U-turn on platform extensions announcement (From Your Local Guardian)

U-turn on Sutton platform extensions announcement

9:54am Tuesday 31st January 2012 in Sutton By James Pepper

U-turn on Sutton platform extensions announcement

A rail company has made an embarassing U-turn after wrongly announcing two stations would have their platforms extended.

Carshalton Beeches and Hackbridge train stations are not going to have their platforms extended to ease congestion, despite an announcement to the contrary.

Southern announced earlier this month the platforms were to be lengthened to accommodate longer trains. But now the company, which manages the stations, has said the anniouncement was by mistake.

A spokesman for Southern had previously announced: ""Longer 10-car trains will be introduced on some of our busiest Metro routes into Victoria, including routes via Gipsy Hill, Norbury and Hackbridge when the winter 2013 timetable comes into effect in December of that year.

"Not all of our stations have the capability to accommodate 10-car trains, but the platforms at Carshalton Beeches and Hackbridge stations will be lengthened to do this by the time the trains are introduced.

"This is very much in the planning stage, so at the moment, a schedule for the work has not yet been determined."

A company spokesman has now said the announcement was due to an internal mix up.

Southern recently placed an order for 130 new carriages, to extend its trains, but at Hackbridge and Carshalton Beeches stations, passengers will have to continue to board the first eight coaches of trains.

Cllr Simon Wales, executive member for communities, transport and voluntary sector at Sutton Council, said: "This is disappointing news.

"We were surprised to hear about the original announcement from Southern as we hadn't been told about it, but we hoped that was merely an oversight."