Why We Need More Walk-Through Trains?
The Class 378 trains on the London Overground are completely articulated and you can walk through from one end to the other.
Class 378 At Highbury And Islington Station
The picture shows the train I got on to return from Highbury and Islington station, today. I got in at the end where you walk down to the platform at the station and then walked through to the other end, as that end is best for getting off at my station, which is Dalston Junction.
As there is no doors to open or close as on most trains, it’s an easy process and is something I’d like to see on a lot more trains, as not only is it more convenient, it might well be safer too! Already the new S stock trains for the London Underground are built similarly.
Where Is The Lift At Highbury And Islington Station?
I have been impressed with some of the lifts put in at stations like Camden Road and Hackney Central recently.
So I thought I’d have a look to see, if any stations, I use regularly were being updated with lifts or step-free access. Network Rail are managing the work across the rail network and the project is called Access for All.
I looked at all the stations to be upgraded and found an entry for Highbury and Islington. Click this link and then go down a bit.
The entry says that one lift is provided to the Great Northern and City line and that it was completed in Autumn 2010.
I’ve used the station extensively for the last few years and I’ve never found this mythical lift. To check, I asked the station staff tonight, when I came through the station on my way home. They’d not seen it and were a bit worried if someone turned up in a wheelchair looking for access to the deep lines.
As I said here, it is not the best station for step-free access, although that to the Overground is excellent. But the single lift mentioned on the Network Rail web site, would be a welcome addition.
Why I Often Wait For A New Bus for London At The Angel
Today, I went up to the Angel to do some shopping. I don’t use a reusable bag, as I haven’t found one I like, since my old Waitrose one collapsed.
So today, I was coming back with two plastic bags of shopping, of which one was particularly awkward as it contained a double large box of tissues. With only one good hand, getting on a normal bus is sometimes difficult, as the entrance is often crowded as people buy their tickets.
But if I go to the rear platform or middle door of a New Bus for London, getting on is usually a much more straightforward affair. Especially, at the rear platform, where many use it as a quick way to get upstairs. As the bus has three Oyster card readers, if it is particularly busy, I will sometimes get in and then reach back to become a legal rider.
Today, I saw a Hackney Central bus was arriving in a minute. So I waited! I struck lucky with a New Bus for London and I was able to ride home in First Class!
Visitors Parking Vouchers In Hackney
I may be a non-driver these days, but it doesn’t mean, I don’t have visitors with cars.
Last week, I bought some all day vouchers and today, I bought some for two hours.
Would you believe that effectively you have two separate accounts for each voucher?
The guy behind the desk in the Parking office thought it was crazy too!
Surely systems should be devised to be the most convenient for everybody. I can’t imagine that this is convenient for anybody!
Crossrail Looks To Yorkshire
Crossrail has made an appeal for firms in Yorkshire and Humberside to become suppliers to Europe’s biggest construction project. It’s all reported here in the Yorkshire Post.
I did write a post about Custom House station, which is being built in Sheffield and transported to London and installed on site. That sounds like a clever and affordable way to create stations.
Huddersfield Station Completed The Set For Me!
It wasn’t my visit a couple of weeks ago, but when I visited all football grounds in alphabetical order in 2011, but Huddersfield station was the last of the six Grade One Listed stations still used for trains that I visited.
The others are Bristol Temple Meads, Kings Cross, Newcastle, Paddington and St. Pancras.
The combined list of Grade Two Listed stations and Grade Two* Listed stations is an odd mix. It contains six stations, I’ve either lived near or used regularly; Cambridge, Cockfosters, Felixstowe, Liverpool Lime Street, Oakwood and Southgate.
But the list also includes Bury St. Edmunds, which matches the Abbey ruins and the truly awful Harlow Town.
Understatement From Network Rail
One of my least favourite station is Manchester Victoria, which looks like it was last deep refurbished and cleaned, when its namesake was on the throne. On the Network Rail page about their plans for the station is this classic phrase.
As anyone who has been to Manchester Victoria on a rainy day can tell you, there is a problem with the roof.
But at least something is being done. They state this about the new roof.
The £16m new roof is likely to be made of ETFE (Ethylene tetrafluoroethylene) – the material used at Manchester Piccadilly station, the Eden Project in Cornwall and the swimming pool built for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, known as the Water Cube. ETFE is lighter, cheaper and lets in more light than glass. It’s also self cleaning, making it an ideal material for roofs.
You do wonder if this material could be used in other places to improve buildings at a more affordable cost than traditional methods.
I’ll look forward to using the new Manchester Victoria station in a few years time.
Demolition At London Bridge Station
Work has properly started on the new London Bridge station, as the pictures show.
The bus station is still closed, but according to a guy in the buses information booth, it might be open next Monday. I think he did mean the 11th and he blamed the weight of the Shard for the damage to the sewer that caused the need for closure. He didn’t like the building either, as I don’t!
For more details on the rebuilding of the station, look here on the Network Rail web site.
Stratford Panorama From The Emirates Air-Line
The picture shows the Olympic Park from the Emirates Air-Line cable-car.
Stratford Panorama From The Emirates Air-Line
The mouth of the River Lee is in the foreground.
The Crossrail Spoil Conveyors At The Limmo Site
The pictures show the conveyors to take spoil away from the tunnels being dug from the site on the Limmo peninsular.
The pictures were of course taken from the Emirates Air-Line cable-car.
The Anonymous Widower 