LONDON | DLR, Underground, Tramlink [Archive] - Page 9

PortoNuts

July 21st, 2011, 01:27 AM

^^Thanks.

Marc beats Tube Challenge

Manchester man, Marc Gawley, has visited all 270 London Underground stations in under 17 hours, setting a new world record.

The challenge has strict rules and is verified by the Guinness book of records. Marc, who has a physics degree from Oxford University, completed his tube day tour in 16 hours, 29 minutes and 57 seconds.

33 year old Marc is a management consultant and used his skills, both managerial and mathematical, to work out the shortest and fastest route. He had to call at every station, so long as the train stops, it counts.

The Tube Challenge started back in 1959.

Marc slashed 15 minutes off the previous record. On the journey he made videos showing times and stations signs.

http://www.rail.co/2011/07/20/marc-beats-tube-challenge/

PortoNuts

July 21st, 2011, 04:17 PM

ianYAV54ALA

SO143

July 21st, 2011, 04:39 PM

@Porto When will LU tube stocks get A/C? Do you know anything about it?

Some pics of London Underground Stations

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6003/5954433865_66154df712_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/oneillo/5954433865/)
[/url] by oneillo (http://www.flickr.com/photos/oneillo/5954433865/)

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6131/5953321590_19178afd50_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/not-beautiful-anymore/5953321590/)
by KoprowskiT (http://www.flickr.com/photos/not-beautiful-anymore/5953321590/)

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5182/5799799222_2eb33b414f_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/arg768/5799799222/)
by Arg768 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/arg768/5799799222/)

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3614/3468551327_f2ac4cbbfb_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/34250595@N06/3468551327/)
by McJamus (http://www.flickr.com/photos/34250595@N06/3468551327/)

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6002/5954196281_8264b8ab2d_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/24772733@N05/5954196281/)
by bowroaduk (http://www.flickr.com/photos/24772733@N05/5954196281/)

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6007/5954410425_7b25d45597_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/24772733@N05/5954410425/)
by bowroaduk (http://www.flickr.com/photos/24772733@N05/5954410425/)

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6004/5951396007_3158e80fc3_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/98587546@N00/5951396007/)
by looper23 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/98587546@N00/5951396007/)

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3173/3091133112_05df1d0d70_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/14880766@N02/3091133112/)
by Tristan Appleby (http://www.flickr.com/photos/14880766@N02/3091133112/)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2116/1990794190_f95cd178f8_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/14880766@N02/1990794190/)
by [url=http://www.flickr.com/people/14880766@N02/]Tristan (http://www.flickr.com/photos/14880766@N02/1990794190/)

( To Be Continued )

Teach

July 21st, 2011, 05:23 PM

^^ The first two aren't London Underground, and neither are the last two.

SO143

July 21st, 2011, 05:30 PM

^^ The first two aren't London Underground, and neither are the last two.

http://www.pic4ever.com/images/171.gif Are you kidding me? So, can you tell me what they are? :nuts:

sotonsi

July 21st, 2011, 06:00 PM

Main line stations in London.

Also the first one is St Pancras, not Kings Cross.

Teach

July 21st, 2011, 06:04 PM

It says so right under the pictures: King's cross (1), St Pancras (2), and Waterloo Station (3 & 4). While there are Underground stations with the same names (Kings Cross St Pancras, which is one Underground station, and Waterloo), these pictures are of the mainline railway stations.

PortoNuts

July 21st, 2011, 09:01 PM

qEj9kAhka98

SO143

July 22nd, 2011, 06:37 AM

Davodavo

July 22nd, 2011, 09:20 AM

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6021/5960459519_128a154f8e_b.jpg

http://www.flickr.com/photos/david_crespo/5960459519/

PortoNuts

July 22nd, 2011, 11:12 PM

Innovative London tube map gets an app

A new London underground map that accurately shows routes and distances between stations is being turned into an app. A squigglier version of the London tube map, designed by Mark Noad, aims to provide travellers with a street level perspective and will soon be available to purchase as an app on the iPhone and the Android for 59p.

Mark initially posted the map on www.london-tubemap.com after it received a lot of attention. He decided to incorporate the map into a new app, with the help of developers Operandi, and aims to have it on sale in the next few weeks. Mark said, “As with the website, the first version of the app will be very simple just showing the map. You can zoom and scroll and there is a link to the website.”

The app and the website will shortly be adding further layers to the map, which will allow users to access more information including: zones, disabled access, walking shortcuts and times between stations. Mark believes that a major criticism of the original diagram, first designed by Harry Beck as far back as 1931, is that it bears little or no relation to London at street level.

Mark said, “My intention was to create a map that is easier for people to use who are not familiar with London and to help them relate the underground system more easily to London at street level.This was as a result of friends from overseas telling me how confusing they found the official map. Judging from the feedback, a lot of Londoners have also warmed to it.”

The designer was keen to point out that the new map is not intended to act as a replacement to the official version but that it is merely there to provide another perspective. A recent survey by London newspaper the Metro recently revealed that as many as 30% of passengers could be missing out on quicker ways to get to their destination because of the old tube map.

A spokesperson for Transport for London told Reuters: “The much-loved (original) design is clear, simple and easy to read. Its aim is to help customers travel across the capital on the tube and is not supposed to be used as a street guide.”

http://www.wanderlust.co.uk/magazine/news/new-london-tube-map-app

PortoNuts

July 24th, 2011, 04:23 PM

Or3BIC1bgeU

PortoNuts

July 24th, 2011, 11:56 PM

2SvLTB45xh4

PortoNuts

July 26th, 2011, 04:57 PM

Replacement DLR station at Pudding Mill Lane approved

Newham’s Strategic Development Committee has approved plans for a replacement Docklands Light Railway (DLR) station at Pudding Mill Lane. The existing Pudding Mill Lane DLR station is located where the Crossrail route reaches the surface and therefore a new station needs to be constructed.

The replacement DLR station will be constructed immediately to the south, between the River Lea and City Mill River. The existing DLR station at Pudding Mill Lane will remain open to passengers until the new station is complete in 2013. Construction of the new DLR station will get underway later this year.

The new station will be purpose built to accommodate longer three-car DLR trains as well as providing improved step-free access. Outside the station, there will be a large open space which will link into wider pedestrian routes as well as providing connections with local bus routes.

Significant levels of development are taking place in the Pudding Mill Lane area and the station has been designed to accommodate future increases in passenger demand as well as to incorporate escalators at a later date.

Howard Smith, London Rail’s Chief Operating Officer said: “TfL welcomes the opportunity presented by Crossrail’s construction to provide DLR passengers with a brand new station at Pudding Mill Lane. The new station will be able to accommodate many more passengers than the existing station which will support future development as well as the future use of the Olympic stadium.”

The Crossrail Act 2008 granted outline planning permission for the replacement station, while allowing the London Borough of Newham to approve details in relation to external design and materials as well as boundary walls, fences and lighting.

Five new tunnel portals will be constructed as part of Crossrail at Royal Oak, Pudding Mill Lane, North Woolwich, Victoria Dock and Plumstead. The Crossrail works at Pudding Mill Lane involve the construction of 300m long tunnel portal structure and a 120m long approach ramp. It is these works which require the rebuilding of the existing DLR station further south.

The Pudding Mill Lane portal site will receive the tunnel boring machines (TBMs) which will create the Crossrail tunnels from Stepney Green. The first TBM will arrive at Pudding Mill Lane in spring 2014 and the second in summer 2014.

Once operational, Crossrail trains will emerge from the central section tunnels at Pudding Mill Lane, using the portal structure and ramp to join the Great Eastern Main Line to make their way towards Shenfield. DLR passengers will be able to interchange with Crossrail at Stratford station.

Enabling works for Pudding Mill Lane Portal started over a year ago and are on schedule to be completed at the end of 2011. Main construction for Pudding Mill Lane Portal is now underway. Due to the close proximity of the Crossrail worksite to the Olympic Park, work on Pudding Mill Lane Portal will be suspended during the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympics Games.

http://www.rail.co/2011/07/25/replacement-dlr-station-at-pudding-mill-lane-approved/

PortoNuts

July 27th, 2011, 01:14 AM

Sixteen London Underground stations get listed status

A group of London Underground stations clad in eye-catching ox blood red blocks that gave the tube its first corporate identity have been granted listed status by John Penrose, the culture minister.

The Edwardian baroque buildings, granted grade II protection on the advice of English Heritage, include Oxford Circus, Covent Garden and Russell Square and have become familiar around the world to millions of visitors to the capital. In all 16 stations, including a group of later 1930s stations in an art deco style at St John's Wood, Perivale and Wood Green, were protected. Arnos Grove, Oakwood and Sudbury Town, designed by Charles Holden also in the 1930s for an extension to the Piccadilly line, were given the greater protection of Grade II* status. The moves mean 72 stations on the network are now listed.

"Millions of people pass through London's underground system every day, with little thought for the historic design and architectural features that are right under their nose as they hurry to catch their trains," said Penrose. "Tube stations are great examples of the capital's hidden heritage."

Opening in 1907, before the underground acquired its famous logo and its current burden of 1 billion passengers a year, the red-clad stations were among 40 designed by young architect Leslie Jones with a brief to create a recognisable identity for three new railways thrusting out into the suburbs that would become today's Northern, Piccadilly and Bakerloo lines.

His solution was to clad a relatively cheap steel frame, then a new technology from America, in distinctive deep red glazed blocks. For the interiors he chose bottle green tiles up to a decorative dado of acanthus leaves or pomegranate, details which remain in many of his stations today. The burden of his commission at such a young age affected his health and he died a year after the stations opened from tuberculosis, aged 33.

