The Heathrow Decision
Perhaps the best comment on the decision to go for the NW Runway at Heathrow, a this reasoned one from Construction News, which is headlined, Heathrow: Still ifs and buts.
That sums it all up.
This decision is still twenty years away from opening.
.But I suspect it won’t open, as there is too much opposition to the runway.
Draft Hackney Central And Surrounds Masterplan
Last week, I went to a consultation about the Draft Hackney Central And Surrounds Masterplan in the Narrow Way by HackneyCentral station.
If you want to see the full version of the masterplan it is available at www.hackney.gov.uk/spd.
About Myself
As this article will be sent to the Council Planning Department, I’ll say a little bit about myself.
- Widowed, in my seventieth year and living alone.
- I’m coeliac, which I inherited from my father.
- I always describe my politics as left-wing Tory and very radical.
- As someone, who has helped create two high class technology businesses sold for millions of pounds, I’m very entrepreneurial.
- My father and three of my grandparents were all born within the triangle based on the Angel, Dalston Junction and Highbury Corner.
- My father was the least racist person, I’ve ever met. I hope his attitude has rubbed off on me!
- My two grandfathers were of part-Jewish and part-Huguenot ancestry respectively.
- As my two grandmothers families came from Northants and Devon, I usually describe myself as a London mongrel.
- My late wife and myself partly brought our three sons up in the Barbican.
- My middle son talks of that time in a tower block with affection, so I’m not against well-designed tower blocks.
After a stroke, left me unable to drive, I returned to my roots.
My Views On The Masterplan
I like lots of things about it. And especially these!
- The prominence given to new workspace, shops and the creation of jobs.
- The creation of new housing, where I’m only against bad tower blocks.
- The opening up of the railway viaduct, so it becomes a feature. Network Rail get a lot of stick, but they know how to look after railway brickwork.
- The creation of a public square at the bottom of the Narrow Way.
- The creation of more pedestrian streets.
- Better use of the bus garage site.
- Improvement of Bohemia Place.
It wouldn’t be me, to not put in my own wish list.
The Overground
Truth be told, I don’t think Transport for London, thought the Overground would be the success, it has turned out to be. So the designers did the minimum they felt they could get away with and would satisfy their political masters!
But the London Overground’s success has been repeated in places like the Borders Railway, Electrification in Liverpool, new stations in Leeds and the Todmorden Curve, and it is now proven in the UK, that if you give the population a good train service, they’ll use it.
Now that the walkway has connected Hackney Central and Hackney Downs stations and other improvements to the complex are in the pipeline, I think that serious consideration should be given to creating a second entrance to Hackney Central from Graham Road.
Failing that, pedestrian routes should be improved, so that access to the cluster of buildings around the Town Hall and the Empire is easier.
Hackney Central As A Meeting Point
Once the public square is created at the bottom of the Narrow Way, use of the area as a meeting point should be encouraged.
Consider.
- Hackney Central is where two rail lines cross.
- The London Overground through Hackney Downs gets new trains in 2018.
- There are several bus routes passing through the area.
- Bohemia Place and the railway arches must have potential for specialist shops and cafe/restaurants like Leon.
- Leon was started by a Hackney resident.
Who said it’s all about location?
Learning From Other Cities And Towns
I travel extensively, in the UK and Europe and see both good and bad examples of how to develop cities and towns.
Recently, I went to Blackburn and I was totally surprised at the transformation since I last visited a few years ago.
A Landscaped square had been created between the station and the cathedral.The square is surrounded by a PremierInn, a new office block, a small bus station on one side and a pedestrian way to a supermarket on the other.
Hackney could do similar or even better.
Sculpture
My uncle was a very good sculptor and I feel it is a crime that works of art like large bronzes are kept in store because security and insurance is a problem.
However, there are places where they could be placed with little fear of theft or damage. And that is at carefully selected locations on the platforms of railway stations.
So why not?
Hackney Downs certainly has space for one, but the platforms at Central are too narrow!
Information
When I was on holiday in Iceland, every building with a historic connection, had full information displayed outside.
Is Hackney’s information up to scratch?
Other Thoughts
This is a series of pictures with comments.
Conclusions
Hackney Central has some interesting buildings on which to develop the area. Unfortunately, there is some bad examples of boring architecture.
Some sites definitely have potential.
- Could the top floors of the Iceland building, be converted into a Southern station entrance, with perhaps a cafe and a couple of shops that travellers like?
