houses currently in development, alongside healthcare, shopping, community and leisure facilities.

Without the new rail link no more than 1,500 homes can be built.

Visit consultations.tfl.gov.uk for more information.