Khan’s Stupid Plan To Rename The Overground Lines
renamThis page on the TfL web site is entitled Naming London Overground Lines.
This is the first paragraph.
London Overground lines are to be named to make the network easier to navigate and ensure the Capital’s transport system reflects its rich and diverse history. We aim to make the changes by the end of 2024.
So why do I feel it is a stupid plan?
London Wouldn’t Stomach A Load Of Woke Names
When Khan and his fellow politicians choose the names, they will probably be a load of woke rubbish and this could cause problems with some political groups.
When The Lines Are Renamed, Will They Then Start On Station Names?
This could open a real can of worms, as some station names are totally unacceptable to some groups of people.
When Arsenal moved from Highbury, Spurs fans mounted a campaign to get Arsenal tube station renamed to its original name of Gillespie Road.
Londoners Use Their Geographic Names
I use the Overground regularly and use their geographic names like.
- Cheshunt Line
- Chingford Line
- East London Line
- Enfield Town Line
- Gospel Oak and Barking Line
- North London Line
- Romford and Upminster Line
- South London Line
- Watford DC Line
- West London Line
I also use The Drain for the Waterloo and City Line.
Thameslink And Moorgate Services
It is likely, that some or all of the Thameslink and Moorgate routes will go to Transport for London.
These would need more names.
Cost
Transport for London (TfL) have a financial crisis and I believe, that the money spent on signage and branding could be better spent on other projects like hydrogen buses or creating the West London Orbital Railway.
If Another Political Party Took Power Would They Rename Everything?
Probably! And this would be more cost!
Conclusion
Sadiq Khan is a vain and stubborn man. Renaming lines will open a nest of vipers.
With the mess Khan has got in over ULEZ, this could be another problem caused by his bad judgment.
The Anonymous Widower 
Wasn’t this in his election manifesto? Politicians are usually condemned for breaking pledges when they get into power…
Comment by JohnC | July 5, 2023 |
If the preference is for names that have some geographical relevance, then there are 3 other TfL controlled lines that should be renamed for consistency (and a few train lines out of London e.g. Gainsborough Line should probably be renamed something like the Babergh Shuttle or the Bures Shuttle or SudTey).
Ultimately, would the name stop you or anyone else actually using a renamed line in protest?
I would also suggest you read the recent post by Ian Visits on Pride and consider your words in this post
Comment by MilesT | July 5, 2023 |
Renaming the stations would confuse millions! I rarely go into London these days, but I still remember the stations and lines.
I don’t see anything wrong with the current names – although one may have been named after me (ha ha)
Never realised that their were no emojis on blogs.
Comment by nosnikrapzil | July 5, 2023 |
😯😯 emojis rule ok 😂😂
Comment by MauriceGReed | July 6, 2023 |
What you mean by ‘woke?’ Very often it is used to mean ‘anything that isn’t exactly the way I like it.’
Comment by BrianA | July 5, 2023 |
Yeah I’d hesitate to use that word, as it’s history comes from oppressed people waking up and learning about their trauma. You want to whine back on some golden more racist era?
Comment by Cool Cool | July 5, 2023 |
Certainly not me! I’m one of the few people in the UK, who can remember meeting the person, who brought them into the world.
I was delivered by my parent’s GP; Dr. Egerton White and he was my GP until I was probably thirteen or fourteen. As I was a sickly child, which I now know was down to being an undiagnosed coeliac, he was a regular visitor. He had little chance of diagnosing it, as there was no test for the disease in children until 1960. But I can remember more than once sitting waiting in our front room looking out of the window waiting for his Rover car to arrive. He was a typical doctor of the time, with a three-piece suit, corporation and the compulsory watch chain.
I can also remember him coming to see me in hospital, when I had my tonsils out about eight. I have met others of my age, who have also had their tonsils out, in the hope it would cure their condition.
One thing, I remember about Doctor White was his blotchy skin with dark freckles.
Then in the 1990s, I bought an MG-ZT estate car. The salesman had similar skin and he was obviously mixed-race.
One day, I’ll research the history of the good Dr. Egerton White. Judging by his exotic first name, I suspect he came from somewhere in the Caribbean.
I also find it strange, that it took myself until I was fifty to realise, that Dr. White was a person of colour. But then surely children are born with little perception of other races.
Comment by AnonW | July 5, 2023
Sadly, my daughter learnt about race and racial hatred when she was just 3 years old. There a nice lady who lived across the road from us, I forget her name, who was a person of colour. or “black” as they were called then – that is relevant to the story!. My daughter had a little friend a few doors down and one day she came home from playing with her and asked me “what is AIDS” I explained that it was a nasty disease that they hadn’t yet found a good cure for. But explained that she wasn’t in danger of getting it etc. SO she looks worried and says that the friend, (C) had told that ” she will get AIDS and die if she talks to black people. Which C had seen my daughter doing because she always said hello to the person of colour across the road. SO I was forced to discuss racial discrimination, Aids, Apartheid etc with her at 4 years old _ C had told her that in South Africa where she came from, the “blacks” were made to live separately to stop stop the “whites” from catching all their diseases. Thankfully my daughter was horrified at the whole racist thing, and chose to not call for C to play with C anymore, but would still with her in a group. Her choice and one I was fine with.
Comment by nosnikrapzil | July 6, 2023
There are so many things that can be wrong with names, especially if you’re of a strong political persuasion.
I also think naming a line after anybody living or dead could be a serious mistake, as someone might dig up something unfortunate in their past.
We also don’t tend to name things after people. We’ve two airports; George Best and John Lennon, a town; Telford and a railway station named after James Cook, but not much else.
Comment by AnonW | July 5, 2023 |
Plenty of roads named after people (and also events). Especially Victoria (road, and major train station, and hence also underground line; presume we consider royalty to be unimpeachable).
Plenty of buildings as well, and some geographies (Grosvenor, St. John’s Wood–St. John of Lissom, not after a church).
Of course some people named after places especially those with hereditary titles
Comment by MilesT | July 6, 2023 |
Khan’s plan seems like a very sensible move to make the network easier to navigate. Imagine you’re new to the city (or in a part you haven’t visited for) and you here “change here for London Overground”. This could mean you’re changing onto many different lines, and it makes finding the right line harder. A friend who was visiting me (on the south-london line) from up north once got confused as to why they had to take the tube to canada water from euston, when “doesn’t the overground go from euston???”. Being able to say “you need x line” would have got rid of that entire confusion.
Comment by impassable | July 7, 2023 |
[…] But then Khan likes wasteful, ridiculous policies like renaming all the lines of the London Overground, that I wrote about in Khan’s Stupid Plan To Rename The Overground Lines. […]
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