A weekly round-up of London’s rail transport news…
A list of London’s fictional tube stations
London Underground
ASLEF members on the District line will strike on Friday 13 April in a dispute over the company’s failure to stick to the agreed policy on dealing with SPADs ASLEF
Crossrail / Elizabeth line
Property developer Helical has agreed terms with TfL for a £120m office development above the Farringdon East Crossrail station. Construction Index
Public open day at Crossrail’s Custom House station IanVisits
Bombardier to supply five additional trains to Elizabeth line Railway Technology
Despite more than 1,500 residents backing a petition to save a cobbler which has traded in Ilford Station for 25 years, TfL said there is no room for it with the Elizbeth Line upgrade. Illford Recorder
Crossrail’s final public exhibition before it transforms into a public railway has opened at the Transport Museum, showing off some of the engineering behind the tunnelling project. IanVisits
An inspector has permitted a new-build home on land that will be required for Crossrail 2 according to TfL’s latest plans, noting that the funding and delivery of the rail project remained uncertain. The Planner (£)
Mainline / Overground
TfL has awarded Bombardier Transportation a contract extension for its London Overground Electrostar fleet maintenance work. Global Rail News
GWR to manage Heathrow Express operations IRJ
First self-driving train launches on London Thameslink route The Guardian
Works are underway at the moment at West Hampstead station to build an entirely new and much larger entrance to deal with the problem of the current tiny ticket hall. IanVisits
DLR
Thousands of passengers have been affected by a 48-hour strike on London’s DLR. BBC News
Getting around the DLR when there’s a strike on Diamond Geezer
Miscellaneous
A volunteer police officer has been given a final warning after travelling by train without a valid ticket. Enfield Independent
Dejected traders in Hackney’s arches are packing up and leaving after admitting defeat in their battle over crippling rent hikes from Network Rail. Hackney Gazette
The occasional tours behind the scenes of disused tunnels and stations are set to resume shortly, with a new addition to the mix for this year. IanVisits
Paragon ID secures £2.2m order to supply Oyster cards Business up North
Engineering expertise developed on Crossrail is being used on Australia’s £11bn Sydney Metro project in Australia. More global cities are also set to benefit from the UK’s mega-project. NCE (£)
And finally, a new single ‘Subway System’ goes underground, picking apart London’s social mores in a place many commuters spend huge chunks of their lives traversing. Clash Music
—
Image above is from Nov 2017: A list of London’s fictional tube stations
