TfL Announces The Next Tube Stations To Be Prioritised For Step-Free Access To Meet The Mayor’s Bold Accessibility Targets
The title of this post is the same as that of this press release from Transport for London.
These are the first two paragraphs.
Transport for London (TfL) has outlined the ten London Underground stations it will be reviewing for potential step-free access, as it progresses plans to further improve public transport accessibility in London.
These ten stations, spread across London, have been identified using an approach focused on the benefits to customers, such as reducing journey times for those needing to use step-free access and reflecting issues that impact the delivery of step-free access such as the feasibility of new lifts, sufficient space for work to be carried out and the depth of each Tube station.
The ten stations listed are.
- Alperton
- Arnos Grove
- Burnt Oak – Some work has been started, but paused because of the pandemic
- Eastcote
- Finchley Road
- Northolt – Some work has been started, but paused because of the pandemic
- North Acton
- Rayners Lane
- West Hampstead
- White City
The linked posts will show the latest status at the stations.
Other stations are named in the press release, where work will be done, if funds are available.
- Boston Manor
- Brondesbury
- Colindale
- East Putney
- Hackney Downs
- Hatton Cross
- Leyton
- North Ealing
- Park Royal
- Peckham Rye
- Queen’s Park
- Rickmansworth
- Ruislip
- Snaresbrook
- Surrey Quays
in addition, TfL will be looking at the Northern Line between Elephant and Castle and Morden, where there is a gap in step-free access.
These are a few thoughts.
The London Mayor Election In 2024
How many of these stations are in areas, where Sadiq Khan is short of votes for the 2024 election?
Arnos Grove Station
Work has already started at Arnos Grove station, as I showed in Are Arnos Grove And Northolt Tube Stations Going Step Free?.
The BBC Jumped The Gun
The press release now explains the BBC story from Mpnday, that I wrote about in Are Arnos Grove And Northolt Tube Stations Going Step Free?.
The Anonymous Widower 
It’s extraordinary that one of the busiest interchange stations outside Z1, Balham, isn’t on the priority list for step-free access. Most of assumed that this would follow soon after a lift was installed from street level to the Southern platforms. There’s an escalator from the Undergound booking hall to the Northern Line platfoems, but only steps from street level to the booking hall.
What was needed but will never happen now was a co-ordinated rebuild encompassing the Southern and Northern Line stations and buses along Balham High Road. If this was Denmark, the Netherlands, France, Germany or Switzerland, that’s exactly what would have happened. But this is Britain and we don’t want any of that nasty foreign joined-up thinking, co-ordinated transport nonsense here, thank you!
Comment by Stephen Spark | July 12, 2023 |
Step free for Finchley Road is linked to the controversial redevelopment of the o2 shopping centre (developer has suggested what work they would be willing to fund to try and get their plans to be accepted).
Locals would want West Hampstead underground to become step free, but that has been looked at several times and has always been too expensive (and potentially will disrupt ongoing development plans at the Builder’s merchant that is one side of the station). The other two West Hampstead stations have been redeveloped in the last 20 years as step free, Underground is the odd one out.
My view is the best outcome for the area would be an overdecking of the underground lines between Finchley Road and West Hampstead (incorporating the pedestrian staircase over the lines from South Hampstead–locally known as “Granny Dripping Stairs”). This would link the stations together and provide retail and amenity space for the housing redevelopment on the o2 centre site (which has been rezoned for housing, targetting 900 units, but the current plans are an obscene overbuild of 1800).
Decking the train lines to the north of the site would unlock more development land but would be expensive (and the industry has bad memories of Gerrards Cross)
Comment by MilesT | July 12, 2023 |