Surrey Quays is a largely residential area of

Rotherhithe Rotherhithe ( ) is a district of South London, England, and part of the London Borough of Southwark. It is on a peninsula on the south bank of the Thames, facing Wapping, Shadwell and Limehouse on the north bank, with the Isle of Dogs to the ea ...

in south-east

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, occupied until 1970 by the Surrey Commercial Docks. The precise boundaries of the area are somewhat amorphous, but it is generally considered to comprise the southern half of the Rotherhithe peninsula from Canada Water to South Dock; electorally, Surrey Docks is the eastern half of the peninsula. The area is served by Surrey Quays railway station on the Windrush line of the

London Overground London Overground (also known simply as the Overground) is a Urban rail in the United Kingdom, suburban rail network serving London and its environs. Established in 2007 to take over Silverlink Metro routes, it now serves a large part of Greate ...

. ''Surrey'' Docks are so called because the borders of

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

and

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

met in this area until 1889.

History

After the closure of the docks, the area remained derelict for over a decade; much of the warehousing was demolished and over 90% of the docks filled in. The only surviving areas of open water were Greenland Dock, South Dock, part of Canada Dock (renamed Canada Water), remnants of Norway Dock and a basin renamed Surrey Water. In 1981, the

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

government of Prime Minister

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013), was a British stateswoman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of th ...

established the London Docklands Development Corporation to redevelop the former dockyard areas of east London, including the Surrey Docks. Surrey Quays shopping centre was opened in 1988 and Surrey Docks underground station was renamed ''Surrey Quays''. A massive building programme took place in the area during the late 1980s and early 1990s, with 5,500 new homes being built; this ranged from individual detached housing to large apartment complexes, such as Baltic Quay. South Dock was converted into a

marina A marina (from Spanish , Portuguese and Italian : "related to the sea") is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats. A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or cargo ...

– now the largest in London – and a sailing facility (named ''Surrey Docks Watersports Centre'') was constructed on Greenland Dock. The northern part of Canada Water and the infilled Russia Dock became wildlife reserves. Leisure facilities and a number of light industrial plants were also built, notably a new printing works for Associated Newspapers, the publisher of the London

Evening Standard The ''London Standard'', formerly the ''Evening Standard'' (1904–2024) and originally ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), is a long-established regional newspaper published weekly and distributed free newspaper, free of charge in London, Engl ...

and the

Daily Mail The ''Daily Mail'' is a British daily Middle-market newspaper, middle-market Tabloid journalism, tabloid conservative newspaper founded in 1896 and published in London. , it has the List of newspapers in the United Kingdom by circulation, h ...

. This site was the headquarters of ''

Metro (British newspaper) ''Metro'' is a British freesheet tabloid newspaper published by DMG Media. The newspaper is distributed from Monday to Friday mornings on public places in areas of England, Wales and Scotland (excluding public holidays and the period betwee ...

'' from its launch in 1999 until 2006, when the newspaper's production was relocated to Kensington, west London. A further phase of development at Canada Water began around 2005 and is still underway. The location of ''Canada Water Surrey Quays'' lends its name to local property developer ''CWSQ''. Since 2007, there have been campaigns to change the name of the railway station back to ''Surrey Docks''.

Transport

The area is served by Surrey Quays railway station on the

route. The nearest London Underground station is at Canada Water, on the

Jubilee line The Jubilee line is a London Underground line that runs between in suburban north-west London and in east London, via the West End of London, West End, South Bank and London Docklands, Docklands. Opened in 1979, it is the newest line on the ...

. Surrey Quays is served by

Transport for London Transport for London (TfL) is a local government body responsible for most of the transport network in London, United Kingdom. TfL is the successor organization of the London Passenger Transport Board, which was established in 1933, and His ...

bus services 1, 47, 188, 199, 225, 381, C10 and P12; night buses N1, N199 and N381 also call here. Greenland Dock Pier is the nearest place for boarding

London River Services London River Services Limited is a division of Transport for London (TfL), which manages passenger transport—leisure-oriented tourist services and commuter services—on the River Thames in London. It does not own or operate any boats itself, ...

, operated by

Thames Clippers Uber Boat by Thames Clippers is a set of river bus services on the River Thames in London, England. The company operates both commuter services between eastern and Central London and tourist services under licence from London River Services. ...

Gallery

SurreyQuayssign.jpg, Greenland Dock in the early 1990s Surrey Docks Fitness & Water Sports Centre.jpg, Surrey Docks Fitness & Water Sports Centre South Dock Marina - geograph.org.uk - 3687887.jpg, South Dock Marina Surrey Quays Shopping Centre - geograph.org.uk - 3682895.jpg, Surrey Quays Shopping Centre The Moby Dick pub, Greenland Dock.jpg, The Moby Dick pub, Greenland Dock Surrey Quays stn look north.JPG, Surrey Quays station Canada Water Station.jpg, Entrance to Canada Water station

References

External links

LDDC Completion Booklet – Surrey Docks
* {{Areas of London Areas of London Districts of the London Borough of Southwark