Fun At The Elephant And Castle
When I was driving, I used to find the Elephant and Castle roundabout confusing, especially as being a North Londoner, you don’t cross the Great Sewer unless you’re accompanied by a posse. (Make sure, they’re not Ipswich supporters, as they get lost at Liverpool Street!)
The Underground Station
In some ways Elephant and Castle tube station can be confusing and is almost two separate stations connected by long, dark tunnels under the roundabout.
- The Northern entrance is directly over the Bakerloo Line platforms
- The Southern entrance seems to give better access to the Northern Line platforms.
There are no escalators, but the Southern entrance is likely to be rebuilt. Wikipedia says this.
A major upgrade is being planned by Transport for London to bring improvements to the station; these include a new Northern line ticket hall, three new escalators and additional lifts to provide step-free access to the Northern line platforms. This will be done in conjunction with the major transformation in the Elephant & Castle area to create thousands of new homes and potential for new retail development to provide growth potential in the area.
That would be a great improvement.
The New Road Layout
Things look like they’re going to get a lot more fun for drivers at the Elephant and Castle judging by this traffic scheme that will start on Sunday.
This Tfl web page shows the scheme and this TfL map shows the final layout.
Elephant And Castle Roundabout
It’s even got its own web-site.
For comparison, this is a Google Map of the area before any roadworks.
Elephant And Castle Northern Roundabout
Note.
- The drawing of the new scheme has North to the left.
- The Bakerloo Line entrance is on the North Side of the old roundabout, with the Northern Line entrance at the South
- A quick look could say that the road space will be wider, but shorter after reconstruction.
It could well be a lot easier for pedestrians like me!
December 3rd, 2015
These are pictures taken on Thursday the third.
The traffic seemed pretty dense even at ten in the morning.
December 5th, 2015
These pictures were taken about the same time on Sunday the 5th.
Note that I walked a similar route on the third.
The Pedestrian Routes Are Emerging
The main difference between the two sets of pictures, is that on the North, West and East sides of the roundabout, traffic is now two-bay with a traffic island between the two carriageways.
The South side is no longer used for traffic and will be pedestrianised early in 2016.
It is now possible to see how when the scheme is complete, that the centre of the old roundabout will be joined to the South Side. This will mean that to walk from the Northern Line station to the Bakerloo line station, will require only one road crossing at the North Side of the old roundabout.
I have some questions.
- Will the middle be landscaped? Obviously!
- Will there be a cafe in the middle? Hopefully?
- Will the preferred route to the Bakerloo Line trains from the surface, always be to enter the Bakerloo Line entrance and then descend in the lifts there, which take you directly to the platforms? It might be a shorter and more pleasant walk, than a long one in a tunnel!
After my visit today, I think I can see a purpose to the new design.
December 7th, 2015
This was the first working day at the same time as the previous sets of pictures.
I did see a picture, which showed a cafe and I think that if they can do the same at Old Street, which seems to be the next roundabout removal I’ll be pleased.
Although there is this article on the BBC, which is entitled Elephant and Castle: Two-way traffic redesign causes chaos. This is said.
The removal of the Elephant and Castle roundabout has been causing chaos for commuters, with motorists complaining of queues of more than an hour.
But then good news doesn’t draw viewers to the web site.
I’ll come back and watch this one in the future.
Signs Of The Northern Line Extension
I have been past Battersea Power Station twice in the last few days and have been able to take pictures of the conveyors linking the excavations of the now-started Northern Line Extension to the river.
I do wish I could find a train from which it is possible to get a decent photograph of the conveyors and the barge, which is used to take the spoil away. Sadly, it wasn’t there when I took the Thames Clipper trip yesterday.
In this article in the Railway Gazette, the following is said.
Boring of twin tunnels is due to begin in early 2017 and is expected to take six months to complete. An expected 680 000 tonnes of material would be excavated. A 300 m long conveyor belt will carry 92% of this to the River Thames, from where barges will carry it to Goshems Farm in East Tilbury to the east of London.
This is only a small project compared to Crossrail or Crossrail 2, but you have to wonder, if we should be doing a few smaller rail projects like this, to squeeze more capacity out of our overcrowded railways, metros and trams.
In London some smaller projects come to mind.