In the recommendation for listing, English Heritage inspectors said: "The distinctive red faience facades are instantly recognisable and count among the most iconic of London building types."

The deep red of some of the facades is now joined by the brighter red Coca-Cola facias above convenience shops, while others, such as the Argyll Street station entrance to Oxford Circus often go unnoticed by passengers focused on escaping the crush of shoppers on Oxford Street.

Any redevelopment plans in Transport for London's £10bn refurbishment programme will have to take the sites' heritage value into account, which London Underground indicated should not be a problem.

"Heritage is a very important part of our identity," said Richard Parry, commercial and strategy director at LUL. "The tube is undergoing a huge upgrade to its ageing infrastructure to cope with increasing demand, however, whenever we modernise a station we make sure to take care of the historical features."

Simon Thurley, chief executive of English heritage, said : "The London Underground not only set the standard for progressive transport systems, but has displayed a remarkable commitment to quality and consistency of design. From the distinctive and instantly recognisable glazed red facades of the early 20th century stations such as Belsize Park and Russell Square, to the modernist designs embodied in Arnos Grove and Sudbury Town, we have been left an amazing architectural inheritance. It is absolutely right that these stations be afforded the recognition and protection provided by listing."

The stations given Grade II status are: Aldwych, Belsize Park, Brent Cross, Caledonian Road, Chalk Farm, Chesham, Covent Garden, Hendon Central, Oxford Circus - originally two separate stations, Perivale, Redbridge, Russell Square, St John's Wood, West Acton, and Wood Green. Three other stations - Arnos Grove, Oakwood, and Sudbury Town - have been upgraded from Grade II to Grade II*.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/jul/26/london-underground-tube-stations-listed

SO143

July 27th, 2011, 01:43 AM

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6138/5975314060_deb361a283_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/fossie/5975314060/)
[/url] by Fossie1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/fossie/5975314060/)

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6029/5978658087_d5bc1f3e55_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ciaphotos/5978658087/)
by Christopher (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ciaphotos/5978658087/)

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6127/5970535601_a6ef905411_b.jpg
http://www.flickr.com/photos/63497670@N04/5970535601/sizes/l/in/pool-75793947@N00/

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6014/5970891726_72ae3dda10_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/robep/5970891726/)
by [url=http://www.flickr.com/people/robep/]robep (http://www.flickr.com/photos/robep/5970891726/)

PortoNuts

July 27th, 2011, 06:32 AM

LU ticket machine upgrades make Oyster cards more accessible

Transport for London is making it ‘much faster and easier for passengers to buy and use Oyster’, by upgrading ticket machines that will sell Oyster cards directly, with credit loaded.

By the end of July, ‘most stations’ across the London Underground network will have at least one ticket machine equipped to vend Oyster cards, Transport for London said. Passengers will be able to get their new cards at any time of the day from the clearly marked machines.

Since the ticket machine upgrade began in May, the new service has been an ‘instant hit’ with passengers. Already more than 25% of all new Oyster cards are bought from a ticket machine. Currently, more than half of all new Oyster card purchases at Aldgate East, Holland Park and Lambeth North have been from the machines.

At other stations, including Euston, King’s Cross, Belsize Park and Putney Bridge, more than a third of new Oyster card purchasers have chosen to do so by using the quick and easy ticket machines.

Richard Parry, London Underground’s Strategy & Commercial Director, said: “We have long known that the way customers use the Tube is changing, and we’re adapting to those changes. Customers have embraced Oyster in recent years, with just one in 20 Tube journeys now starting with a ticket office purchase.

“The ability to vend Oyster cards is a natural progression for the self-service machines across the Tube network which were also upgraded in 2010 to allow customers to buy tickets to a greater range of National Rail destinations, as well as with Railcard discounts.”

http://www.rail.co/2011/07/26/lu-ticket-machine-upgrades-make-oyster-cards-more-accessible/

trainrover

July 27th, 2011, 10:21 PM

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6138/5975314060_deb361a283_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/fossie/5975314060/)
To think nowadays it being possible to see your own shadow at Earl's Court http://www.skyscrapercity.com/images/icons/icon10.gif

PortoNuts

July 28th, 2011, 03:16 PM

Google maps London Underground

Web giant adds London's public transport network to its online map application. Plus, SAP integrates BI and collaboration data with Google Maps
Londoners can now get public transport directions across their city using Google Maps, after Google plugged data published by Transport for London into its mapping software.

In an announcement on Google's official blog, transit directions manager Thijs van As said TfL was one of the first European transport agencies to open its timetable data to the public.

"We’re strong supporters of open data and bringing information out into the open, and believe that making information publicly accessible can be an enormous engine of economic growth and innovation," van As said.

The news follows an announcement by enterprise software giant SAP that it has partnered with Google to provide deeper integrate with the web giant's mapping services.

SAP will offer improved integration between its Streamwork collaboration software and the BusinessObjects Explorer and Crystal Reports business intelligence tools with Google's mapping application programming interfaces (APIs).

This will allow SAP customers to apply their own information with Google Maps and Google Earth in a more sophisticated fasion than is currently possible. University campuses and industrial complexes would be able to provide Street View functionality inside their facilities, for example, while broadband providers could map customer complaints.

http://www.information-age.com/channels/information-management/news/1644038/google-maps-london-underground.thtml

Google Maps goes Underground

Those making their way around London in the future can now do so with the help of Google Maps, which will provide information on all possible public transport connections between destinations.

From today (July 28th), people will be able to use the Get Directions function on the service and click on a new train icon to work out their routes, helping them navigate their way between the more than 250 Underground stations and over 18,000 bus stops in the city. It is also possible to use this program on the go, thanks to Google Maps for mobile. When utilising the software with a handset, Maps will input the traveller's current location to work out the best way.

Android smartphones can also use the Transit Navigation (Beta) in Google Maps, which sends out alerts when it is time to get off the train or bus.

Ed Parsons, Google UK's geospatial technologist, told the London Evening Standard that a lot of processing has been done, with the company working hard over the last couple of years to perfect the service.

http://www.directnews.co.uk/news/google-maps-goes-underground-$21378217.htm

PortoNuts

July 29th, 2011, 11:25 AM

Why preserve these London Underground hell holes?

The Tube needs modernising – not Grade II architectural listing.

London Underground is pleased to announce that, due to signal failure at Cockfosters, trains are running 20 minutes late. We are sure passengers will welcome this opportunity to admire their beautiful surroundings at leisure.’’

Absurd? Of course it’s absurd. But no more absurd than this week’s announcement that 16 Underground stations have been given listed building status, bringing the number of listed Tube stations to a stupefying 72. Talk about conservation overkill. It’s like giving the entire cast of Coronation Street OBEs – the only difference being that people enjoy watching Coronation Street, whereas nobody in their right mind enjoys travelling on the Underground.

The trains are hell on wheels, the ticket halls are a zoo, the escalators are like something from Dante’s Inferno, the staff stopped smiling in 1955 and here we are congratulating ourselves because, back in 1906 or whenever the stations were built, the architects did the job they were paid to do. It’s a joke.

...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/art/architecture/8666225/Why-preserve-these-London-Underground-hell-holes.html

iampuking

July 30th, 2011, 04:38 AM

^^ That article is a load of bollocks.

The Leslie Green stations are beautiful and part of LU and London's iconography. Plus the lack of space has nothing to do with the architecture of these stations and all to do with the lack of available space in Central London.

http://www.greggayden.com/europe05/Russell%20Square%20Station.jpg

PortoNuts

July 30th, 2011, 06:14 PM

^^Certainly, I don't agree with most of it as well. LU is not just any underground system, it's an icon as well. However, I do agree that can't prevent modernisation.

PortoNuts

July 31st, 2011, 03:10 PM

Garden watering in London Underground stations

Garden watering is underway in London Underground stations as part of the Britain in Bloom initiative.

Floral displays and vegetable patches have appeared in locations such as Greenford and Northolt and will be judged by a panel of experts.

A fruit and vegetable category has seen twice as many entrants as it did at its launch last year as part of the Capital Growth programme, which mayor Boris Johnson hoped would encourage more residents in the city to cultivate their own produce.

Set-ups that require the least garden watering or have recycled materials - such as in North Acton where old train sleepers have been re-used as flower beds or the wormery bin in Hampstead that creates liquid fertiliser - will be awarded with more points in the competition.

Chief operating officer for London Underground Howard Collins said: "With so many impressive entries I think it's going to be a difficult decision for the judges to choose the winners this year."

The Britain in Bloom initiative has encouraged horticultural activity across the nation, such as in Grimsby where schoolchildren grew allotments in wheelbarrows.

http://www.swelluk.com/news/800638669/garden-watering-in-london-underground-stations

PortoNuts

August 2nd, 2011, 09:16 AM

Full fleet of new Victoria line trains now in service

The 180 million passengers who use the Victoria line each year are now being served by a full fleet of brand new trains, following the successful phasing out of the old 1960′s stock.

The new higher capacity trains are more accessible with wider doors and more spaces for wheelchair users, and on-board audio and visual electronic information for hard of hearing and visually impaired passengers.

They also feature CCTV in every carriage and are a crucial part of the upgrade of the line. Once work to remove the old signalling is complete next year the upgrade will mean a 21% increase in capacity – the equivalent of space for an extra 10,000 passengers per hour.

The completion of the roll-out of the new stock comes forty years after the Victoria line was completed from Victoria to Brixton in July 1971. The line was the first automated train line in the world and, with its ticket barriers and special new ticket machines – it was ahead of its time.

