Centrale

Centrale is a tram and bus interchange in the heart of Croydon’s town centre. It sits on Tamworth Road beside the main doors of the Centrale shopping centre. The stop was built at the same time as the shopping centre, paid for by its developers. Trams arrive on one side of the platform while local buses wait on the other, letting passengers step straight across. Croydon Loop services link Centrale with West Croydon and East Croydon stations. The idea for a stop here came from the original Tramlink plans in the early 2000s. Delays pushed the opening back by eighteen months while Transport for London and the tram operator settled their agreements. The stop finally opened in December 2005 and later passed into public ownership in 2008. Today it runs Bombardier CR4000 and Stadler Variobahn trams every few minutes at peak times. Visitors find a single island platform with trams on one edge and buses on the opposite edge. Off-peak, six trams run eastbound to Wimbledon and Beckenham Junction each hour. Another six head east to Elmers End, while eight run to West Croydon and continue to New Addington. Four London bus routes stop here, making it easy to reach anywhere in the borough.