Brent Cross West Station eastern entrance planning approved

The design for the eastern entrance to the new Brent Cross West Station in North London has been approved by Barnet Council.

(c) Studio Egret West

The new £40 million station, Brent Cross West will be just to the south of the North Circular road, and about halfway between Hendon and Cricklewood stations. It’s currently expected that it will have a peak service of eight Thameslink trains per hour when it opens in December 2022.

The new station sits alongside the wide stretch of railway that passes through this part of London, so access from either side will be over a new large footbridge, which will also become a public right of way. The eastern side of the station and the motivation for the station being built is to become a large housing estate, so the eastern entrance is also expected to be busier of the two sides of the station.

What’s been designed is a corridor that sits between two new buildings and while aesthetically appealing, somehow manages to give off the appearance of an approach to a modern shopping centre than a new railway station.

The fact that it’s a station entrance, and not a shopping centre will be easy to see from a distance though, as above the front will be the station name in very large text.

(c) Studio Egret West

Behind the stairs, so in the dry, will also be a secured bicycle storage space, for 68 bikes, and two lifts.

It is expected that over 2 million journeys will be made by people from the station in its first full year of operation, rising to 5 million once the Brent Cross Cricklewood transformation is fully completed in 2031.