...

http://www.rail.co/2011/08/01/full-fleet-of-new-victoria-line-trains-now-in-service/

PortoNuts

August 2nd, 2011, 08:35 PM

Brent Cross

by looper23 on Flickr.

http://img8.imageshack.us/img8/750/5997659678be33cdbb19b1.jpg
http://www.flickr.com/photos/98587546@N00/5997659678/sizes/l/in/photostream/

trainrover

August 2nd, 2011, 08:45 PM

^^ track renewal :)

iampuking

August 5th, 2011, 04:03 AM

The Jubilee line is working on a new timetable that means the trains now take advantage of the new signalling, so people should notice faster journeys. However, I don't believe there is a frequency upgrade yet.

PortoNuts

August 6th, 2011, 02:59 PM

Is the upgrade complete then? I thought the infamous 'Jubilee line misery' would last a lot longer.

PortoNuts

August 7th, 2011, 02:40 AM

Cycle, walk or work at home to free up Tube, commuters told

Londoners have been urged to walk or cycle to the office, or work from home, to ease overcrowding on the Tube during the Olympics.

Up to three million extra journeys a day will be made as spectators travel to the Olympic Park in Stratford and outlying venues such as Lord's and Wembley - a 25 per cent increase on the 12 million trips by Tube, train and London bus on a typical weekday.

Transport minister Norman Baker urged Londoners to avoid peak times or change their routes to avoid pinch points during the 17 days of the Games, saying: "It's time to oil the creaking bike, dig out the walking boots, work out how to use the video conferencing equipment, and fire up the laptop," Stations such as Canary Wharf, Stratford, King's Cross, London Bridge and Waterloo are likely to be busiest, with transport chiefs keen to avoid adding to pressure on the Jubilee line.

They want to see the use of public transport fall 30 per cent to make up for extra journeys by 800,000 spectators a day, who will need to use the Tube or Javelin services from King's Cross to Stratford. The 55,000 athletes and officials will be driven in VIP "Games lanes".

A Freight Transport Association survey shows fewer than five per cent of delivery firms feel ready to deal with disruption during the Games. Risk of jams, stopping athletes reaching venues on time, is concerning transport chiefs.

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard-olympics/article-23975122-londoners-urged-to-travel-differently-during-games.do

iampuking

August 7th, 2011, 04:39 AM

Is the upgrade complete then? I thought the infamous 'Jubilee line misery' would last a lot longer.

Well it's not technically complete as the frequency isn't at 33tph (?) yet. But I believe most of the physical work is done.

PortoNuts

August 7th, 2011, 08:16 AM

Lets see how the feedback is. Hope all those delays were worth it.

PortoNuts

August 8th, 2011, 08:59 PM

607rW8kQFcM

PortoNuts

August 9th, 2011, 07:51 PM

Great Portland Street

by looper23 on Flickr.

http://img268.imageshack.us/img268/9263/5993033309f04d95e48fb1.jpg
http://www.flickr.com/photos/98587546@N00/5993033309/sizes/l/in/photostream/

PortoNuts

August 10th, 2011, 04:08 PM

f0QzRGtTMUk

trainrover

August 11th, 2011, 05:55 PM

^^ Fascinating how butch-sounding the A stock gasps compared to the new, delicate replacements http://www.skyscrapercity.com/images/icons/icon10.gif

PortoNuts

August 12th, 2011, 07:26 PM

The A stock sounds like an old train, which it is. :lol:

PortoNuts

August 14th, 2011, 03:40 PM

xgyS4d8gQnI

PortoNuts

August 15th, 2011, 08:44 PM

Rethinking the Tube map: A design for strife

Harry Beck's Tube map is an undisputed classic, but a recent attempt to improve on it has derailed the consensus, as Chris Beanland discovers

One simple yet brilliant brainwave has guided travellers around London for 78 years. Harry Beck's Tube map is one of the greatest examples of graphic design in history.

Beck was an engineering draughtsman whose radical idea to straighten out and simplify the Underground lines was way ahead of its time. It was pure modernism. And it has lasted, in different incarnations, right up to the present day.

Geographers talk of mental maps – the way in which the human brain understands the space around it. For tourists and visitors – and even Londoners – the city in their mind's eye is shaped like the city Beck depicted using multicoloured lines set at 45-degree angles.

So when an idea for a new Tube map was unveiled by Mark Noad in June this year, feathers were ruffled. "London is my home town so I know the tube system well and the classic 'Beck' diagram has always worked for me," he says.

"But, in recent years, a number of friends from outside London and overseas have told me they found it confusing and made navigating the city difficult for them. The geographical inaccuracies were obviously an issue for people unfamiliar with London so I thought it was worth looking at the map again to see if there was an alternative approach." So the designer took a brave step – he reimagined the map without Beck's commitment to straight lines. Noad's map looks more like how London looks – with stations placed nearer to their true geographic locations.

Not everyone is enamoured with it. "Noad's design in particular seems to be simply an update of the geographically correct map designs that were ditched when Beck's design came along. "I don't think there's any point in radically redesigning something that's so successful," Angus Montgomery, news editor of the website Design Week, says.

...

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/rethinking-the-tube-map-a-design-for-strife-2337609.html

PortoNuts

August 16th, 2011, 04:54 AM

EyzeHkKdu-8

trainrover

August 17th, 2011, 11:25 PM

Funny how those tube stations appear smokey as ever :dunno:

iampuking

August 18th, 2011, 10:13 AM

^Do you mean musty? It's because of the brake dust that old trains produced. LU has a distinctive smell because of it.

trainrover

August 18th, 2011, 08:50 PM

^^ Nope! because musty's purely related to odour or taste although I guess I meant hazy :)

Interesting remark about its mustiness, because the only other region where I've smelled that odour was outdoors :uh: on the Detroit River's south/east:? bank in Windsor's Bert Weeks Memorial Gardens whereat the strength of the smell induced me into loitering at least a quarter hour http://www.skyscrapercity.com/images/icons/icon10.gif

(I can't understand the novelty at filming wholly darkened runs from tube cabs there -- I mean, why not just glean the videos of the lengthier filmed voids :?)

nr23Derek

August 18th, 2011, 09:44 PM

(I can't understand the novelty at filming wholly darkened runs from tube cabs there -- I mean, why not just glean the videos of the lengthier filmed voids :?)

Strangely compulsive viewing though...

Derek

manrush

August 19th, 2011, 01:04 AM

Croydon Tramlink's new trams have been revealed.

Source: Railway Gazette (http://www.railwaygazette.com/)
Stadler wins London Tramlink tram order
18 August 2011

UK: Stadler Rail has won a contract to supply six Variobahn trams to increase capacity on the Tramlink light rail system in south London, Mayor of London Boris Johnson announced on August 18.The first of the new trams is scheduled to be delivered 'this winter' and all will enter service in spring 2012, allowing a more frequent service to be operated on the busiest part of the network through central Croydon between Therapia Lane and Elmers End.
Details (and image of the tram): http://www.railwaygazette.com/nc/news/single-view/view/stadler-wins-london-tramlink-tram-order.html

iampuking

August 19th, 2011, 04:23 AM

CharlieP

August 19th, 2011, 01:08 PM

^Do you mean musty? It's because of the brake dust that old trains produced. LU has a distinctive smell because of it.

For some reason, coming off at junction 30 of the M62 (eastbound) always used to give me flashbacks to the London Underground, because it had that exact same smell. It must have been the substance used to resurface it.

DanielFigFoz

August 20th, 2011, 03:44 PM

UD5aOX5mM5o

One of my favourite Underground sections, shame it doesn't go all they way to Ongar

trainrover

August 20th, 2011, 05:15 PM

I think the haziness is for the same reason...
When our rubber-tyred trains with their excellent emergency braking suddenly stop ascending a long 6% slope, no passenger doesn't choke from the smeared smoke -- me, that sort of braking trouble here made me ill for a few days, which happened to occur some decades ago :uh:

urgel23

August 22nd, 2011, 11:35 PM

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r161/cityrailtransit/london_pre-1.gif
http://www.cityrailtransit.com/maps/london_map.htm

mcarling

August 23rd, 2011, 01:57 AM

When our rubber-tyred trains with their excellent emergency braking suddenly stop ascending a long 6% slope, no passenger doesn't choke from the smeared smoke -- me, that sort of braking trouble here made me ill for a few days, which happened to occur some decades ago :uh:

Sounds like anti-lock brakes are needed.

SO143

August 23rd, 2011, 05:53 AM

Croydon tram service receives a boost

http://www.croydon-langauge-centre.co.uk/resources/Croydon-Tram_c.jpg

The regeneration of Croydon continues apace, with Mayor of London Boris Johnson recently signing a contract to roll out six new trams.

From early next year, the new London Tramlink vehicles will be in operation and it is hoped that this will help make a contribution to the restoration of the area following the damage inflicted during the riots earlier in August.

The trams will run on the busiest parts of the line, between Therapia Lane, central Croydon and Elmers End, helping to improve capacity and reduce over-crowding.

Mr Johnson noted that on his recent visit to the borough in the aftermath of the disturbances, he was "deeply moved" by what he saw and also "heartened" by the community's determination not to let the violence leave a permanent mark.

"Our Tramlink team did a great job of restoring tram services to the town centre so rapidly following the disturbances. And we hope the signing of contracts for the six new trams will provide a real boost to services when they begin running early next year," the Mayor explained.

Communities Secretary Eric Pickles announced last week (August 18th) that councils will be able to apply for a proportion of a special new fund should they govern a community that suffered during the riots, with the finance to be put towards the clean-up operation and security.

http://www.trl.co.uk/trl-news-hub/transport-news/latest-transport-news/croydon-tram-service-receives-a-boost_800706623.htm

trainrover

August 25th, 2011, 06:52 PM

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r161/cityrailtransit/london_pre-1.gif
http://www.cityrailtransit.com/maps/london_map.htm
:weird: Queer, cartographer categorising airport pods rail.

