London’s weekly railway news
A weekly round-up of London’s rail transport news…
London Underground
Why are there so few tube lines in south London? City Monitor
Trips to Battersea Power Station increase fivefold after Tube opening. Telegraph (£)
Mainline / Overground
Angry passengers claimed on Thursday that rail unions had “lost the plot” with “selfish” walkouts that brought much of the network to a standstill. Standard
HS1 – which operates the UK leg of the Channel Tunnel railway line – is planning to open a new route from London straight to the vineyards of Bordeaux. Drinks Business
Over the Christmas break, Charing Cross station became the latest to have its old departure boards ripped out and replaced with brand new screens. ianVisits
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said he was prepared to leave the picket line and meet Transport Secretary Mark Harper on Tuesday morning in a bid to resolve the strike. Yahoo News
Miscellaneous
Sadiq Khan facing Tube and bus fares hike dilemma as mayor is urged to keep bus trips under £2 Standard
In Pictures: The satisfying symmetry of the London Underground Londonist
London transport faces new reality as strikes dominate BBC News
Fallout London has shared a Q4 progress update, revealing that the Underground now has “fully-rigged and animated train systems”. The Gamer
A 17-mile diversion route set up because of work to replace a bridge is “exceptional” and will be “disruptive”, Network Rail has admitted. BBC News
TfL want to turn an area known locally as ‘Bat Corner’ into a parking lot for 65 cars. Chiswick Calendar
A new children’s book celebrating women train drivers is encouraging young girls to consider the traditionally male profession as a career option in a bid to break down stereotypes in the job. Kent Online
Little noticed by the thousands of people who use London Bridge station, but above their heads are some of the oldest iron girders in the UK. ianVisits
And finally: Two ‘lost’ train carriages that are believed to have transported Titanic passengers to the dockside for their doomed maiden voyage have been discovered languishing in a yard after 110 years. Daily Mail
The image above is from Jan 2013: Google celebrates the London Underground with a Doodle
Regarding Standard article, unless I’ve missed something, bus fares have no chance of hitting £2 in Khan’s current term as that would require a 22% increase on current fares.
Also in the comments
“I don’t live anywhere near London, but my tax money goes towards TFL subsidy…”
There’s always at least one person spouting that inaccurate drivel and they also conveniently forget to mention the benefits they get from having lower rents, cheaper nights out etc.
Thanks for your time and effort on this site as always Ian
Just look at the ignorant drivel that people post on the trains trike articles that show little understanding of how the train system operate let alone employment law.
Sack the strikers! without realising that that would mean massively reduced services for months and months until new drivers were trained – that’s if the TOCs can even recruit in the current situation.
Also there is no way that Edwardian carriages would be allowed on the main line nowadays.
Hi there Ian. Love what you do on this website, thank you. Last year you talked about the upgrade to Bank and said that wheelchair access to the Northern line at Bank station would come “later this year” when they opened a new entrance. Do you know what the current story is?
On this page on the TfL website it appears to indicate that there is now access to the Northern line.
https://tfl.gov.uk/maps/track/tube
But on the step free map it still shows it in the “old” configuration.
https://content.tfl.gov.uk/step-free-tube-guide-map.pdf