Cannon Street station

Cannon Street station, also known as London Cannon Street, is a central London railway terminus and connected London Underground station in Travelcard zone 1 located on Cannon Street in the City of London and managed by Network Rail. It is one of two London termini of the South Eastern main line, the other being Charing Cross, while the Underground station is on the Circle and District lines, between Monument and Mansion House. The station runs services by Southeastern, mostly catering for commuters in southeast London and Kent, with occasional services further into the latter.

The station was built on a site of the medieval steelyard, the trading base in England of the Hanseatic League. It was built by the South Eastern Railway in order to have a railway terminal in the City and compete with their rivals, the London, Chatham and Dover Railway. The City location of the station necessitated a new bridge across the River Thames, which was constructed between 1863 and 1866. The station was initially a stop for continental services from Charing Cross, and that route was convenient for travel between the City and the West End, until the construction of the District Railway. It remained popular with commuters, though its off-peak services were discontinued in the early 20th century, leading to it being closed on Sundays for almost 100 years. The original hotel on the station was unsuccessful, and eventually closed. The station was controversially renovated in the late 1950s by John Poulson, while further construction on top of the station building occurred during the City's 1980s property boom. The Poulson building was replaced in 2007 as part of a general renovation of the station to make it more accessible. As part of the Thameslink Programme development in the 2010s, it was re-opened on Sundays and began to offer more long-distance services in place of Charing Cross.

Location
Cannon Street is a terminal station, approached across the River Thames by the Cannon Street Railway Bridge. Its approach by rail is by a triangular connection to both and Charing Cross. It is one of eighteen stations in the country that are managed by Network Rail.

There were originally eight platforms; a refurbishment in the late 1990s removed the original platform 1. It has entrances on Cannon Street itself and Dowgate Hill. It is also located near the London Stone (north from station), which was once used as the place from which all distances in Roman Britain were measured.

London Buses routes 15, 17, 521 and heritage route 15H and night routes N15 and N199 serve the station.

National Rail
The station connects the south side of the City to south and south-east London via station. Some services run directly into Cannon Street from Kent and East Sussex, but only during rush hours. Occasionally during the weekends when track maintenance is in progress, the station serves as an intermediate station between London Bridge and Charing Cross. Either trains reverse at the station or rail passengers change trains here. From 1918 to 2015, the station was closed on Sundays; this changed with Southeastern's introduction of a new timetable from January 2015 which resulted in the station's opening hours being extended over the entire week, except when engineering works require its closure and services are diverted to Charing Cross.

Services
The typical off-peak service from the station is:


 * 2 trains per hour (tph) – Hayes via Lewisham
 * 2 tph – Orpington via Grove Park
 * 2 tph – Loop service via Greenwich and Woolwich Arsenal to Slade Green then return via Sidcup
 * 2 tph – Loop service via Greenwich and Woolwich Arsenal to Slade Green then return via Barnehurst and Bexleyheath
 * 2 tph – Loop service via Bexleyheath to Barnehurst, then return via Woolwich Arsenal and Greenwich
 * 2 tph – Loop service via Sidcup to Crayford, then return via Woolwich Arsenal and Greenwich

During peak hours, there are also services to Hastings, Tunbridge Wells, Ore and to Ramsgate or Broadstairs via Chatham.