SO143

August 26th, 2011, 01:33 AM

TfL denies CBS can end £1bn Underground contract before Olympics

Transport for London (TfL) has issued a remarkable retort to CBS Outdoor's plans to terminate its London Underground just weeks before the start of next year's Olympics as "entirely spurious".

In a statement to Media Week, Richard Parry, TfL's London Underground director of strategy, refused to accept that CBS had any grounds to terminate the tube contract, believed to the biggest outdoor advertising contract in the world, which was due to run until the end of 2015.

He said: "CBSO's claims that they want to terminate their contract due to delays to the LU upgrade programme are entirely spurious. TfL is engaged in discussions with CBSO regarding the terms of the LU advertising concession.

"We do not accept that CBSO is entitled to issue a Termination notice and will be making it clear to CBSO that it must honour its obligations under the contract. LU will vigorously defend CBSO’s claims and will seek to recover any losses as a result of CBSO’s action."

Earlier this year, CBS Outdoor announced it was preparing to take TfL to court, in a bid to claw back millions of pounds of advertising revenue the media owner believes it has lost due to delays in construction, among other things.

Tensions have been mounting between CBS Outdoor and TfL following the partnership forged after a competitive pitch process in 2006.

Richard Sauer, executive vice president, general counsel of CBS Outdoor, told Media Week that changes in the operation of the London Underground since the contract was agreed constitute an "adverse event".

"They have made it more costly for us to implement the conversion of our digital advertising network across the estate," he said. "Our expectation was that we would be allowed to complete the implementation of the network within an approximate two year period... this has not been the case and there is a clause in the contract designed to cover such an event."

The London Underground train network will play an essential role in ferrying more than five million visitors and Olympic ticket holders to the Games next summer. It will be vital for TfL, London Mayor Boris Johnson and Prime Minister David Cameron’s coalition government, that this dispute is settled satisfactory, avoiding the prospect of no posters or digital display ads across the network.

http://www.mediaweek.co.uk/News/MostEmailed/1087067/TfL-denies-CBS-end-1bn-Underground-contract-Olympics/

GENIUS LOCI

August 26th, 2011, 07:09 PM

I've just spent five days in London this August and newly felt in love with its transit as I enjoied to travel around the city center and the suburbs with bus, underground and railways (as I was in Clapham I tried several services of Southern suburbs leading to Victoria and Waterloo)
And I finally brought the DLR that I personally find fantastic. Many Londoners complain it is too slow, but that was not my impression... maybe it is slower than Jubilee Line, expecially to reach Canary Wharf, but that's because of the stops which are less.

I wanted to bring the Overground as well, but when I tried it was closed (on Sunday) at least in Clapham Junction

P.S.
I went to London Transport Museum, erm, just to the shop, but I didn't look for Tubeman as i didn't inform I was there and it didn't seem fair to me to disturb him

CairnsTony

August 27th, 2011, 08:14 AM

trainrover

August 28th, 2011, 09:27 PM

the Overground as well, but when I tried it was closed (on Sunday) at least in Clapham Junction
Anybody feel like betting how much longer this closure'll stick around ;)

mayflower232

August 31st, 2011, 09:18 PM

http://www.railwaygazette.com/uploads/pics/tn_gb-london-siemens-evo1concept.jpg

Siemens Unveils London Underground Concept Train (http://www.railwaygazette.com/nc/news/single-view/view/siemens-unveils-london-underground-concept-train.html)

A design concept for a next-generation train for London Underground’s small-profile ‘tube’ lines was unveiled by Siemens during the Railtex exhibition.

Building on its successful role in supplying replacement bogies for Central Line and Waterloo & City Line stock, Siemens was asked by LU to develop a ‘concept train’ for the next round of replacement stock which will in due course be needed for the Piccadilly and Bakerloo lines.

When LU last tendered for replacement trains for the Piccadilly Line, Siemens did not submit a bid – and indeed on that occasion the plans did not proceed. Now, however, according to Friedrich Timmer, Project Manager for Rolling Stock in the Mobility Division at Siemens, ‘we believe London Underground is ready for the next generation of trains’.

Comparing the concept train with the Bombardier stock now entering service on the Victoria Line, Siemens said that the future design would offer a 30 tonne weight saving with 11% more capacity. Featuring wide gangways between cars, the trains would be 30% more energy-efficient; even if air-conditioning were fitted, the trains would be 17% more energy-efficient, said Timmer.

Siemens has developed the concept as the basis of a product family adaptable for use on different LU lines. The design includes what Siemens terms an ‘iconic’ front end that it hopes may one day become a London landmark.

Timmer expects prequalification for the next-generation train procurement process to start in 2012.

Falubaz

August 31st, 2011, 09:34 PM

^^ It doesnt look good.

trainrover

September 1st, 2011, 08:59 PM

How well do the accordions on the new Metropolitan-line trains dampen the clatter, sound :?

iampuking

September 2nd, 2011, 04:50 AM

^Hideous thing.

In other news the DLR Stratford International extension opened this Wednesday. I'll do a write up with photos ASAP.

I also believe a (small) new ticket hall has opened at Green Park which enables step free access to all lines.

timo9

September 2nd, 2011, 04:59 AM

trainrover

September 3rd, 2011, 06:37 PM

the DLR Stratford International extension opened
Had there been any bickering about extending the Jubilee Line to SI instead of the DLR :?

iampuking

September 4th, 2011, 01:25 AM

Had there been any bickering about extending the Jubilee Line to SI instead of the DLR :?

Not really. The Jubilee line would've been far more expensive as they'd have to either switch over lines, or a new tunnel under Stratford Regional station would've had to be built. Also, the curves between Stratford and Stratford International would've been too tight for tube trains.

Christius Alerius

September 4th, 2011, 08:22 PM

iampuking

September 5th, 2011, 01:05 AM

^^I don't even like the sides. I think they should keep the current LU livery with the blue skirting. It looks fresh and original and it fits in with LU aesthetics.

Trances

September 6th, 2011, 06:15 PM

I must be the only one! I like it! Tube shapped at the front!

davidaiow

September 6th, 2011, 09:18 PM

I've noticed over the last few days that the tube map has had a minor overhaul. Disabled stations are now split into two categories and the new DLR line is also shown. Much like the overground, I wish they were shown as separate routes, but oh well! Oyster rail services are now dotted lines instead of double line which I think is a large improvement too.

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloads/oyster-rail-services-map.pdf

trainrover

September 7th, 2011, 07:05 PM

I must be the only one! I like it! Tube shapped at the front!
"Tube"? Didn't you mean Turbo-shaped ;)

QoUvUaWAmlM

pqEvDUL21ns&NR
^^ advance to 3'19" ;)

fRtc4Xa7xGk&NR

2UY1TWsZ9yQ

You know, at this rate, Canada might as well as go for this one (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YngIuQoBRIs) :dunno:

mulnella

September 8th, 2011, 07:51 PM

Hello everybody. I am from New York City and I am going to be studying public transit in a variety of countries next year on a academic fellowship. One of them is London and cities in the UK. I was wondering if I could talk to any one of you and also count on meeting you when I am there next year. Thank you.

You could also email me at al3@williams.edu or mulnella@yahoo.com.

trainrover

September 8th, 2011, 09:59 PM

What might you plan doing with your schooling thereafter, please?

mulnella

September 8th, 2011, 10:09 PM

You mean after I do this academic study? I probably will try to go to grad school in urban planning/transportation studies.

trainrover

September 8th, 2011, 10:44 PM

No, I didn't mean that; I meant after all your schooling, how do you plan on, e.g., drawing upon your diplomas/accreditation?

iampuking

September 9th, 2011, 02:27 AM

^^It depends on what you want to speak about. I'm just a fan but I do know a lot about LU.

mulnella

September 9th, 2011, 06:45 AM

Sorry, I actually don't know what you are asking about. The fellowship that I am applying for is just a grant for fund a project that I am interested in and would want to study for an entire year. I can't really explain that well but it is called the Thomas J. Watson Fellowship if you want to look it up. It's really interesting. But for me, I am trying to design a project where I talk to people about how their local transit systems shapes their attitudes about transportation and the way they think about the urban space and fabric. But in order for my project to win this fellowship, I would need to demonstrate that in each country that I want to go to, I would have to show that I have a liaison that I can talk to about this and hopefully use that person to connect with more transportation enthusiasts.

Darloeye

September 9th, 2011, 08:24 AM

^^^^ You might want to visit the Railway museum in Darlington, Co Durham. See the worlds first public railway platform

trainrover

September 9th, 2011, 06:48 PM

I'm just curious to learn what prospects/options graduates like mulnella is gonna have once s/he enters the labour market.

Christius Alerius

September 10th, 2011, 03:01 PM

I'm just curious to learn what prospects/options graduates like mulnella is gonna have once s/he enters the labour market.

No prospects the west is doomed jobs wise. I'm screwed as well.

PortoNuts

September 10th, 2011, 03:57 PM

TfL announces changes to Oyster Card system

Individuals who use an Oyster Card during journeys on the London Underground transit system could notice differences to the current system in the near future. According to reports, Transport for London (TfL) will alter the current system to prevent travelers from overpaying for their journeys by accident.

The changes, which will begin next year, mean that cardholders will no longer be penalised for failing to touch in and out, which resulted in them paying maximum fees.

Marking the launch of the programme, Transport for London suggested that approximately 1,500 people per day would benefit from the changes to the system.

Caroline Pidgeon, Chairwoman of the London Assembly transport committee, said: "We are looking at ways of correcting journeys that have been left open without a final touch at the destination."

