The new Barking Riverside station on the London Overground has opened.

It extends the Gospel Oak route beyond Barking station and connects the town centre to the Riverside development in seven minutes, according to Transport for London (TfL).

The 4.5km track extension to the new Overground station carried its first passengers on Monday, July 18, after a scheduled autumn completion date was brought forward last month.

Work on the new Overground station began in late 2018 and it had initially been expected to be ready last year, but progress was slowed by disruption caused by the Covid pandemic.

London's deputy mayor for transport Seb Dance said: "Hot on the heels of the opening of the Elizabeth line, this is more excellent news for east London.

"This new station will help to pave the way for up to 10,000 new homes in Barking Riverside, thousands of which will be genuinely affordable and will ensure residents have the high-quality transport links they need."

Barking and Dagenham Post: The 4.5km extension will drastically cut journey times from Barking to Barking Riverside, which currently takes around 25 minutes by busThe 4.5km extension will drastically cut journey times from Barking to Barking Riverside, which currently takes around 25 minutes by bus (Image: TfL)

The extension significantly reduces journey times between the Barking town centre and the Barking Riverside development, which takes about 25 minutes by bus.

The Barking Riverside route is running four trains per hour and provides connections to the District and Hammersmith and City Underground lines and to C2C trains at Barking station.

People will also be able to connect to the recently-opened Elizabeth line at Forest Gate by changing at Wanstead Park Overground station a short walk away.

There are also connections from the new station with local buses and river-bus services at Barking Riverside pier.

Barking and Dagenham Post: A computer generated image of the Barking Riverside development. Once the station opens, more homes can be built.A computer generated image of the Barking Riverside development. Once the station opens, more homes can be built. (Image: Shamir Patel)

TfL chief capital officer Stuart Harvey said: "This extension will effectively deliver on two key priorities as London recovers from the pandemic of providing accessible, sustainable travel to much-needed housing for Londoners."

Although passenger services are now running to Barking Riverside, the entire Gospel Oak route will be closed this Saturday and Sunday (July 23-24) while Network Rail carries out essential engineering work on a section of track.