- Extending the Victoria Line to Herne Hill station, which I wrote about in Could The Victoria Line Go To Herne Hill?
- Extending the Bakerloo Line, which according to this TfL press release has overwhelming support.
- Reinstating the Hall Farm Curve to allow direct services between the Chingford Branch Line and Stratford.
- Connecting the Central and East London Lines at Shoreditch High Street station.
The only certainty, is that the projects that get started will surprise us.
The Croxley Rail Link Is Now The Metropolitan Line Extension
This report in the Railway Gazette is entitled Metropolitan Line Extension Funding Agreed. This is said.
The funding package for the Metropolitan Line Extension project has been finalised, London Underground announced on November 23. Construction is now expected to start next year, with completion due in 2020.
The project has now also changed its name from Croxley Rail Link to Metropolitan Line Extension.
There is now also this page on Transport for London’s web site, which comes with this new map.
Metropolitan Line Extension
I have to ask, whether the timing of this is significant, as the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement is on Wednesday.
Changing Trains At Brixton
These pictures are a record of changing from Brixton tube station on the Victoria Line to Brixton station for a train to Herne Hill.
Note the following.
- The Underground station is step-free, but the rail station definitely isn’t!
- Platform 1 at Brixton station for Victoria is only accessible with difficulty.
- Platform 2 is by internal staircase with artwork.
- The platforms have two bronze figures on the platforms. I’d like to see more of the bronzes in store in our galleries exhibitied on stations. You certainly couldn’t nick them from Brixton station.
The Underground station is one of the best, but the rail station is best described as unusual.
This Google Map shows the two stations.
Brixton Station
Simple it isn’t!
How complicated and expensive a new station would be depends on how many connections, you want passengers to have.
Building an Overground station in the sky would be expensive, as height always costs money.
But putting decent stairs and lifts into the existing Brixton station would be routine compared to linking to the Overground.
The only way to connect all three lines would be to rebuild the Argos building as a triple dcker station with lifts and escalators.
But it would be horrendously expensive, even if there were some shops and a lot of flats on the top of everything.
But the bulding would be well connected!
I think that the best that can be hoped for is lifts and decent stairs in the main line station.
Will The Victoria Line Go To Herne Hill?
The Wikipedia entry for the Victoria Line has a section entitled Possible Future Projects. This is said.
For many years there have been proposals to extend the line one stop southwards from Brixton to Herne Hill. Herne Hill station would be on a large reversing loop with one platform. This would remove a critical capacity restriction by eliminating the need for trains to reverse at Brixton. The Mayor of London’s 2020 Vision, published in 2013, proposed extending the Victoria line “out beyond Brixton” by 2030.
Now that the dodgy crossover on the approach to Walthamstow Central station has been replaced, this extension to Herne Hill station must be higher up Transport for London’s list of priorities, as they try to squeeze more capacity out of London’s railways.
This metro map from carto.metro.fr, shows the lines around Herne Hill.
Victoria Line And Herne Hill
Note the blue lines of the Victoria Line going a short distance past the terminal platforms at Brixton tube station.
The plan calls for these stubs to be extended in a wide loop under Herne Hill station, where there would be a single platform beneath the current platforms.
I think that this was a project that should have some years ago, as it would surely have taken some of the pressure off Victoria tube station, during the current rebuilding.
In the London Transport Infrastructure Plan for 2050, under New Links and/or stations for Strategic Interchange, there is a mention of Brixton High Level, which I wrote about in Could The Various Lines At Brixton Be Connected?. I finished with.
So it would appear that substantial improvement at Brixton could be achieved by creating a High Level station linking the various lines together and perhaps using an iconic lift tower to the ground.
Brixton needs an iconic creation to go with the vibrancy of the area, that doesn’t destroy everything. This could be the High Level station. Having seen the way that the walkway was threaded through at Hackney, I think there are at least one set of engineers and architects up to the challenge.
But building an iconic station at Brixton would cause a lot of disruption.
However, it could be argued and the passenger figures might show it, that another station at Herne Hill might help in giving passengers another way to get on the Victoria Line.
This section is taken from the Transport Infrastructure Plan.
