London Overground extension: when will Barking Riverside station open - and map of Gospel Oak to Barking line

The new Barking Riverside London Overground station is set to open later this month.

The opening date of the new line was actually brought forward from autumn, the TfL announced last month.

In a statement online, the Transport for London (TfL) said: “The Barking Riverside extension will add 4.5km to the London Overground Gospel Oak to Barking line and take it from Barking to a new station at Barking Riverside.”

The route will operate with four trains per hour, providing Barking Riverside with connections to the District and Hammersmith & City lines and C2C trains at Barking.

The new route will see the first extension of the London Overground system for seven years.

The last extension was in 2015, when the TfL took over parts of the Greater Anglia routes through North London and the Romford to Upminster shuttle.

The extension, which was given the green light in 2018 is to serve the emerging development area at Barking Riverside.

Barking Riverside, located in east London is the largest housing development in the area, with planning permission granted for 10,000 new homes, as well as healthcare, shopping, community and leisure facilities.

It was agreed that without a new rail link in place, the new development would be unable to ‘reach its full potential’, and the new extension is just days away from opening.

When will the new Barking Riverside station open?

The new station is set to open on Monday, 18 July 2022. Just after its opening the TfL mentioned that on “Saturday July 23 and Sunday July 24 2022 it will do essential engineering work on a section of track that requires the whole line to be closed”.

What are the benefits of the extension according to TfL?

• Enables construction of 10,000 homes at Barking Riverside, plus a new school, healthcare facilities and a new district centre with commercial and leisure facilities, high-quality public spaces and connections to walking and cycling routes.
• Provides a transport link to Barking town centre and its District and Hammersmith & City Tube services and c2c services to London Fenchurch Street and Essex, along with a connection to the Elizabeth line station at Forest Gate via Wanstead Park.
• Creates reliable public transport within Barking Riverside.
• Improves transport accessibility - Barking Riverside station offers a step-free entry point to other London Overground services.
• Offers a sustainable public transport alternative to car travel.

What is the current route from Gospel Oak to Barking?

To make your way from Gospel Oak to Barking via the train, this the current route:

• Gospel Oak
• Upper Holloway
• Crouch Hill
• Harringay Green Lanes
• South Tottenham
• Blackhorse Road
• Walthamstow Queen’s Road
• Leyton Midland Road
• Leytonstone High Road
• Wanstead Park
• Woodgrange Park
• Barking

What do we know about the new station?

Aside from the opening time, and the time of the first train departing, not a whole deal is known.

However, with the opening time looming, TfL has said Barking Riverside is fully step-free, and comes with cycle parking and bus stops for the local services.