Last month, TfL announced the introduction of brand new trains on the London's Victoria Line in a bid to improve journeys for its 180 million passengers each year.

http://www.squidcard.com/corporate/emoneynews/transit/tfl-announces-changes-to-oyster-card-system1066.html

PortoNuts

September 10th, 2011, 04:41 PM

London Entrepreneur Sees Gold Mine in Unused Subway Stations

A former JPMorgan Chase & Co. executive aims to turn 26 unused London subway stations and bomb shelters into shops and tourist attractions after raising 200 million pounds ($319 million) from investors.

Ajit Chambers, chief executive officer of Old London Underground Co., met Mayor Boris Johnson yesterday to discuss the plan. Chambers agreed to provide more information on potential sites, costs and the work needed to convert the stations, according to an e-mail from Johnson’s office.

“We’ve set up the construction teams, the finance availability and the investment to renovate underground space,” Chambers said in an interview. He declined to identify the investors.

Old London Underground plans to open the first site, Brompton Road station, in time for the 2012 Olympic Games in east London, Chambers said. The station, owned by the Ministry of Defence, has been shuttered since the mid-1950s after serving as the headquarters of southern England’s anti-aircraft defenses during World War II.

Each station would cost 17 million pounds to 34 million pounds to renovate and they would all be opened within five years, according to Chambers. That’s if he can convince Johnson that developing empty parts of the London Underground network, also known as the Tube, won’t come at public expense.

‘Safety Challenges’

Transport for London, the Tube’s operator, “has already looked closely at these proposals and highlighted the huge safety challenges and massive potential costs they involve,” the mayor’s office said. Johnson’s priority is “the upgrade of the Tube and delivering the passenger improvements that Londoners require.”

Chambers, 38, said he could generate more than 300 million pounds in annual revenue from turning the derelict sites into restaurants, gyms, museums and art galleries.

At the Brompton Road station he aims to open a members club on the roof of the above-ground portion and house the London Fire Brigade museum in its tunnels and shafts, he said in the interview inside the disused property.

The London Underground is the world’s oldest subterranean rail network, according to Transport for London. Brompton Road station opened in 1906 to ferry passengers along the Piccadilly Line until its temporary closure during World War II, when it was used as a war room.

Interrogation Room

Rudolf Hess, Adolf Hitler’s deputy, was interrogated there by the Defence Ministry after he crash-landed his plane in Scotland in 1941 seeking to broker a peace deal, said Glenn Purkis, a Ministry of Defence employee who manages offices above the defunct station.

The station, nestled between the affluent neighborhoods of Knightsbridge and South Kensington, reopened after the war before its use as a station ceased in 1955, Purkis said. Aldwych in central London’s theater district would be among the next stations to be developed, according to Chambers. The stop, which was used as a bomb shelter during both world wars, has been closed since 1994.

Chambers founded Old London Underground in 2009. He said his plan will unlock the value of historic underground real estate that had largely been forgotten. “The investors are helping the UK put health and safety into these spaces and in return they get to make money,” Chambers said.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-08/london-entrepreneur-sees-a-gold-mine-in-developing-unused-subway-stations.html

PortoNuts

September 10th, 2011, 05:01 PM

jbP0ilWo6xw

davidaiow

September 10th, 2011, 05:56 PM

I was browsing the tfl projects webpages the other day and I saw plans for contact-less payment by phone or debit/credit card to be implemented on buses early next year and the tubes and trains late next year. Thought it may be worth mentioning.

PortoNuts

September 11th, 2011, 01:55 AM

iCDmjXXqX7A

PortoNuts

September 11th, 2011, 02:54 PM

Green Park Tube station improvements ‘near completion’

A ‘transformation’ of Green Park Tube station is now nearly complete, with three new lifts already providing step-free access to the platforms and a new ramped entrance with views of the park now in action, Transport for London has said.

The changes mean passengers are already benefiting from improvements being made to this key Olympic interchange well ahead of the Games. The £48m project to provide step-free facilities at Green Park Tube station has been completed ahead of schedule and under budget by Tube Lines and London Underground.

Passengers with restricted mobility, as well as people with heavy luggage or buggies, are now able to use the new lifts at Green Park Tube station to access the Piccadilly, Victoria and Jubilee line platforms. Other work includes new flooring, ceiling, lighting, tiling and signage in the ticket hall plus new entrances and lift lobbies.

During the 2012 Games Green Park will be a key station as it will enable passengers to change to the Jubilee line for access to the Olympic Park, Wembley and North Greenwich. Green Park is also an interchange for travellers heading to Heathrow airport and other key transport hubs such as St.Pancras International rail station.

The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said: “It is great news that passengers using Green Park every day can now take advantage of the huge improvements that have been made there. Next year it will be a very important part of the plan to help millions of Londoners and visitors to our great city get around during the Games.

“We want to make the links into the Olympic venues as strong as possible and the ease of passage between them as smooth as possible.”

The major upgrade of Green Park station also includes a new canopy and a new staircase on the south side of Piccadilly, public space improvements outside the station and beautiful artwork integral to the station buildings.

Jon Lamonte, Senior Transport for London Director, said: “This is a busy station, popular with visitors to central London and will be an important link to the Olympic and Paralympic venues. Tube Lines and London Underground have worked tirelessly, day and night, to deliver improvements at Green Park station ahead of schedule and well below budget.”

http://www.rail.co/2011/09/06/green-park-tube-station-improvements-near-completion/

PortoNuts

September 11th, 2011, 07:34 PM

Consultation begins on proposed changes to South Kensington station

London Underground (LU) has begun a public consultation on the possibility of a development above South Kensington station.

Work on the proposal has been undertaken with input from the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea in order to examine the best way to implement any development whilst ensuring that Tube customers and local people reap the maximum benefit.

The potential development could fund station improvements providing the opportunity to carry out changes to reduce congestion and provide step-free access to the District and Circle lines at South Kensington station.

The narrow flight of stairs from the District and Circle line platforms is causing congestion problems whilst some customers find the station difficult to use because it can only be accessed via stairs. An initial scoping study has been carried out in order to address the problems at the station.

The study has shown that the best option would be a lift from a new Thurloe Street entrance into an enlarged ticket hall, as well as new stairs and a lift to the District and Circle line platforms.

The plans for a modest development have been created keeping the key issue of conservation in mind, in order to respect and enhance the listed elements of the station and the surrounding neighbourhood. As such, the existing arcade, listed shop fronts and northern and southern entrances would all be retained, as would the Thurloe Street terrace.

The ‘Ox-blood’ station building would also be retained and integrated with the residential development over the station ticket office.

Richard Parry, LU’s Deputy Managing Director, said: “Creating a modest development above South Kensington station has been a long-time aspiration and we have worked hard to devise a proposal that will benefit the area whilst remaining sensitive to local residents’ concerns.

“This will allow us to carry out much needed station improvements including lifts to provide step-free access to the District and Circle line platforms, an enlarged ticket hall and new stairs to cope with the ever increasing number of visitors to the area. We do not have the money for these improvements without a developer paying for it.”

TfL is ‘keen to get local support and opinion and welcomes the involvement of residents and stakeholders in this project’.

The consultation period will close on 7 October 2011 and we are holding a public meeting at 19:00 on Wednesday 21 September at Kensington Town Hall.

http://www.rail.co/2011/08/31/consultation-begins-on-proposed-changes-to-south-kensington-station/

PortoNuts

September 11th, 2011, 11:24 PM

Cut crowd size or risk rail and Tube chaos, Olympic chiefs told

Olympic organisers have been told to cut capacity by 25,000 at an equestrian event or risk transport chaos.

Transport for London has warned of queues of more than two hours for spectators travelling by rail to Greenwich Park for the cross-country horse riding event, scheduled for Monday July 30 during next year's Games.

The organising committee, Locog, faces losing more than £1 million in ticket revenues if it has to comply with TfL's advice to cut the official capacity from 75,000 to 50,000. Equestrian events in Greenwich Park were among the quickest to sell out when the first tranche of tickets went on public sale.

The warning comes in a confidential TfL document, seen by the Standard, which contains latest computer modelling of rail and Tube "station congestion hotspots" during the Olympics.

TfL experts highlight Greenwich station and Canary Wharf as the greatest cause for concern in terms of waiting times. Greenwich station, which is served by Southeastern railway and the Docklands Light Railway, will fail to cope as the main gateway to Greenwich Park, the report warns.

It states: "Day 3 (cross country) has the potential for two-hour-plus waits for DLR and Southeastern if the 75,000 capacity is utilised. [We] recommend venue size at 50,000."

Talks between Locog and TfL are focusing on staggering passenger arrivals and departures to the event, which runs from 12.30pm-5pm, to alleviate station crowding. Public entertainment, such as music festivals, are being mooted to prevent a mass exodus. But the TfL recommendation looks certain to sink Locog plans to sell 75,000 tickets, most of which are priced at £55 for general admission for cross country.

The cross-country event is the most problematic in the Olympic equestrian calendar because for that day only, capacity booms beyond the 23,000 seats sold for dressage.

Olympic tickets sales remain a Locog secret but it is thought that more than 50,000 have not been sold, so no orders would have to be cancelled.

Locog said it has held back one million tickets, to go on public sale next year, while venue capacities are finalised. The report says of Canary Wharf station, which will serve Greenwich Park and the O2 arena hosting basketball and gymnastics: "If left unmanaged, queuing times could be in excess of 90 minutes."

TfL said: "At certain times and places the transport network will be much busier than usual. We're already working with businesses and Londoners to ensure they have plans in place to enable us to manage demand. "Locog has not made a decision on sales of extra ticketing for this event [cross country] but we are in active discussions with them. When that decision is made, we will make the appropriate travel arrangements."

