The minor east London train station that has direct trains to China | Travel News | Travel

Travellers on London’s train system are accustomed to reaching all corners of the UK and further afield, whether it’s zipping from Epping to West Ruislip on the Tube, riding from Kings Cross to Inverness on National Rail, or jetting off to Marseille courtesy of Eurostar.

However, even those impressive journeys can’t match the marvellous feat of Barking in east London to Yiwu, China. Yes, it’s true.

What might seem like your average East London tube station is actually a major hub for freight trains journeying a staggering 7,500 miles all the way to Yiwu in China.

Of course, this immense trip is reserved for cargo rather than human passengers (maybe one day we’ll see Crossrail 2 connecting East London to Central Zhejiang Province).

If someone moans about an eight-hour, 500-mile trek to Inverness, you could remind them that some goods travel for 18 days! 

Though you’d struggle to stretch your Oyster Card as far as Yiwu, Barking Station – which is in London’s Tube zone four – has been receiving some much-needed upgrades recently.

Ben Martin, c2c’s director of assets and property, discussed these improvements with MyLondon last year stating: “As the gateway to the area, we know the current station has been pretty poor.

“Now, we have the funding and we’ve been working with the community to bring it into the 21st century. We’ve tried to restore and maintain the heritage as much as possible.”

A multi-million pound scheme has been submitted for planning permission to alter the only Grade II-listed 1950s railway station in London. 

The changes proposed included:

• A complete redesign of the station concourse, including construction of a second ticket gateline 
• Doubling the size of the station entrances
• Restoration of original architectural features that help to celebrate the Grade II-listed station
• Increased retail space, new station toilets and the renewal of the station’s lift

c2c Managing Director Julian Drury said: “These are our plans for a much-needed transformation that delivers economic, social and heritage benefits to both passengers and local residents. 

“The original design of Barking station reflected the flagship Roma Termini station in central Rome. Thanks to the investment of our Italian owners we now intend to restore the modern Barking station to its former glory.”