A weekly round-up of London’s rail transport news…
London Underground
Kentish Town tube station regulars know the ticket hall is filled with plants but may be surprised to discover a whole garden can be found hidden away in the station yard. ianVisits
Elizabeth line / Crossrail
Design, wellbeing, and the Elizabeth line: a joyful connection Grimshaw
The delayed upgrades to Romford station in east London for the Elizabeth line have been completed, Network Rail has announced. ianVisits
London’s new $25 billion subway line has 4 elevators that move sideways. Business Insider
Mainline / Overground
Pressure is growing for c2c to reinstate fast Southend to London trains to tackle the current “tedious slow journey” into the capital. Echo News
Network rail recommends new Bedford platform for ‘fast London trains’ Bedford Independent
Network Rail is bracing for a £1bn energy bill for the first time in the history of Britain’s railways, as the energy crisis is forecast to increase its costs by more than 50% over the next financial year. The Guardian
Two national rail strikes have been announced for September (so far), taking place on Thursday 15th September and on Monday/Tuesday 26th/27th September. ianVisits
Miscellaneous
Watford and Herts councils make fresh push for Watford to Croxley link ianVisits
A woman who died when the Range Rover she was a passenger in crashed through a barrier and on to Tube tracks in London was a 33-year-old beautician who was born in Baghdad, an inquest heard. BBC News
A train passenger was left baffled after discovering what appears to be a “12oz” steak glued on to a carriage’s window. Deadline
Transport for London (TfL) has confirmed that it is accepting the funding deal that’s been offered by the government after their urgent board meeting ianVisits
A man has been arrested after allegedly attempting to pull a woman onto train tracks at Kings Cross Underground Station. Standard
A hero ‘grandma’ shoved a pair of thugs off a rush hour Tube train after they tried to drag off a passenger and beat him on the platform. Daily Mail
Palmers Green station has become Palmer’s with an apostrophe Green. PG Web
And finally: A dragon has been found in the London Underground with the power to turn civilians into winged reptiles. CBR
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The image above is from September 2012: The final day of the 50-year old Met Line trains
Hi. Have you heard anything recently about what the fast train service on the Elisabeth Line will be? I.e. trains that only stop at the larger stations like Maidenhead and Slough, on their way to London. These trains should also not require changing at Paddington to get to the central section, right?
In the past I was able to find estimated timetables of how often such trains will run, but can no longer find them. Also, do you know if those will come into effect in the November ‘22 phase or May ‘23 phase?