Northern Line Extension ‘On Track’ For 2021 Opening
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Transport Network.
I’m looking forward to using the line in the Autumn.
This map from cartometro.com, shows the track layout of the extension.
Note.
- The extension starts from the existing Kennington Loop at Kenning station.
- There is an intermediate station at Nine Elms.
- As with many two-platform stations, there is a cross-over in the approach. It is shown in a picture in the article.
Hopefully, the extension will eventually be extended to Clapham Junction.
Step-Free Interchange At Kennington Station
I have been worried about this and from the comment of others like Melvyn, I am not alone.
This map from cartometro.com, shows the track layout at Kennington station.
Note.
- Elephant and Castle station is at the North-East corner of the map and is on the Bank branch of the Northern Line.
- The pair of tracks going North-West are the Charing Cross branch of the Northern Line.
- The pair of tracks going South-West are the Morden branch of the Northern Line.
- Trains going South to Morden can use either Platform 2 or 4, depending, whether they have come Charing Cross or Bank.
- Trains going North from Morden can use either Platform 1 or 3, depending, whether they are going to Charing Cross or Bank.
- The Kennington Loop allows trains from Charing Cross that arrive in Platform 2 to go direct to Platform 1 to return to the North.
- There appears to be a revering siding, which can also reverse trains from either Platform 2 or 4 and send them North from Platform 1 or 3.
- Chords South of the platforms allow trains to and from Charing Cross to access the tracks to Morder and the reversing siding.
- The Battersea Power Station branch, is shown in dotted lines and connects to the Kennington Loop.
I took these pictures at Kennington station today.
Note.
The platforms are in two pairs, which are connected by walk-through passages, with Platforms 2 and 4 for Southbound trains and Platforms 1 and 3 for Northbound trains.
- Each platform has a proper clock.
- The only access to the pair of platforms is by steep long stairs.
- The stairs need to be rebuilt with proper handrails on both sides.
- The last picture shows the handrails at Moorgate station.
Currently, the system allows journeys between the North and Morden, either directly or with a walk-across change at Kennington station.
- Going South to Morden, if you get a train, that reverses at Kennington, you would wait for a train to turn up on either Platform 2 or 4, that is going the whole way.
- Going North from Morden, if you get a train going to the wrong Northern destination, you would get off at Kennington and wait for a train to turn up on either Platform 1 or 3, that is going to the destination you desire.
What is needed on all platforms, is more comprehensive information displays.
- Displays on Platforms 2 and 4, would show details of all Southbound trains. whether they terminated at Kennington or went to Morden, or in future went to Battersea Power Station station.
- Displays on Platforms 1 and 3, would show details of all Northbound trains.
Displays would indicate destination and time as now, but with the addition of platform, where you catch the train.
If there is one problem it is taking a train between Battersea Power Station and Morden stations.
This public domain drawing from the Internet shows the station, after the Kennington Loop had been built in the 1920s and 1930s.
Note.
- We are looking from the North.
- The Kennington Loop at the far end of the station.
- The four platforms of the station numbered 2, 4, 3 and 1 from left to right.
- The stairs between the two pairs of platforms, leading to overbridges.
- The lift tower and a spiral staircase leading to and from the surface.
I can now sum up the step-free status of the station.
- Passengers entering or leaving the station, must walk up or down a staircase like that shown in the first picture.
- Passengers needing to change to another train going in the same direction, just walk across to the other platform in the pair.
- Passengers needing to change to another train going in the opposite direction, as they would going between Battersea Power Station and Morden stations, will need to climb one set of stairs and descend another.
It does appear that in an ideal world lifts will need to be added.
Thoughts On Future Step-Free Access At Kennington Station
In the future, it is planned that the Northern Line will be split into two lines.
- Battersea Power Station and Edgware
- Morden and High Barnet
Will this increase the number of passengers, who need to do the opposite direction change, as there will just be more trains running on all branches?
Alternative Step-Free Access
But, there may be another way to go between Battersea Power Station and Morden stations.
- Take a train from Battersea Power Station to Waterloo.
- Walk across the platform at Waterloo to the Southbound platform.
- Take a train from Waterloo back to Kennington.
- Walk across from Platform 2 at Kennington to Platform 4.
- Take the first train from Platform 4 to Morden.
The reverse journey between Morden and Battersea Power Station stations would be.
- Take a train from Morden to Kennington.
- Walk across from Platform 3 at Kennington to Platform 1
- Take a train from Platform 1 to Waterloo.
- Walk across the platform at Waterloo to the Southbound platform.
- Take the first train from Waterloo to Battersea Power Station.