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard-olympics/article-23985229-cut-crowd-size-or-risk-rail-and-tube-chaos-olympic-chiefs-told.do

PortoNuts

September 12th, 2011, 03:34 PM

New escalators for Custom House Docklands Light Railway station

New escalators at Custom House Docklands Light Railway (DLR) station have opened, ‘boosting the capacity of the station by 72% ready for the London 2012 Games’, TfL has said. The two new escalators will be able to carry 200 people per minute during the Olympics and major ExCeL events.

Chief Operations Officer for Transport for London’s (TfL) London Rail, Howard Smith, said: “The new escalators have been delivered a whole month ahead of schedule and will be a massive help in tackling congestion at the station especially during the Games.

“The station also directly serves the busy ExCel centre, the venue for many trade shows throughout the year and when Crossrail is built the legacy of the new escalators will be to provide an efficient interchange with the new railway.”

Work to install the two sets of 77-step escalators began in February this year and was completed one month early. The project cost £2.7m with £600,000 contributed by the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA).

ODA Director of Transport, Hugh Sumner, said: “Investment in the transport network is opening up services to more people than ever before.The upgrades to the escalators at Custom House DLR will enable spectator and everyday user demand to be met during the Games and will serve the commuters and communities that use the station long after London 2012.”

A further package of improvements is planned for stations along the Eastern route, from Poplar to Beckton and Poplar to Woolwich, later on this year. They will deliver ‘better lighting, new seating and enhanced information displays for passengers’.

http://www.rail.co/2011/09/12/new-escalators-for-custom-house-docklands-light-railway-station/

trainrover

September 12th, 2011, 04:33 PM

on the London Underground transit system (http://www.squidcard.com/corporate/emoneynews/transit/tfl-announces-changes-to-oyster-card-system1066.html)
Do Britons often have the term "transit" lobbed at them nowadays, or might it be a matter of "transit" being a more 'sexy' word? :? (Canadian press overuse the term "sexy" at describing mundane matters/aspects.)

PortoNuts

September 14th, 2011, 07:01 PM

Half of commuters ‘worried Tube won’t cope’ during Olympics

With the London Underground criticised this week for low performance by the London Assembly, British confidence in the Tube’s ability to cope ahead of the Olympics is also taking a battering.

mxData, creator of Tube Map app, carried out researched with 2,628 people who use the Tube on a regular basis and found that 54% are worried that London’s underground system won’t be able to cope with the Olympic games.

With 17% offering no opinion, this leaves just 29% confident that the Underground will be able to manage with the increased number of visitors.

David James, CEO of mxData, commented: “When the Tube runs smoothly, it is an extremely fast, efficient way of getting across London and is the envy of many a city. However, far too often there are severe delays to the lines due to faulty equipment and overrunning engineering works.

“It could be pretty embarrassing if millions of Olympic seats are left empty because its would-be occupants are stuck in a tunnel somewhere under the city.

“Some good news is that the Underground’s train drivers are set to receive an additional £500 for working during the games, which increases the likelihood of services running smoothly for London’s regular commuters and visitors alike.”

http://www.rail.co/2011/09/14/half-of-commuters-worried-tube-won%e2%80%99t-cope-during-olympics/

future.architect

September 15th, 2011, 12:30 AM

Do Britons often have the term "transit" lobbed at them nowadays, or might it be a matter of "transit" being a more 'sexy' word? :? (Canadian press overuse the term "sexy" at describing mundane matters/aspects.)

'Transit' isn't a word you will find many Britons saying in reference to public transport systems. It normally refers to a type of van made by Ford.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/Ford_Transit_VI_Kasten_front_20100301.jpg/800px-Ford_Transit_VI_Kasten_front_20100301.jpg

PortoNuts

September 15th, 2011, 03:34 PM

Tube delays drop by a third

Improvements continue to be noticed on the Underground service, with delays found to have fallen by 35 per cent since 2003/04.

It was during this period that a programme of work designed to upgrade the tube system commenced, Transport for London (TfL) explains - adding that the network is now carrying a record number of passengers.

Last year, 1.1 billion people used the service and although a slight dip in performance was noted during the autumn and winter of 2010/11, action taken by London Underground to carry out incident recovery faster and boost reliability has rectified this.

In the last few months, numerous upgrades have been made to the network, including increasing the frequency of services on the Jubilee Line, rolling out new trains on the Victoria Line to boost capacity and adding air conditioned carriages to the Metropolitan Line.

Mike Brown, Managing Director of London Underground, called the project the "biggest upgrade" in the tube's 150-year history.

"This can't be achieved overnight and some disruption is inevitable as the work takes place. However, Londoners rightly expect reliable journeys and we are completely focused on making sure that we deliver that," he added.

In August, TfL announced that platforms have been lengthened, drainage installed and new track laid at High Street Kensington and Edgware Road Stations on the Circle and District Lines.

The work was carried out as part of an upgrade that finished several months ahead of schedule.

http://www.trl.co.uk/trl-news-hub/transport-news/latest-transport-news/tube-delays-drop-by-a-third_800728691.htm

PortoNuts

September 17th, 2011, 04:05 PM

qpdy4q2H01w

PortoNuts

September 17th, 2011, 10:20 PM

by looper23 on Flickr.

Balham Station

http://img5.imageshack.us/img5/6705/60995592789d42876043b1.jpg
http://www.flickr.com/photos/98587546@N00/6099559278/sizes/l/in/photostream/

PortoNuts

September 20th, 2011, 05:15 PM

TfL claim the Tube’s ‘long-term trend of improvement is continuing’

Figures published today by Transport for London claim that the Tube’s ‘long-term trend of improvement is continuing’.

The transport operator published the figures on the same day that the London Assembly released their report claiming Tube delays have risen by 20% between 2009/10 and 2010/11.

TfL said delays are ‘now down by 35% since the programme of work to upgrade the network began’ in 2003/04.Transport for London admit ‘there was a dip’ in performance in the autumn and winter of 2010/11, ‘attributable to a number of factors including strikes’.

Some difficulties also ‘arose with the new systems being introduced to improve capacity and customer journeys on the Jubilee and Victoria lines’, TfL said.

TfL said that LU has since ‘introduced a programme of actions to improve reliability and speed up incident recovery, and performance has now returned to the levels seen before last year’s dip – with delays and Excess Journey Time during the first four periods of this year down to below the levels of last year’.

...

http://www.rail.co/2011/09/13/tfl-claims-the-tubes-long-term-trend-of-improvement-is-continuing/

PortoNuts

September 20th, 2011, 08:34 PM

'Urgent’ escalator maintenance completed at Earl’s Court

Piccadilly line passengers are now able to access Earl’s Court the morning after urgent escalator works finished ahead of schedule on Sunday.

London Underground’s (LU’s) ‘rigorous maintenance checks’ two weeks ago found that bearings in one of the escalators between the Piccadilly and District line platforms were ‘likely to fail within the next few weeks’.

If the escalator had failed it ‘could then not be used as a fixed staircase’.

Owing to the limited space available to carry out works on the faulty escalator and only a narrow spiral staircase as a backup, LU needed to close the area around the escalator to carry out the works.

LU’s maintenance teams ‘worked flat out to complete the work from Tuesday night and finished ahead of schedule on Sunday morning, limiting disruption to regular passengers and those attending events in the local area’.

LU’s Chief Operating Officer, Howard Collins, said:

“This is great news for our passengers and reflects the hard work that our staff put in to minimise the disruption caused by emergency repair works on the Underground network.

“Where possible, we always try to plan maintenance and upgrade work well in advance but sometimes we have to act quickly to carry out works as problems arise.

“I apologise to any customers who have been affected by this closure over the past few days.”

http://www.rail.co/2011/09/19/urgent-escalator-maintenance-completed-at-earls-court/

trainrover

September 20th, 2011, 09:25 PM

:weird:

great, now we're being written that nothing's failing about fault :nuts:

scalatrava89

September 20th, 2011, 09:43 PM

Took some pictures of the Farringdon Station works on Saturday. Massive crain on site, getting ready to lift the station roof into place.

http://i788.photobucket.com/albums/yy165/scalatrava/C1-1.jpg

http://i788.photobucket.com/albums/yy165/scalatrava/C2.jpg

iampuking

September 21st, 2011, 01:20 AM

^^This pic should be in the Thameslink/Crossrail thread.

trainrover

September 21st, 2011, 09:36 PM

:)
mMAim09tXvM
^^ steam, EMUs, tube (0'52" & 1'15"), & the Hastings DMU (2'23" -- last train featured) http://www.skyscrapercity.com/images/icons/icon14.gif

PortoNuts

September 22nd, 2011, 02:48 PM

^^This pic should be in the Thameslink/Crossrail thread.

Won't there be any changes to the Tube station?

PortoNuts

September 22nd, 2011, 07:23 PM

5jTx7eqfIzU

PortoNuts

September 22nd, 2011, 09:41 PM

New walk-through Tube trains 'will cut number of deaths and injuries'

New trains should dramatically reduce the number of people killed or seriously hurt on the Underground every year, transport bosses pledged today.

Transport for London said extra safety measures such as the phasing out of dangerous access doors between carriages would stop passengers falling on to the tracks.

TfL's new walk-through carriages are being phased in on the Metropolitan, Hammersmith and City, Circle and District lines. Other measures to reduce injuries include fewer gaps and steps between trains and platforms, better education for drunk passengers and "grip-strips" to stop people slipping.