- Bohemia Place could be a nice oasis with cafes, workshops and individual shops, a bit like the Box Park at Shoreditch High Street station.
- Bohemia Place will be better, when the arches under the railway are opened up.
- The right architect could do a fine job on the M & S Building.
- The car park at Hackney Central station might be much better as a bus interchange.
In my view the key is Bohemia Place, as this could be a magnet for people of all ages, races and classes to come and shop and refresh themselves.
A Small Setback For Heathrow
Today, the Government will decide on their preferred option for another runway in the South-East.
So what happens on the M4 today? It has been blocked by a fuel-spillage.
Will all the cabinet members get to the meeting?
Chiltern Are Being Very Serious
This article in the Oxford Mail is entitled Train timetable released for new Oxford to London Marylebone route.
This is said.
The new timetable shows services running every 30 minutes, starting at 6.02am from Oxford and returning at 23.10pm.
The line will open on Monday, December 12.
That is certainly a passenger magnet of a timetable.
Looking at the timetable of both Chiltern and Great Western,
- Both services run at least two trains per hour (tph) all day.
- Both services run fairly late in the evening.
- Great Western has the fastest trains, with some doing the journey in under an hour.
It will certainly be interesting to see how these two heavyweights slug it out.
But this is only Round 1One.
Consider.
- In December 2018, Crossrail services between Paddington and Abbey Wood, via Liverpool Street and Canary Wharf start.
- In May 2019, Crossrail services between Paddington and Shenfield start.
- In December 2019, full Crossrail services start.
- The East West Rail Link will open.
- Oxford to Didcot should be electrified, allowing electric trains to Oxford.
These developments may appear to favour Great Western services over Chiltern, but I doubt that Chiltern will sit back and do nothing.
So what will Chiltern do?
Consider.
- Will the Marylebone to Oxford route be improved to allow services to run faster and more frequent services? There are certainly some possible plans for this on Wikipedia.
- Will the West Hampstead Interchange be created?
- I doubt that it would be easy to shoehorn more services between High Wycombe and Marylebone, so this route will probably be limited to 2 tph.
- The Oxford to Marylebone trains will go to Class 68 locomotives and rakes of Mark 3 coaches, as Chiltern use to Birmingham at the present time.
- Greater Anglia could be releasing some high-quality Mark 3 coaches in 2019-2020.
- There has been speculation that Chiltern could open a second London terminus at Old Oak Common for Crossrail. I wrote about it in Will Chiltern Railways Get A Second London Terminus At Old Oak Common?.
- Will electrification come to the Chiltern Line? Or at least enough to run modern bi-mode or battery-electreic trains.
- The Guardian says that Bicester Village is one of the top tourist destinations in the UK.
What is needed is a comprehensive plan for Chiltern’s future.
I can’t believe that they’re not working on one!
It could include the following.
- Line improvements to reduce journey times between Marylebone and Oxford.
- Improvements to allow the longest possible locomotive-hauled sets to run the route.
- Development of West Hampstead Interchange.
- Creation of a second terminus at Old Oak Common.
One or both of the last two options will have to be implemented, due to the lack of capacity at Marylebone and that station’s bad connectivity.
But what would I do?
The Southern end of the Chiltern Main Line needs better connectivity and the best way to do this would be to link it to Crossrail.
When Crossrail opens to Paddington in December 2018, the direct link I wrote about in Paddington Is Operational Again, will enable passengers taking the Bakerloo Line from Marylebone to change easily to Crossrail.
Together with line improvements and longer trains, this should handle the traffic for a few years.
It is interesting to look at a few journey times.
- Chiltern has trains scheduled between Marylebone and High Wycombe in around 24-28 minutes.
- Crossrail services from Paddington will take 27 minutes to Sloughbold step of creating a Crossrail .
- Crossrail services from Paddington will take 45 minutes to Reading.
I would take the bold step of creating a Crossrail branch to High Wycombe.
- High Wycombe would receive 4 tph from Crossrail.
- There could be cross-platform interchange between Crossrail and Chiltern services to Oxford and Birmingham.
- The Acton-Northolt Line would be double-tracked and electrified to connect Crossrail at Old Oak Common to the Chiltern Main Line at Northolt Junction.
- The Chiltern Main line would be electrified from Northolt Junction to High Wycombe.