Note,
- Both routes have two changes; one at Kennington and one at Waterloo,
- All changes are step-free.
- All changes are very simple
It should also be noted that Battersea Power Station, Nine Elms and Waterloo are all or will be fully step-free stations.
The two routes I have outlined have one big advantage. They already exist and the only costs would be training of staff and indicating the routes to passengers.
Thameslink Is Back On The London Tube Map
The title of this post, is the same as that, of this this article on Ian Visits.
Thameslink last appeared on the tub map in 1999.
I’m glad it’s back.
I regularly use Thameslink as a quick route across London, especially, if I want to go to Tate Modern, as the gallery is a short walk from Blackfriars station.
Coronavirus: Can I Be Infected By Touching Surfaces?
The title of this post is the same as that of an article on The Sunday Times.
The article is worth reading.
These two paragraphs some up the latest thoughts on infection from surfaces.
Monica Gandhi, a professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, told the US science website Nautilus that there had been “a lot of fear” at the beginning of the pandemic about transmission of the virus if people touched their faces after contact with metal, plastic or other contaminated surfaces, collectively known to scientists as fomites.
Yet the evidence suggests that the virus on most surfaces is not strong enough to make people ill. “It’s not through surfaces,” she added. “It’s from being close to someone spewing virus from their nose and mouth, without in most cases knowing they are doing so.”
I travel around the Underground a lot and I’m always masked, when I enter stations and usually use the hand-sanitisers, at least once on a trip. Most in London, seem to be acting similarly.
There has been no scares about using the Underground because of high-rates of the covids in recent months, that I can find.
More importantly, under a sub-title of Why Are Young Women The Targets Now?, this is the first paragraph.
The disease that ravaged care homes and turned the elderly into hermits for much of the spring has taken aim at different targets this autumn. Public Health England’s most recent statistics show that the 20-29 age group has had the most new cases since the end of June, followed closely by the 30-39 age group. In both those groups, more women are being infected than men.
This is paragraph is from the NHS web site.
Reported cases of coeliac disease are around 3 times higher in women than men. It can develop at any age, although symptoms are most likely to develop: during early childhood – between 8 and 12 months old, although it may take several years before a correct diagnosis is made.
Could this paragraph partly explain, the fact that women in their twenties and thirties are suffering from the covids?
Coeliac disease affects one in fifty of the population.
As a coeliac, it’s no hard task to stick to a gluten-free diet.
And I get the bonus of being 25 % less likely to suffer from cancer, according to peer-reviewed research from Nottingham University.
Tory London Mayoral Candidate Wants Sponsorship Deals For Tube Station Names To Raise TfL Cash
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the Telegraph.
This is the introductory paragraph.
Underground stations could be renamed under plans put forward by the Conservative London mayoral candidate for a £100 million a year sponsorship deal to bolster investment in the capital’s public transport network.
I think it could be an idea worth pursuing, as due to Sadiq Khan’s bribe of a fare freeze to get elected Transport for London’s finances are in a terrible state.
The article says, that Dubai, Madrid and New York already use similar ideas to raise money.
Remember, London already has one station, where name was changed for a local business; Gillespie Road station was renamed Arsenal in 1932.
Let’s Be Creative!
I also think, if we are creative, we could make the stations much more passenger-friendly, with respect to services nearby.
Imagine a board, with Alight Here For at the top and slots for local shops and businesses below. Each slotted-in advert would be a perhaps a foot wide and four inches high, saying something like. “Boots 100 metres” or “Costa Here!”
Go-Ahead For West London 460-Home Build To Rent Scheme
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Construction Enquirer.
This is the first paragraph.
The scheme is the first to be brought forward by Connected Living London, a partnership between build to rent specialist Grainger and Transport for London.
This must be the way for London to get best value from all the suitable sites for housing, owned by Transport for London.
Four sites are mentioned in the article.
- Next to Southall station
- Next to Arnos Grove station
- Montford Place in Kennington. which is currently being used as a construction site for the Northern Line Extension.
- Above the new Nine Elms station on the Northern Line Extension.
These are some thoughts on the sites.
Arnos Grove Station
The developers will have to be careful, with the design at Arnos Grove station, as it’s a Grade II* Listed building.
This Google Map shows the station.
I never knew, that the station had so much parking.
Will the development be over some or all of this car parking?
This article on Ian Visits is entitled Plans To Build Flats On Arnos Grove Tube Station Car Park.
Ian says that there will be four blocks, with a total of162 rental homes, of which 40 % will be affordable.
- It doesn’t seem to be high density or high towers.