Some examples of the types of schemes to address these issues are an upgrade of the London Overground network to provide 6 car trains and new stationson existing lines, eg at Camberwell, that can plug connectivity gaps and act as development nodes.
Look at the map of the Victoria Line and Herne Hill and you’ll see the orange line of the London Overground passing across and going over the top of Loughborough Junction station. Surely a four-poster station could be built to improve the connectivity. For a start, it would give Dalstonistas like me, good access to Thameslink.
South London often gets overlooked in the development of London’s railways, but done in the right sequence, I think these projects would be a welcome addition to London transport network.
- Victoria Line Extension to Herne Hill
- Brixton High Level Station, which would connect the Overground to lines out of Victoria.
- Loughborough Junction High Level Station, which would connect the Overground to Thameslink.
I would start with the Victoria Line extension to Herne Hill. After all it would be a nice follow-on job to the Northern Line Extension to Battersea.
From Monument To Westminster Along The East-West Cycle Superhighway
I walked the East-West Cycle Superhighway in two sections, as I crossed the bridges to have lunch on the South Bank by the Tate Modern.
It certainly is getting a move on, with some sections almost ready to open.
A few notes follow.
The Arthur Street Site
A new block is being created on this site, but before that happens, the site is being used to access the underground parts of Bank station.
This map from a TfL document show the site.
The Arthur Street Site
This fact sheet explains how the Arthur Street Site is to be used. This is said.
To deliver the proposed station improvements there is a need for a worksite in Arthur Street. This site is above the new tunnel alignment, and enables access via a shaft directly down to the new tunnel. This separates the underground tunnelling works from the extensive demolition and basement construction works on the Cannon Street site, facilitating an earlier completion of the tunnelling works and a reduction of the overall impact of the project on the City.
As with everything in the City of London, it all seems very crowded.
Along Upper Thames Street
As the pictures show the Cycle Superhighway is going on the North side of this road.
This road has always been jammed solid with cars, taxis and a lot of trucks.
The construction phase of the Cycle Superhighway isn’t exactly helping traffic flows.
The Millennium Inclinator
The Millennium Inclinator is by the Millennium Bridge and I used it to get up the steps to the bridge, before crossing to get some lunch on the South Bank.
Westward From Blackfriars
After lunch, I crossed back to the North over Blackfriars Bridge and followed the Cycle Superhighway to Westminster station.
Conclusions
As with Cycle Superhighway CS5 from Oval to Pimlico, from what I could see, it seems to be well-designed and built.
I’ll look forward to hiring a bike at one end and riding it to the other.
Squeezing Blood Out Of A Stone On The Northern Line
The Northern Line is not the most popular or glamorous line of the London Underground.
It is a line I try to avoid for various reasons.
- It’s often too crowded.
- I have buses, Victoria Line and the London Overground as alternatives. For example, I use Camden Road station instead of Camden Town station and walk.
- In recent months, stations I want to use have been renewing escalators.
- I also want to get to stations, that are on the Charing Cross branch of the line.
I also wonder, if I’m prejudiced against the Northern Line, as I spent so much of my formative years on the Piccadilly Line.
I have just read this article on London Reconnections, which is entitled Twin Peaks: Timetable Changes On The Northern Line.
I have extracted these points from the article.
- Until mid-2014, both central sections and both northern branches of the Northern Line in the peak hours were only able to handle twenty trains per hour (tph). This compares with 30 tph on the Jubilee Line, 33 tph for the Victoria Line and 34 tph for the Central Line.
- In June 2014, with the full introduction of automatic train operation (ATO), this was raised to 22 tph.
- Engineers were working hard to improve the track to allow better speeds and from December 2014, the train frequency in the peak was raised to 24 tph.
- The line is now running at 30 tph between Kennington and Morden.
- The Off Peak service at the start of 2014 was 15-16 tph and it is now 20 tph.
All of this frequency improvement has been attained because they have got ATO working well and they’ve done a good job to allow trains to run faster on much better track.
You could say it’s all down to quality engineering. With probably the input from someone, who understands scheduling.
The article has a section entitled As Good As It Can Get For The Moment?, where this is said.
No doubt the ATO system will continue to be refined but the dramatic time reductions already achieved are unlikely to be improved on much more. Unless more available trains or speed can be coaxed of the existing fleet it is hard to see how the peak timetable can be improved until new trains arrive.
