Services begin at new £6m station

Network Rail has invested £6m in the station

Services have begun at a new railway station in south London.

The first Southern Train to Epsom arrived at Mitcham Eastfields in Mitcham at 1609 BST on Monday.

Local Figges Marsh councillors Andrew Judge, Agatha Akigyina and Geraldine Stanford were there to greet it with a huge 'Welcome' placard.

Merton Council said the station, which Network Rail has invested £6m in, is the first new suburban station built in south London since World War II.

Russell Makin, a local resident and Mitcham councillor, was one of the first passengers to step off the train from Victoria.

Councillor Andrew Judge said: "This is a great event for Mitcham.

"The train was on time, after 70 years of waiting. We're all trainspotters today. Big thanks go to Network Rail and Southern Railway and the wonderful crew, who built the station."

It was originally thought passengers would have to wait until later this week to use the station due to the overrunning of building work.

Until the development of Mitcham Eastfields, the nearest railway station for Mitcham was Mitcham Junction, more than a mile from the town centre.

The new station is just a 10-minute walk from the town centre.