- A map shows it is not over the railway.
Ian also says this about the loss of car parking.
Unsurprisingly, there are local objections to the plans to remove the car park with nearly 300 parking spaces, although TfL counters that a third of the people who currently drive to the station living within walking distance.
But then many people never drive very far from where they live. For environmental reasons, perhaps fossil fuel vehicles should pay a Movement Tax of say five pounds, every time the vehicle is moved in a built-up area. Zero-emission vehicles would be exempt!
Montford Place
I took these pictures of the Montford Place site in July.
This site could be sensitive too! But surely, the residents don’t want an ugly utilitarian headhouse for the ventilation shaft of the Northern Line Extension.
This Google Map shows the site.
It is not small, judging by the two buses at the side.
There’s also a large hole to cover!
Transport for London Are Driving Me Mad
Because of COVID-19, a lot of Underground station entrance and exits have been closed.
I can understand, why it needs to be done, but I keep falling foul of their closures.
- I wanted to go from the Angel to Paddington and my usual route is to change between Northern and Circle Lines at Kings Cross. But you had to walk all the way round Kings Cross station for the change.
- Coming back from Paddington, I often take the Bakerloo Line to Regents Park station, but the train went straight through.
- I wanted to go from Wlathamstow Central to Dalston. Normally, I would use the Overground and a bus, changing at Hackney Downs. But the Overground wasn’t working, so I used the alternative route changing at Seven Sisters and I got another long walk.
What is needed is better information at all station entrances, as once you’re in the labyrinth it’s too late.
The Abandoned Tube Entrance At Euston
These pictures show the abandoned tube entrance at Euston station.
The station was built to serve the Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway, which is now part of the Northern Line.
- It opened in 1907.
- The building will now be demolished to make way for High Speed Two.
- I can’t ever remember using the entrance.
It looks to be a station, which are typical of many, that were created by Leslie Green.
- Wikipedia has a list of over forty stations, that were designed by Leslie Green.
- Many are Grade II Listed
- His designs inspired the look of the fictional Walford East Underground station in EastEnders.
I would reckon, the one I use most is Oxford Circus.
Braving The London Underground
I took these pictures today, in a short Underground trip between Angel and Kings Cross St. Pancras tube stations.
It’s not very busy! Is it?
- There was no-one else in the tunnel as I walked between the escalators at Angel station.
- There was only two other people in my carriage on the train.
- There were few people in the tunnels at Kings Cross.
Isuspect that I travelled during lunchtime helped.
Ian Publishes Details Of Future Developments At Euston And Euston Square Underground Stations
This post on the Ian Visits blog is entitled A New London Underground Entrance To Euston Station.
The Underground Lines In The Euston Station Area
This map from carto.metro.free.fr shows the Underground Lines in the Euston station area.
Note.
- The sub-surface lines run underneath the busy Euston Road.
- Platform 2 at Euston Square station has no lift or escalator.
- Platform 1 at Euston Square station has a lift, which also serves the subway.
- To connect between the sub-surface lines at Euston Square and the deep lines at Euston means a walk on the surface.
- Euston station only has two up and two down escalators and no lifts for the six deep-level platforms.
- To connect between the Bank and Charing Cross branches of the Northern Line is often along a very crowded passage.
This interchange has not been fit for purpose since the Victoria Line was built in the 1960s.
A Second Entrance To Euston Square Station
One of the key projects to unlock the interchange, is to create a subway from the current Euston station.
It will lead to a new entrance placed in the middle of Gordon Street.
The subway will have stairs, escalators and/or lifts to connect to the Eastern ends of the current Euston Square platforms.
Ian showed this diagram of the subway.
Note.
- It serves both platforms at Euston Square station.
- It looks to be reasonably wide and level.
These are some pictures I took on a walk round the area.
This is a possible future visualisation from Ian’s site.
The new Gordon Street entrance appears to be opposite the porticoed building, which is part of University College London.
- The view is looking North, like the first three of my pictures.
- Gordon Street appears to be at least part-pedestrianised.
- Escalators are visible.
It looks to be a London version of Bilbao’s fosteritos.
Fosteritos are named after Norman Foster, as he or his practice designed the Bilbao Metro.
- The escalators in Bilbao are longer than would be needed at Gordon Street.
- I don’t think that fitting in a slimline lift would be difficult.
I like the fosterito concept and I feel a similar approach could be used to add step-free access to a lot of stations on the London Underground.
The Design Of The Updated Euston Underground Station
Ian showed this visualisation of the updated Euston Underground station.
At a first look, it appears to be a very similar concept to the entrance to the Underground in front of St. Pancras station.