So have we got to the limit of the current lines and the 1995 Stock trains?
If you read the article, you’ll see that Transport for London are talking about peak hour services of 30 tph with new trains after the reworking of track in Summer 2020.
But given the skilful way, the frequency of this line has been ramped up over the last couple of years, I suspect, there’s more blood to come from this particular stone!
The Camden Town Station Upgrade Exhibition
This afternoon I went to the Camden Town Station Upgrade Exhibition at the Trinity United Reformed Church, Buck Street, Camden Town NW1 8NJ.
It will be on tomorrow and Saturday.
I did get a few questions answered and I have a few comments.
- This capacity upgrade is only concerned with the upgrade to Camden Town station and has nothing to do with improving the routes between this station and Camden Road station.
- I do think that provision should be made for a connection, even if it isn’t made until quite a few years.
- As in the current station, steps will still normally be used to access the two Southbound platforms from the main circulating space.
- For those needing step-free access to and from the surface, there will be a second lift lobby at Southbound platform height, below the main circulating space.
- Anybody crossing between the two Southbound or the two Northbound platforms will have a step-free route across.
I think that it is important that in addition to upgrading the capacity at Camden Town station, that the routes between the two Camden station; Town and Road should be improved for the following reasons.
- Camden Road is a station with full step-free access and if you lived or were staying within easy reach of the North London Line, you might find the route a much better alternative for going to the attractions of Camden Town and Camden Lock. I sometimes go for a coffee with my son, who works in Camden Town by that route from Dalston.
- Camden Lock is five hundred metres from Camden Road station and three-hundred and fifty metres from Camden Town stations and the longer route can be less busy.
- Walking between Camden Road station and Camden Lock has been improved recently, by creating a set of steps down from Camden Road to the Regent’s Canal. This may encourage many to walk to the Camden Lock area along the canal.
- Using Camden Road station or a bus for leaving the area avoids using the long spiral staircase to descend to the Northern Line at Camden Town station, which at times is the only route to the platforms.
- During the building of the capacity upgrade at Camden Town station, any alternative route that takes pressure off the station will be welcomed.
- The current walking route along Camden Road is very crowded and involves two crossings of roads on controlled crossings.
- Access to buses could be better thought out.
I would do the following.
- Improve the Regent’s Canal route between Camden Road station and Camden Lock. At present it is a bit difficult at the Camden Lock end, due to the development of Hawley Wharf.
- Improve the steps from the canal to Kentish Town Road, so that, when the Buck Street entrance to Camden Town station is opened, you have a shorter walk between the two stations.
- The Kentish Town Road steps could also provide a possibly quicker route to Camden Lock and the Roundhouse from the Buck Street entrance.
In addition lots of maps and signposting could point out some of the myriad routes and short-cuts in the area.
Eventually, a second entrance could be built at an expanded Camden Road station in the area of Camden Gardens.
Perhaps, by building much of the entrance in the three empty arches under the railway and using external lifts and escalators as has been done in buildings like the Pompidou Centre, the Lloyd Building or Deansgate-Castlefield tram stop in Manchester.
This Google Map shows the area.
Camden Gardens, Camden Lock And Buck Street
Camden Gardens is at the top right around the viaduct of the North London Line, which runs across the map to Camden Lock. Kentish Town Road goes almost North-South through the area, with Buck Street towards the bottom. The triple building is the school that currently occupies the proposed station site. I would estimate that the distance between Camden Gardens and Buck Street could be little more than two hundred metres.
Perhaps, the Buck Street entrance building, needs a back entrance on Kentish Town Road?
To finish this is a picture of the viaduct across Camden Gardens.
After being rebuilt since the freight train crash of a couple of years ago, I’m sure another good use can be found for it.
More On The Camden Town Station Upgrade
This document on TfL’s web site gives more details of the proposed capacity upgrade at Camden Town station. This schematic of the tunnels, platforms and walkways shows how the station could look in a few years time.
Camden Town Station Schematic
Note the following.
- The Northbound platforms are above the South ones.
- The triple escalators (7) and double lifts (8) at the left, leading down the the circulation space (9), which is shared with two escalators of the existing station.
