A weekly round-up of London’s rail transport news…
Hobbs End tube station – made from Lego
London Underground
London’s ‘automatic’ Tube trains suffered 750 computer failures last year El Reg
Night Tube: Tfl staging trial run on Central and Victoria lines to prepare for launch next week Independent
Escalator work at Holborn station is set to cause disruption for commuters using the station in the morning rush hour until March 2018. Get West London
When London Underground rail track curves, the sleepers are usually made of wood – until now, that is Construction Index
Crossrail / Elizabeth Line
Crossrail may still be coming to Gravesend, after Kent County Council document revealed the council is continuing to back the line’s extension into north Kent. Gravesend Reporter
Journey into the depths of London’s Crossrail tunnels in this exclusive video Wired
Transport for London is planning a Crossrail 2 major briefing day in mid-September for the construction industry. Construction Enquirer
Heathrow mulls legal challenge on Crossrail TransportXtra (£)
Mainline/Overground
Passengers evacuated after train ‘catches fire’ in Northfleet NewsShopper
Southern rail strike suspended as talks resume BBC News
Man dies after being hit by train at New Barnet station Edgware Today
A railway bridge in Baldock was hit again by a lorry this morning, causing yet more misery to commuters on the Great Northern line. The Comet
TfL seeks contractor to build Barking Riverside extension Railway Gazette
Woolwich Arsenal station has been ‘renamed’ in a mock sign, as commuters continue to vent their frustration over the smell. This is Local London
Inside DB Cargo UK’s carbon-neutral train Railway Technology
Bombardier gets £1bn contract in ‘biggest rail boost since Victorian era’ BBC News
Miscellaneous
Man killed on Gatwick Express train was rail enthusiast, say family The Guardian
Square Deal: A Tube Map of House Prices Mapping London
Police are hunting a thug who knocked a commuter unconscious after bumping into him at a London train station. Standard
Bob Kiley obituary – New York transport chief recruited by Ken Livingstone to run TfL The Guardian
Trainline sees data as the ticket to more sales Diginomica
St. Pancras International was London’s Valentine to Europe Washington Post
‘Bob Crow Brigade’ in Syria shows solidarity with UK rail strikers Middle East Eye
A campaign to buy the entire ad inventory of a London Underground station and fill it with pictures of cats has signed a contract to make the project a reality. Campaign
And finally, two cartoon about Southern. Telegraph & The Guardian
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The image above is from Jan 2011: Hobbs End tube station – made from Lego
The Trainline would be better off directing its energies to properly implementing the Android version of it’s app. Each update is worse than the last. I have also suggested on numerous occasions that timetable downloading should be made available as with the version for the iPhone. All I ever hear back is that this is a ‘brilliant idea’.
The Independent article is so poorly written. It talks about the test run and then suddenly it talks about the night service without changing the subject.