- Chiltern’s Oxford and Birmingham services could use Class 88 electro-diesel locomotives, to take advantage of the limited electrification.
- Extra services could run from High Wycombe to Oxford and Birmingham, if traffic required more capacity.
Except for the electrification and some track layout changes, there is no substantial investment required in new lines and stations.
If this approach is taken, there will probably be eough eletrification on the Chiltern routes to use Aventra trains with an IPEMU-capability to provide the services out of Marylebone.
Did The Project Management Go Wrong On The Holloway Road Bridge?
It was originally planned that the bridge decking where Holloway Road crosses the Gospel Oak to Barking Line (GOBlin) at Upper Holloway station would be replaced over Christmas this year.
But plans were obviously changed.
This article in the Islington Gazette is entitled Holloway Road closures: Islington Council threatens to sue TfL over ‘last-minute’ plans.
This is said.
TfL says work to transfer underground pipes and cables from the old bridge to another specially-made bridge has proved problematic because of their “complex layout, poor condition and a leaking water main”.
But Cllr Webbe was having none of it. She said: “This section of Holloway Road will be closed in at least one direction for nearly three months, including over half term, Christmas and New Year.
It looks like the water main is the problem and perhaps this didn’t show up until they started to move everything.
But whatever the problem was, it looks to me like there has been a cock-up by someone.
Was it the surveyor, who looked at the moving of the cables and the water main and didn’t quantify the task properly?
Surely though, the big problem now is that if this bridge problem delays the rebuilding of the trac for the GOBlink, which is needed for the electrification.
It’s a mess!
I took these pictures of the area today.
I walked down from Archway station and then caught a free bus to Holloway Road. At least TfL had got the buses right.
But except for Junction Road from Archway to Kentish Town, which was blocked solid, the traffic levels were very low.
Ducking And Diving Between Crossrail And The Central Line
There are stations that Crossrail and the Central Line have in common.
Ealing Broadway
Ealing Broadway station is one of the Western termini of the Central Line.
But is isn’t particularly well arranged to allow a fast interchange.
The change between an Eastbound Crossrail train and the Central Line is easy and is just a walk across of a few metres.
However, changing between a Westbound train and the Central Line involves a trip over a bridge.
Bond Street
Bond Street station links both lines to the Jubilee Line.
The change between Crossrail and the Jubilee Line looks to be easy, provided you are at the Western end of a Crossrail train.
The change between Crossrail and the Central Line, also has the Western end advice and also needs a lengththy walk underground.
A Look At Bond Street Station gives more details, of the various connections.
I do think that regular users of the new Bond Street station, with its three lines and multiple entrances spread over a wide area, will quickly learn that they will need to get off at the right end of a train and use the correct entrance.
This map from Westminster Council shows the station entrances.
Bond Street Station Entrances
The station entrances are as follows.
- A – Northern Underground entrance.
- B – Davies Street Crossrail entrance
- C – Hanover Square Crossrail entrance.
A few thoughts.
- As it looks like Hanover Square will be returned to its original state, it would appear that the Hanover Square entrance to Bond Street station, will be an entrance with a garden.
- Fenwicks, Hamleys, John Lewis and Libertys, which are in a ring around Hanover Square will probably be best reached using the Hanover Square entrance.
- Walking between Oxford Street station and the Hanover Square entrance isn’t too taxing, but it could be improved by wider pavements and more pedestrianisation.
The biggest change at the Eastern end will occur, when and if TfL decide to make Oxford Street station step-free.
This map from carto.metro.free.fr shows the various lines from Bond Street to Tottenham Court Road.
Bond Street, Oxford Street And Tottenham Court Road Stations
It would appear that the Bakerloo Line goes under Regent Street with the Central Line under Oxford Street.
Consider.
- Could it be possible to dig a new entrance, with lifts and escalators down to the deep level lines from the South West corner of Oxford Circus?
- It it was feasible, it might even be possible to build the entrance, without disturbing the current station.
- The entrance would be a short walk to Hanover Square.
- Crossrail would gain the missing link to the Victoria Line.
The solution will depend heavily on the development in the area.
Tottenham Court Road
A lot of what is said for Bond Street, can also be said for Tottenham Court Road station..
- It is a double-ended station, with lots of entrances.
- It connects Crossrail and the Central Line to an important North-South line; the Charing Cross Branch of the Northern Line.