- There is a new cross passage between the two Northbound platforms, which means that the interchange between the Northbound High Barnet and Edgware branches is a simple walk across, as it is now in the current station.
- The cross passage between the two Southbound platforms, is a bit more complicated, as the platforms are beneath the level of the circulation space. Judging by the large ends of the passage in the schematic, I suspect that as at Angel short escalators will give access to the platform.
- These short escalators would also help those passengers, who’ve gone the wrong way, as we all done from time to time, change direction.
- Would the current cross-platform connections with their steps down to the Southbound platforms just be refurbished or would they be changed to give a direct step free connection between the two Southbound platforms?
- The current emergency stairs are shown and I suspect that a bit of remodelling in this area, could improve cross-platform connections.
At a first look I see two problems with the design.
Obviously, the route between the two Northbound platforms and to the circulation space and the lifts is step-free, but I can’t see how this is the case for the Southbound platforms. It could be that lifts will be provided to access the platforms from the circulation space, or the main lifts will go down another level to what appears to be a a second cross passage, which appears to connect the two Southbound platforms and by-pass the stair or escalators to the circulation space.
I also can’t see how the station could be connected to Camden Road station. Unless the route from say escalators and lifts down from the London Overground station feed into a tunnel, which is an extension Northwards from the lift lobby.
An uncovered walking route between the two Camden stations, is not a solution that is acceptable, in the present and passengers in the future will demand something a lot better.
I shall be going to the exhibition in the next couple of days and all will probably be clear.
Camden Town Station Capacity Upgrade
Camden Town station on the Northern Line of the London Underground is one of the most congested stations on the network.
It finally looks like something is happening to ease the problems as this consultation is now on the TfL website.
TfL’s first rebuilding plans are described in Wikipedia and they needed a lot of demolition. Wikipedia says this.
Apart from complaints about destruction of one of the ox-blood tiled station buildings, there is a significant controversy over the demolition of the buildings to the north. Complaints particularly centred on London Underground’s desire to replace the buildings with modern construction said to be out of place and out of scale with the remainder of Camden Town, together with complaints about the loss of the buildings and market themselves. This led to a public inquiry being held. In January 2004, consultants Arup published plans commissioned by Save Camden, a group of local market traders, for a remodelling that would preserve the majority of the threatened buildings, including the market. In 2005 Transport for London lost its appeal to the office of the Deputy Prime Minister and the scheme has been cancelled.
So this has led to the current plan, where TfL are proposing a second entrance on Buck Street. They say this in the consultation.
A possible site for a new station entrance would be on Buck Street, between Camden High Street and Kentish Town Road. It would lead to three new escalators and two lifts. Below ground there would be more space to change between trains. This would in turn enable future capacity benefits on the Northern line.
The most significant point is the capacity upgrade on the line, which involves splitting the Northern Line into two.
- The Edgware Branch would take the Charing Cross route to Kennington before continuing to Battersea and eventually Clapham Junction.
- The High Barnet Branch would take the Bank route to Kennington and then go to Morden.
The only thing stopping this is the current mess that is Camden Town.
I would assume that this upgrade would include an easy walk-across for passengers changing between the two new lines at Camden Town.
On the surface, it would appear that little will be done, except to build the new station entrance on the site of a closed school. This map shows the position of the new entrance.
New Entrance To Camden Town Station
It would be ideally placed for the hoards of visitors going to and from Camden Lock and the various markets.
It is also worth looking at the layout of lines in the area.
Camden Town And Camden Road Stations
Note how Camden Road station is actually quite close to the northern end of the platforms at Camden Town station.
So would it be possible to create a better link between the two stations?
I would certainly feel that when the Northern Line is split and extended to Battersea, many people would use the interchange. I certainly would, as getting to places like Charing Cross or Waterloo is one of those journeys you don’t start from Hackney.
future.
In Transport for London’s London Infrastructure Plan for 2050, this is said.
This will allow, for example, higher frequency services out of terminals such as Victoria to South London centres such as Croydon and the development of major interchange hubs that act in a similar way to Clapham Junction in the South West. e.g. Camden Interchange between Camden Road and Camden Town stations.
So obviously, TfL are thinking along these lines.
