Clapham Junction transformation could include Northern line extension

Clapham Junction could be set for a huge overhaul as a South London council is set to investigate whether the Northern line should be extended to the busy train station.

Wandsworth Council has revealed a masterplan for Clapham Junction and the surrounding areas, including the Winstanley and York Road estate. The overhaul hopes to bring new homes, offices and shops to the area, and also promises a probe into whether extending the Northern line to Clapham Junction would make sense.

The masterplan would include new homes, offices and station improvements, according to a new council report. The authority would work with Network Rail, TfL and other partners to create the masterplan.

The report says Clapham Junction station "presents long-standing challenges of congestion, severance and accessibility" and suffered from overcrowding at peak times before the Covid pandemic, with passenger numbers now increasing again.

It says upgrades are "essential to increase capacity, meet safety requirements and improve passengers' public transport experience" – while ensuring there are safeguards if Crossrail 2 is implemented.

Clapham Junction Station Opened In 1863 (Credit: James Mayer)

Network Rail began a makeover of the station in 2022 to slash congestion, including remodelling the Brighton Yard entrance, revamping lifts, building new shops and installing new toilets. The works are set to be completed in spring.

The report puts forward a masterplan to steer development in the area to "create an enhanced urban heart to an open, better integrated and connected neighbourhood, including the existing and regenerated Winstanley/York Road estate, with an improved station and public transport interchange, new affordable and market housing, and jobs alongside the necessary social and other infrastructure to support community cohesion and inclusive growth".

A further council report says extending the Northern Line would link Clapham Junction to the London Underground and provide "significant new and improved journey opportunities". Wandsworth Labour vowed to investigate whether an extension of the Northern line to Clapham Junction was viable at the local elections in May 2022.

Nine Elms and Battersea Power Station opened as the newest stations on the Northern Line in 2021. The report reveals proposals to appoint transport consultants to develop a broad outline case for another Northern Line extension to Clapham Junction, including estimated cost, benefits and constraints. It calls the extension a "key element of improving public transport".

It adds: "A pre-feasibility study would help identify if an extension of the Northern Line is likely to be a good or best option for serving the local and wider areas and would provide a useful assessment to assist the council in promoting the scheme to third parties and raising its public profile."

The council's transport committee will discuss proposals to approve funding to draw up the urban heart masterplan for Clapham Junction and the pre-feasability study on the Northern Line extension on Wednesday, February 1. The authority's executive will make a final decision on February 13.