Click on the image to show it large and you can pick out the following.
- West is to the left and East is right.
- Much of the construction appears to replace the original car park and taxi rank.
- The upper level looks like where passengers enter and leave the station.
- The subway to Euston Square station and the new Gordon Street entrance joins to the upper level towards the Eastern end.
- There is grade access between the upper level and the High Speed Two concourse.
- There are lots of escalators to travel between levels. The square orange columns could be lift towers.
- The lower level is the Interchange/Ticket Hall level.
- The lower level is not much higher than the Charing Cross branch of the Northern Line.
- The design seems to make clever use of levels to make changing easier.
- The access between the lower level and the Charing Cross branch of the Northern Line at the Western end of the station, appears to be comprehensive and step-free.
- The access between the lower level and the Victoria Line and the Bank branch of the Northern Line, appears to use the current route, which will probably be upgraded to be fully step-free.
This second image shows the design from above the platforms of the convention section of Euston station.
Click on the image to show it large and you can pick out the following.
- The complicated passages, escalators and lifts of the existing four platforms serving the Bank branch of the Northern Line and the Victoria Line.
- The cross passage connecting these lines to the platforms of the Charing Cross branch of the Northern Line.
- The two up and two down escalators leading to the existing ticket hall.
- The Charing Cross branch of the Northern Line curving in and away from the station. See the earlier map of the Underground lines.
- The eleven High Speed platforms on the West side of the station.
- The thirteen Classic platforms on the East side of the station.
- The new Northern entrance to the Underground between the two sets of platforms. How convenient!
- There appears to be a wide passage between the Northern and Southern entrances, with connections to the lines branching off.
- The subway to the new Gordon Street entrance is shown at the top of the image.
The design seems to have separated access to the two branches of the Northern line, by creating a new high-capacity route to the Charing Cross branch.
I also think, that the design allows the station to be built without disrupting passengers using the Underground and the current Euston station.
- A large hole for the station can be excavated, without touching existing access.
- It could then be fitted out section by section.
- Once the new access to the Charing Cross branch of the Northern Line is complete, the current access to the Northern and Victoria Lines can be refurbished.
Arriving At Euston
Imagine you are a passenger arriving from the North, who knows the Underground line, you need to take, you would then enter the Underground station using the new Northern entrance.
- For the Bank branch of the Northern Line or the Victoria Line, you would go through the existing ticket hall and down the escalators, much as you do now! Except that you’d enter the ticket hall on the other side from the East side of the passageway connecting the two entrances. New lifts appear to be shown.
- For the Charing Cross branch of the Northern Line, you would take the passages, lifts and escalators on the West side of the passageway connecting the two entrances.
- If you wanted the sub-surface lines, you would just keep going and take the new subway, which connects to the Eastern ends of the platforms at Euston Square station.
It will certainly do me fine, if I arrive at Euston, as I’ll walk through the subway and get in the front of any Eastbound train for Moorgate station, where being in the front is convenient for the exit and the nearby bus stop to my home.
This route will surely be one of the ways arriving passengers at Euston will get Crossrail to Abbey Wood, Canary Wharf and Shenfield stations. In Crossrail – Northern – Northern City Interchange At Moorgate Station, I show some visualisations of Moorgate station and the connectivity.
Conclusion
I certainly think, that the new Underground station is a good design.
To Revive Economy, Think Infrastructure
The title of this post is the same as that of this article on CommonWealth.
This is the sub-title.
It worked in the Great Recession and it can work now.
The author is talking about Massachusetts in 2008, but I’m sure it would work in the UK and other countries in 2020.
Projects I would bring forward in the UK.
- Build lots of wind farms, both onshore and offshore.
- Build energy storage. I would go for Highview Power.
- Use wind energy to generate hydrogen for industrial processes. ITM Power in Rotherham, have the technology.
- Build a refuelling network for hydrogen-powered cars, buses, trucks and other vehicles.
- Add new rail stations to the network, where needed.
- Update all possible rail, tram, light rail and Underground stations so they are step-free.
- Build the electrified Huddersfield and Leeds upgrade to the TransPennine Route.
- Expand the Blackpool Tram, the Edinburgh Tram, the Manchester Metrolink, Merseyrail, the Nottingham Express Transit, the Sheffield Supertram, the Tyne and Wear Metro and the West Midlands Metro.
- Extend the Docklands Light Railway West to Charing Cross, Euston, St. Pancras and Victoria.
I would setup a construction pipeline, so all areas of the country got a share of the new infrastructure.
We must be bold.
The Anonymous Widower 