TfL defended the Tube as one of the safest rail networks in Europe but figures show that nearly 4,000 people were injured last year. Since 2005 there were 188 deaths and 835 serious injuries to passengers, staff and contractors, according to data collated by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism .

Most of the fatalities were as a result of passengers falling under trains or being struck near exposed train lines or tunnels. Many of the deaths that occurred on Tube tracks are described as being caused by "multiple" injuries.

Three people needed limbs amputated following accidents at Tooting Broadway, Knightsbridge and Bank station. There was a total of 3,939 accidents this year, compared with 4,000 last year. Tube escalators were accident blackspots for slips and falls.

The most dangerous line for travellers was the Jubilee, which runs from Stratford to Stanmore, with 650 incidents last year, despite many of its stations having safety doors on the platforms. The figures, released to the Clerkenwell-based bureau under the Freedom of Information Act, shows that Waterloo, London Bridge and Westminster stations all have high accident rates, despite their platforms being protected.

The Metropolitan line had the least incidents with 203 people injured. Richmond station was the safest on the Underground with only two accidents in five years. TfL said the figures included medical incidents, such as heart attacks, as well as suicides.

A spokesman added: "Transport for London is investing billions to improve the Tube network by upgrading trains and stations, which will build on the Underground's excellent and improving safety record as well as improve passenger journeys.

"A recent Office of Rail Regulation report indicated that the Tube is the safest significant-sized railway in Europe, with a safety record 15 times better than the European average. The latest figures show that safety incidents fell by eight per cent in 2010/11 compared with the previous year."

RMT union chief Bob Crow warned that cuts in station-based staff were behind the high accident rates.

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23985904-new-walk-through-tube-trains-will-cut-number-of-deaths-and-injuries.do

PortoNuts

September 22nd, 2011, 11:10 PM

Boris: 'Willesden Green will not be added to Met line'

Boris Johnson has scotched a poorly-supported suggestion that Willesden Green station could be added to the Metropolitan line.

It is ordinarily only served by Jubilee line trains but on occasions when that line has been shut for engineering works, Willesden Green has been used as an additional stop by Met line services.

Councillor Navin Shah (Labour), the London Assembly member for Brent and Harrow, asked the Conservative Mayor of London at Mayor's Question Time whether there were moves to designate Willesden Junction as a new Met line destination between Finchley Road and Wembley Park.

Mr Johnson said: "Stopping Metropolitan line trains at Willesden Green station during planned Jubilee line closures has clearly provided significant benefits for people affected by the closures, whether travelling to Willesden Green or connecting with buses to continue their journey to another station.

"However, stopping Metropolitan line trains at the station permanently would have the opposite effect.

"It would give only a very marginal benefit to those using the station, who have a fast and frequent Jubilee line service, with easy connections to the Metropolitan line at Wembley Park or Finchley Road.

"Conversely it would make journey times longer for the much larger group of passengers already on Metropolitan line trains. Transport for London therefore has no plans to make this change."

Pinner resident Anthony Wood, vice-chairman of The Federation of Metropolitan Line Users' Committees and chairman of Harrow Public Transport Users' Committee, said: "We're happy for Met line trains to stop there in an emergency or when the Jubilee line is closed but we are not in favour of a permanent stop at Willesden Green.

"It would mean a worse service for longer distances passengers and Jubilee line passengers normally get a get a very good service anyway."

Figures provided by Transport for London show during the last two years, Willesden Green has been a temporary Met stop on 37 days.

http://www.harrowobserver.co.uk/west-london-news/local-harrow-news/2011/09/22/boris-willesden-green-will-not-be-added-to-met-line-116451-29469135/

PortoNuts

September 23rd, 2011, 04:02 PM

Weekly poll: should London Tube lines and trains have quiet carriages?

If you travel by Tube, rail or Overground into London, particularly during rush hour, your priority is probably finding a carriage with standing room. What can undoubtedly be a stressful travelling experience can occasionally be made worse by a chorus of screaming babies, ceaseless announcements, your neighbour’s blaring MP3 player and bellowed telephone calls.

Cities such as Boston have addressed the problem by forbidding loud conversations and the use of mobile phones during peak times on all its commuter train services. It’s a self-regulating service but could it work in London, and do people even want it?

A number of politicians have voiced their frustration at an apparent lack of consideration some commuters show towards fellow travellers, and are mooting the introduction of a quiet carriage on London Underground and rail services. First Capital Connect has no plans to introduce quiet zones but may do so if enough customers request it; Southeastern takes a similar stance. TfL is less receptive to the idea, citing frequent services and relatively short journey times as negating the need for dedicated quiet carriages.

...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/uk/london/8758033/Weekly-poll-should-London-Tube-lines-and-trains-have-quiet-carriages.html

PortoNuts

September 23rd, 2011, 05:38 PM

k1F86JeML20

PortoNuts

September 24th, 2011, 11:51 PM

Olympic 'travel hotspots' identified

Businesses based in London have been given predictions of the areas of the public transport and road network that are likely to be the most congested during the 2012 Olympic Games.

According to Transport for London (TfL), the key 'travel hotspots' were previewed yesterday (September 22nd) in an aim to help organisations make preparations ahead of the athletics event.

Small and medium-sized businesses were also invited to the BT Centre to attend the Make 2012 Work for You event, where they were shown the London Underground stations and areas of road that may be busiest, in order to plan their staff movements and freight deliveries accordingly.

The organisers also pointed out the financial benefits that will be brought to the capital by the Games and urged firms to take the necessary steps to ensure they are able to keep on running next summer and take full advantage of this global sporting event.

Mayor of London Boris Johnson, London's Transport Commissioner Peter Hendy and Olympic Transport Minister Theresa Villiers all appeared at the seminar, with Mr Johnson saying it is "vital" that businesses are prepared.

"Making sure they have the most up-to-date and relevant transport information is a crucial part of this preparation, allowing them to plan around any disruptions, make sure their staff are where they need to be and [that] their businesses can keep moving as we welcome the world to our great city," he said.

TfL has launched a new website that provides information on transport in the capital during the Games and it has also hosted workshops on how to plan deliveries, freight and services during the Olympics.

http://www.trl.co.uk/trl-news-hub/transport-news/latest-transport-news/olympic-travel-hotspots-identified_800738254.htm

PortoNuts

September 27th, 2011, 07:47 PM

London Tube timetables enter Minority Report era

A new gizmo gives you the latest London Underground travel updates by mixing up reality with technology.

Londoners with smart phones can point the camera at their Oyster card to get the latest service updates, as the video above shows. Dubbed ‘augmented reality’ by tech-buffs, you capture real objects on your phone to trigger access to digital content on the screen.

The data on the screen is from Transport for London’s website. How well connected to reality the public transport timetables are may be questioned by stressed commuters. But there is no doubt the gadget is intuitive and simple to use. An early example of its use was in the hit film Minority Report.

...

http://www.london24.com/news/transport/london_tube_timetables_enter_minority_report_era_1_1071708

Saigoneseguy

September 28th, 2011, 02:29 PM

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23985904-new-walk-through-tube-trains-will-cut-number-of-deaths-and-injuries.do

Those idiots who move between running tube carriages. :ohno:

ill tonkso

September 28th, 2011, 08:33 PM

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/uk/london/8758033/Weekly-poll-should-London-Tube-lines-and-trains-have-quiet-carriages.html

South West Trains Intercity and Regional services have them and they are fantastic! 99% of people actually follow the rule too.

PortoNuts

September 29th, 2011, 03:54 PM

Those idiots who move between running tube carriages. :ohno:

But otherwise people don't spread evenly among the carriages.

PortoNuts

September 29th, 2011, 07:46 PM

More trains for District Line's Wimbledon branch

Commuters should see tube services into town boosted by the end of the year. London Underground (LU) has revealed that from December an extra five District Line trains will run from Wimbledon to central London during morning peak hours.

The decision came after a consultation about changes to the heavily congested service, which also calls at Wimbledon Park and Southfields stations..

Commuter Thais Portillo-Shrimpton, who lives in Wimbledon Village, welcomed the news. She said: "I'm really happy - sometimes I have to stand [on the platform] for 15 minutes."

To pave the way for the change, LU will be scrapping the weekday shuttle service between Kensington Olympia and High Street Kensington.

LU claims the move will reduce delays and provide capacity for an additional 4,000 passengers every weekday morning, with further capacity for more than 800 people on evening services to Ealing Broadway and an enhanced late evening service on the Wimbledon branch - with six trains per hour until 11.30pm.

The Olympia shuttle service will continue to operate at weekends and special services will operate to serve major weekday events at the Olympia exhibition centre.

http://www.yourlocalguardian.co.uk/news/local/wimbledonnews/9276849.More_trains_for_District_Line_s_Wimbledon_branch/

PortoNuts

September 29th, 2011, 07:56 PM

Closure of Kensington Olympia Tube to go ahead

Transport for London is to proceed with plans to scrap the weekday London Underground service to Kensington Olympia despite objections from local councillors and London’s passenger watchdog.

In place of the Kensington Olympia service, London Underground plans to run additional services on the Wimbledon branch.

It say the changes would reduce delays and provide capacity for “4,000 more passengers on the Wimbledon branch” and has promised to maintain a weekend service to and from the station.

Local councillors have expressed concern that the changes would make it harder for visitors to travel to Olympia when the Earl’s Court Exhibition Centre closes.

Nicholas Paget-Brown, Cabinet Member for Transportation and Highways at Kensington and Chelsea Council, previously described the plans as “short termist and unwise.”

In August London TravelWatch warned that closure of the wheelchair accessible Olympia station would force passengers to take “long and inconvenient diversions.”

Earlier this year London Underground extended its consultation period over the proposals.

