I am considering moving to Brockley and have visited a few places around Howson road, Beecroft road and Kneller Road. All have Gardens that give on the train tracks. Anyone lives in the area and could tell me how they feel about train noise? A but worried about the Catford Loop Line one in particular as I could hear it louder when I was there. I do know that one gets used to these kinds of things but would love to hear people’s experiences. Should I look for a place that does not back the rail? Thank you!
Train noise in Brockley - Howson, Beecroft…
- Thread starter lucineh
- Start date
TopCat
Putin fanboy
Well you learn to live with the noise. That said I’m just up the road and like the quiet.
Pickman's model
Starry Wisdom
kalidarkone
Bringing YOU round.....
I have very good friends that live on Howson Road, with the train track backing onto the garden. When I've stayed there I'm not bothered by it...(but unusually I can tolerate a huge amount of noise.) My friends have been there for 20 years and it's not an issue.
I also grew up with a railway backing on to my garden and you do get used to it.
However as you are asking and seems like it could be an issue for you, sounds like it may be better if you are not backing onto the railway.
Only you know...how you experience frequent loud noise is subjective after all.
I also grew up with a railway backing on to my garden and you do get used to it.
However as you are asking and seems like it could be an issue for you, sounds like it may be better if you are not backing onto the railway.
Only you know...how you experience frequent loud noise is subjective after all.
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Thank you for sharing your experience! When I visited a few places I honestly was not too bothered by the noise, but I know it might be a different story when you live there and hear it all the time… or maybe you actually don’t notice it anymore? But it’s good to know that your friends have lived there for 20 years, I guess it can’t be that bad then!
19sixtysix
Life as viewed from a Gay Gorbals Garret
There's a website that shows trains running not just timetabled services. train movements at night freight and empty stock can be substantial.
existentialist
Tired and unemotional
And remember that there will occasionally be track works, usually at night. And they can be noisy.
Reno
The In Kraut
Depends how many train tracks and how far they are away. I lived right above 6 train tracks for a decade. The noise started at 5:30 and finished around midnight, one train every 3 - 5 minutes. I'm a light sleeper and told myself I got used to it, but they woke me up in the morning. As existentialist said, track works can go on all night and can last for days, sometimes weeks. I'm glad I don't have trains rattling past my bedroom anymore.
StoneRoad
heckling from the back!
But not just "public" ie passenger trains.
My workshop backs onto a minor mainline.
Passenger trains are about half-hourly and being light-weight multiple units we barely hear them - unless they have a wheel defect.
Goods and works trains are much less frequent, but much longer and make far more noise.
What tends to penetrate at night when there is a lot less general / background noise - I live almost two miles away - is the sound of horns at warning boards (ie level crossings or similar).
Unless you really like trains, don't live close to a depot [works] or a shunting yard. They generate much more noise, which sounds worse at night because there are less other noises which would mask the depot's racket.
Having said that, I would not want to live near a busy main road, especially on hilly routes. I find traffic noise much more intrusive. Ditto low flying aircraft near airports.
My workshop backs onto a minor mainline.
Passenger trains are about half-hourly and being light-weight multiple units we barely hear them - unless they have a wheel defect.
Goods and works trains are much less frequent, but much longer and make far more noise.
What tends to penetrate at night when there is a lot less general / background noise - I live almost two miles away - is the sound of horns at warning boards (ie level crossings or similar).
Unless you really like trains, don't live close to a depot [works] or a shunting yard. They generate much more noise, which sounds worse at night because there are less other noises which would mask the depot's racket.
Having said that, I would not want to live near a busy main road, especially on hilly routes. I find traffic noise much more intrusive. Ditto low flying aircraft near airports.
![[62]](/forums/data/avatars/m/76/76847.jpg?1725732643){kind=avatar}
[62]
This week the score draws are plentiful
Yes, a few freight paths in for the line in question, although they mostly seem to be Channel Tunnel origin and probably don't run that often, if at all.
Realtime Trains | Departures from Crofton Park all day on 19/06/2021
Train information at Crofton Park all day on 19/06/2021. From Realtime Trains, an independent source of train running info for Great Britain.
www.realtimetrains.co.uk
teuchter
je suis teuchter
Beecroft Rd backs on to the Catford Loop lines (double track) and there is a moderate but not huge amount of freight. That includes Channel Tunnel traffic, which currently means something like 3 or 4 trains a day in each direction at the moment, including a couple at night. If Channel Tunnel traffic were ever to pick up, this could increase greatly, especially at night, where there are currently a large number of unused paths.
Howson and Kneller rds back onto the main line between Brighton and London Bridge which doesn't see much freight traffic but it is quadruple tracked and has a very high frequency of passenger trains, one every two or three minutes at times.
How disturbing the noise is, depends on things like what height the house is relative to the tracks, how fast the trains are going at that point, and significantly whether there are points and crossings in the track - trains passing over crossings at speed are significantly noiser than those running on plain track (electric passenger trains on plain track are pretty quiet). This issue with crossings means that two houses, same distance from the track, but at different points along it, might have quite different experiences.
I live backing onto a railway line - electric passenger trains are hardly noticeable at all (guests often remark on this), heavy freight trains can make more noise and even make the house shake with stuff moving around visibly, but you get used to it and I don't generally find it disturbing. If the frequency of heavy freight at night were to increase a lot, it might be different.
Howson and Kneller rds back onto the main line between Brighton and London Bridge which doesn't see much freight traffic but it is quadruple tracked and has a very high frequency of passenger trains, one every two or three minutes at times.
How disturbing the noise is, depends on things like what height the house is relative to the tracks, how fast the trains are going at that point, and significantly whether there are points and crossings in the track - trains passing over crossings at speed are significantly noiser than those running on plain track (electric passenger trains on plain track are pretty quiet). This issue with crossings means that two houses, same distance from the track, but at different points along it, might have quite different experiences.
I live backing onto a railway line - electric passenger trains are hardly noticeable at all (guests often remark on this), heavy freight trains can make more noise and even make the house shake with stuff moving around visibly, but you get used to it and I don't generally find it disturbing. If the frequency of heavy freight at night were to increase a lot, it might be different.
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