- It will bring hoards of shoppers to a hopefully pedestrianised Oxford Street.
I said more in The Double-Ended Tottenham Court Road Crossrail Station.
I’m not sure how difficult the interchange will be between the Crossrail and the Central Line will be at Tottenham Court Road, but I suspect that the unknowledgeable traveller, at the wrong end of a Crossrail train, might have a long walk.
Certainly, travellers changing to the Northern Line at Tottenham Court Road, will probably find they need to be at the Eastern end of the Crossrail train.
Liverpool Street
Liverpool Street and Moorgate stations share a massive Crossrail station, that I wrote about in Liverpool Street Station Disentagled.
When travelling on Crossrail and changing at this station, you’ll need the Western end of the train for.
- Moorgate Main Line Trains, which will become the Great Northern Metro.
- Northern Line
And the Eastern end for.
- Central Line
- Liverpool Street Main Line Trains
It would appear, that Circle, District and Metropolitan Lines will be easily accessible from both ends of the Crossrail train.
Get it wrong and you could have an unexpected two hundred metre walk.
This map from carto.metro.free.fr shows the layout of lines at Liverpool Street and Moorgate stations.
Lines At Moorgate And Liverpool Street Stations
So many journeys from the complex will now be a lot easier.
- Liverpool Street to Canary Wharf
- Liverpool Street to Heathrow
- Liverpool Street to North London and South Hertfordshire
- Liverpool Street to South and South-East ~London.
Liverpool Street is going to be a very busy Crossrail station.
Stratford
Stratford station is a cross-plstform interchange of the highest quality between the Central Line and Crossrail.
I’m certain that passengers travelling from the East to stations like Holborn, Oxford Circus, Marble Arch and Shepherds Bush, will think about changing at Stratford from Crossrail, rather than at later stations.
The journey might be more convenient and you might get a seat.
Journey Times
But the factor that will decide, where a Crossrail passenger will get the Central Line or vice-versa will probably be decided by journey time.
Looking at a journeys, the following times are predicted by the various planning tools.
- Ealing Broadway to Stratford – Central Line – 46 minutes – Crossrail – 26 minutes
- Bond Street to Stratford – Central Line – 20 minutes – Crossrail – 15 minutes
- Ealing Broadway to Bond Street – Central Line – 23 minutes – Crossrail – 11 minutes
So it looks like Crossrail will be significantly quicker.
Conclusions
I think that Londoners will do what always do and duck and dive across London, finding the best route for their particular journey.
The ones who will have problems will be the irregular passengers, who don’t know the station layouts.
For this reason, TfL need to get the information on Crossrail to a much higher standard than today.
One thing on their side will be that Crossrail trains will be wi-fi and 4G enabled.
A Look At Bond Street Station
Bond Street station is double-ended.
This visualisation shows the knitting that connects it to the current Bond Street station.
Note.
- The station has two entrances; Davies Street and Hanover Square.
- The length of the Crossrail platforms.
- It looks like the Western interchange between Crossrail and Jubilee Line is easy.
- It could be quite a walk between Crossrail and the Central Line at Davies Street.
- If you’re a strong walker, some will use the Hanover Square entrance to access the Central and Victoria Lines.
On this quick look, I have a feeling that at Bond Street station, it will pay to know your entrances and make sure you’re at the right place on the train.
The Double-Ended Tottenham Court Road Crossrail Station
Tottenham Court Road station is being expanded for Crossrail.
I took these pictures as I walked along Oxford Street from Centrepoint to the new station entrance at Dean Street.
Note.
- The two new triangular glass entrances in front of Centrepoint.
- The new entrance on the corner of Oxford Street and Tottenham Court Road, that I wrote about inThe Shape Of Things To Come.
- The Dean Street entrance to Tottenham Court Road station surrounded by pink hoardings.
This visualisation shows the layout of the station.
Tottenham Court Road Station
Note.
It is shown from the South, with Centrepoint on the right.
I’ll only know when the station opens, but I do get the impression, that a lot of the walking routes between lines are step-free, unlike Oxford Circus station.
Where the Central and Northern Lines are shown, they are in appropriate colours and the thicker sections are the stations.
This map from carto.metro.free.fr shows the arrangement of the lines between Bond Street and Tottenham Court Road stations.
Bond Street, Oxford Street And Tottenham Court Road Stations
I Hope it makes everything clearer.
The Anonymous Widower 