Woolwich people taking the train will have to put up with higher prices after calls to have the station zone changed were torpedoed by the Mayor Sadiq Khan.

More than 1,500 people signed a petition asking for Woolwich Arsenal to be moved from zone 4 to zone 3/4 in an effort to drop the cost of travelling to and from the station.

The petition, which had the support of Greenwich Council, asked TfL to rezone the station in anticipation of the opening of Crossrail next year.

The petition claimed that moving Woolwich Arsenal station to the zone 3/4 boundary will help make Woolwich even more attractive and less expensive for workers commuting west, without penalising those coming into Woolwich from the east.

As the petition pointed out, Woolwich is the only DLR station in zone 4, and Gallions Reach, just north of the river and further east than Woolwich, is already in zone 3.

However the request has been rejected by Mayor Khan, claiming that the cost of rezoning Woolwich Arsenal would cost in the region of £5m per year as TfL “would have to pay compensation to Southeastern, which also operates from the station”.

In the response, a public liaison officer from the Mayor’s office wrote: “You will be aware that there are a number of campaigns seeking rezoning across London. These include areas like Woolwich with significant growth plans.

“TfL has to balance these demands across the city to ensure it is using its funding most appropriately.

“In the case of Woolwich Arsenal, the new Elizabeth line service will provide huge benefits for residents from December 2018.”

A similar petition was launched in 2014, although at the time it requested Woolwich Arsenal station be moved to zone 3.

The petition and Greenwich Council wrote to the then-Mayor Boris Johnson but he did not back their request either.