The two stations are an official out-of-station interchange.
A Google Map also shows Buck Street and the North London Line.
Buck Street To Camden Road
Buck Street is the curved road in the bottom left corner of the map, just above the white building which is Camden Market. On the North side of the street is Hawley Infant and Nursery School, which will become the site of the second entrance to Camden Town station.
The North London Line runs across the top of the map with Camden Road station at the right. It is worthwhile noting the fork in the line.
- The southern arm is a freight-only line, that leads to the disused Primrose Hill station and the Watford DC Line.
- The northern arm is the North London Line to Willesden Junction.
At one time it was proposed that changes be made here, as detailed in Wikipedia, but nothing seems to be planned at the moment.
The only thing the proposal shows is that TfL have been thinking hard about this area.
But I do think that London’s universe-class tunnellers could create an escalator connection between the two stations, if that was decided how the interchange was to be created.
There could also be other simpler ways to create better walking routes between Camden Road station and Buck Street. I will have to check, but I don’t think it is possible to walk along the tow-path of the Regent’s Canal.
Later I took a train to Camden Road station and then walked by a roundabout route to Camden Town station.
Do I have any conclusions and questions?
- The current walking route between the two stations is crowded and possibly dangerous. It also involves crossing two roads at lights.
- Because there is now steps down from Camden Road to the Regent’s Canal Tow Path, there is already a walking route between Camden Road station and Camden Lock, which does not mean any roads have to be crossed. Some improvements to the surface and perhaps guard and hand rails would need to be made to bring it up to a safe standard.
- It might be possible to install lifts, at Camden Road, Kentish Town Road and Camden Lock to make the tow path fully-accessible to all.
- Until Camden Town station is extended and improved, it could be sign-posted as an alternative route to Camden Lock.
- As you approach Camden Lock, where the railway runs along the Regent’s Canal, what plans are there for development in the area?
- The Regent’s Canal Tow Path, would also enable a walking route between Camden Road station and the new Buck Street Entrance to Camden Town station.
- It would appear that the Hawley Infant and Nursery School is not a bad place for a second entrance to Camden Town station, as it is well placed for the attractions between Camden Town and Camden Lock.
- The Buck Street site is probably big enough to create a second entrance, which has a capacity substantially greater than the current station. The consultation talks of three new escalators and two lifts, but capacity is often determined by the space at the bottom of the lifts/escalators, which I’m sure would be more than adequate.
- The area round Camden Town station is more than incredibly busy.
- There are bus stops everywhere and they could do with being reorganised. As an example, getting a bus to London Zoo is not very easy.
- There are quite a few low-grade buildings in the area, that few would miss.
- How was planning permission for the Sainsbury’s supermarket obtained?
- Incidentally, the store was built in 1988, so it must be coming up for refurbishment soon.
But looking at the North London Line as it passes over Camden Gardens and along the canal, it struck me that something dramatic and modern, but that still fitted in with the surroundings could be created that connected the high viaduct of the North London Line to the ground below and then by escalators and/or lifts to the Northern Line tunnels. I then looked at the Google Map of the area from Camden Road station to Camden Gardens.
To The West Of Camden Road Station
Note the disused twin-track rail loop around Camden Road station to the north side of the station. There is also a smaller space on the south side that leads almost to Camden Gardens.
Surely, an imaginative architect could use these resources to extend the station to the area of the gardens, from where some means of descending and ascending would be provided. Large lifts or escalators fully enclosed in glass would be something I’ve seen elsewhere and they would contrast well with the bricks of the viaduct.
With my project management hat on, I also believe that TfL have chosen a design, that will be easy to build.
- Phase 1 – Build the second entrance with its lifts and escalators as almost a second station connected to the existing platforms. There is another station on the Underground that is effectively two stations – Knightsbridge, because of Harrods.
- Phase 2 – Open the second entrance and prove that it can handle all the passengers who want to use the station.
- Phase 3 – Close and refurbish the existing station.
The link to Camden Road station would probably be incorporated into Phase 1.
I don’t know anything about the safety arrangements of stations, but surely a twin station’s duplication must make it simpler.
There is a chance to create an iconic Camden Interchange station, that truly reflects the unconventional nature of Camden Town.
The Anonymous Widower 