On Wednesday LU Managing Director Mike Brown said: “There was an overwhelming response to the consultation and we would like to thank everyone who took part.

“After taking into account all the responses we received, and in light of the benefits that the changes will deliver, we have decided to go ahead with the changes; these will come into effect in December.”

http://www.mayorwatch.co.uk/closure-of-kensington-olympia-tube-to-go-ahead/201116886

sotonsi

September 29th, 2011, 08:02 PM

should make the tube challenge more awkward!

PortoNuts

September 30th, 2011, 01:54 AM

OMiQFdMCwws

trainrover

September 30th, 2011, 09:19 PM

Just how extensive is TfL's programme at raising platforms (3'03" ^^)?

PortoNuts

October 1st, 2011, 03:04 AM

Tube rule change allows guide dogs on escalators

A change in byelaws means guide dogs will be allowed to use London Underground escalators for the first time from October 5th. At present it is prohibited for guide dogs to travel on escalators, a rule which dates back to the days of wooden escalators and fears the dogs could get their paws caught.

The prohibition makes it harder for visually impaired passengers to access platforms.

Although Tube staff will often provide assistance to visually impaired passengers, including by stopping escalators where possible, the official line is that this may not be possible “at busy times” in case it causes overcrowding.

In March Boris Johnson told Liberal Democrat London Assembly Member Caroline Pidgeon he would ensure a review of the byelaw was completed “as quickly as possible”.

Last week Transport Commissioner Peter Hendy advised the Transport for London board that new TfL Railway Byelaws confirmed by the Secretary of State for Transport would “remove the requirement to carry trained assistance or police dogs on escalators.”

The new byelaws also formalise the Mayor’s alcohol ban. In a written answer to Pidgeon, Johnson said “I very much welcome this change, which Transport for London has championed.”

http://www.mayorwatch.co.uk/tube-rule-change-allows-guide-dogs-on-escalators/201116923

Rational Plan

October 1st, 2011, 02:36 PM

https://consultations.tfl.gov.uk/tube/bank/consult_view

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s233/Maryside/London%20Photos/bankupgrade3.jpg

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s233/Maryside/London%20Photos/bankupgrade2.jpg

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s233/Maryside/London%20Photos/bankupgrade1.jpg

Unfortunately no detailed plans just an outline.

PortoNuts

October 1st, 2011, 04:44 PM

Bank station is madness and the Bank of England entrance is very small.

PortoNuts

October 2nd, 2011, 06:22 PM

Q-mmrsgdjOA

PortoNuts

October 4th, 2011, 12:31 AM

Tube drivers are unsung heroes

They risk the trauma of 'jumpers' to drive millions across the capital every day underground – tube drivers deserve £50,000.

I was standing on the northbound platform of Camden Town underground station on my way to a friend's birthday party in Golders Green when a young man a few yards from me suddenly clutched his head in his hands and shouted out "No! No! Why did you do that?" What was he on about? I turned to see that the train had come to a sudden halt. An elderly man had thrown himself under it.

No sound came from beneath the train as we looked for signs of life. "He really went for it," said the young man who had witnessed the leap. "He meant to do it." The driver emerged from behind the controls and stood silently on the platform. He looked completely stunned. He had brought the train to a halt as swiftly as possible and yet had been unable to stop before the jumper hit the tracks. Within minutes the emergency services – police, fire brigade, ambulance – were at the station, all of them only too familiar with what a "one under" means.

Out on the street, as the station was cleared and closed, would-be passengers were complaining about the delays, most of them unaware of what had just happened below. "Typical bloody London Transport," was one remark.

This happened one Sunday night last month and I was reminded of the driver's dazed and lost expression as the news came through today that "Tube drivers' salaries to rise to more than £50,000". The very first reaction to this headline on the Guardian website was from a generous-spirited reader: "What is so special about these guys? Holding the capital to ransom as usual."

The recent deaths of five miners in two separate incidents have provoked, quite rightly, a communal sadness. Yet it seems that people often forget the trauma that any driver must experience when a stranger hurls themselves to their death in front of their train. This is something that one tube driver must experience, on average, every week. A Transport for London spokesperson said that there were 41 such incidents last year "and each one is traumatic for everyone involved".

Everyone who travels by London underground is aware of the collective sigh that greets the genteel announcement that there will be delays because of "a person under a train". A few of the jumpers miraculously survive, if they happen to fall into the pit below the rails. But for many of them it is what emergency service workers describe as a "bucket and spade job". The drivers get time off and are offered counselling by Transport for London's occupational health department. Colleagues can offer sympathy but for some the trauma inevitably has a permanent effect.

Most people do not begrudge the excellent salaries of the buffed and shiny airline pilots who deliver us safely to our holiday destinations. We may smile at them and say thank you as we leave the plane. How many spare a thought for the tube drivers who work underground rather than in the open skies, driving 3.5 million people across the capital each day, who don't have a fancy cap saying "to fly, to serve" on it and who know that round any corner someone who has had enough of life may be waiting to leap into the hereafter.

Little boys – and possibly a few little girls – used to grow up wanting to be train drivers. The magic slipped from the job years ago, a casualty of declining respect for public services as much as anything else. But the drivers who take the millions of Londoners and visitors and tourists to their destinations every day are unsung heroes and heroines. They should be recognised as such in their pay packets, which the Rail, Maritime and Transport Union is still in the process of finalising, not least for having to deal with the lurking possibility of a "one under". That's what's so special about those guys.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/oct/03/tube-drivers-deserve-50000?newsfeed=true

PortoNuts

October 6th, 2011, 04:45 PM

7DzDhConNHs

lafreak84

October 6th, 2011, 08:13 PM

I don't understand why do Tube drivers deserve 50k, because few people every year commit suicide? What about doctors, nurses, cops, firefighters...? All of them experience trauma in their line of work.

sotonsi

October 6th, 2011, 08:47 PM

Tube drivers are better organised at blackmailing people into giving them what they want by not doing their job until they get it striking.

If firefighters, policemen, doctors or nurses go on strike, no one (least of all them) would allow fires to burn uncontrolled, the rule of law to be non-existent on the streets, patients to be untreated - there's moral implications for not doing your job and not letting anyone else do it either. So, for instance, the firefighters go on strike and out come army and their green goddesses. This makes the strikes less disruptive and so less effective at holding the area to ransom.

As you can tell, I really don't like Bob Crow!

PortoNuts

October 6th, 2011, 10:05 PM

Boris Johnson: Extra spending on London's transport system will boost the economy of Manchester

Boris Johnson has called on the government to invest in London transport - to boost the economy of Manchester and other cities. The London mayor urged the Treasury to have a 'wheel deal' to supply cash for major transport improvements in the capital. He was speaking as he visited the Lucchini UK factory in Trafford Park that supplies wheels for the London Underground.

Mr Johnson said: "The wheel deal I want to offer the Treasury and the government is, 'you supply us with the cash to invest in London transport and all the things we will do to speed up London and we will drive jobs and growth around the country.

"London is the motor of the UK economy. The Treasury knows that short-changing London really doesn't make any sense."

His comments came two years after Mr Johnson risked inflaming a north-south row in a conference speech when he claimed the best way to stimulate growth in Manchester was to invest in London.

Mr Johnson said today: "We're here in a fantastic factory at Lucchini where we're looking at some of the wheels that Lucchini make for the London Underground. It's very fascinating to see the stuff that we use being made. One of the things I want to ensure we do, within the limits of the law, is that we source our stuff from the UK and its important we keep supporting British manufacturing.

"So you do two things, you not only improve London transport, but you drive jobs and growth here in Manchester as well. Those people who think London is benefiting from growth, that is true, but London helps drive jobs elsewhere in the country as well."

Lucchini employs 187 workers and took on 14 more just last week. It provides and maintains steel wheels for trains in Britain and abroad. It has supplied more than 32,000 wheels for the London Underground over a decade.

Mr Johnson toured the forge and spoke to workers. He told them: "Whenever we've needed a wheel, you've supplied a wheel. You've never let us down."

Chris Fawdry, managing director of Lucchini UK, said: "This contract is very important to us. We been supplying for many years so we do no't want to lose this contract. We've supplied over 32,000 wheels over the last 10 years and we have never let London Underground down. They've never had a train stand by because they don't have wheels."

http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/politics/s/1460609_boris-johnson-extra-spending-on-londons-transport-system-will-boost-the-economy-of-manchester

DanielFigFoz

October 6th, 2011, 10:34 PM

PortoNuts

October 8th, 2011, 04:05 PM

Emirates buys place on Tube map in £36m cable car deal

One of the world's biggest airlines is set to start 'flying' passengers across the Thames in a deal that will see its brand name appear on every London Tube map.

Emirates, which sponsors Arsenal football club, can today be revealed as the backer of Boris Johnson's cable car project, which will link the O2 arena in Greenwich with the Excel exhibition centre at the Royal Docks.

As part of the £36million, 10-year deal for the new Emirates Air Line, the company will see its branding on all future versions of Harry Beck's Tube map design. Two new stations will be added to future versions of the map - Emirates Greenwich Peninsula and Emirates Royal Docks.

The cable car's "flight path" across the Thames will also be depicted on the maps in bright "Emirates red". It is the first time corporate branding has appeared on the map.

The project, which Transport for London says could be completed by summer next year, will have 34 cable cars carrying 2,500 passengers an hour. The gondolas, about 160 feet above the river, will run every 30 seconds and the journey will take five minutes. The scheme's cost was estimated to be about £25million when it was announced a year ago and the Mayor initially said that it would not be taxpayer funded.

The cost has now increased to £60million but a TfL spokesman today insisted they are "confident" they will recoup the rest of the money from European funding, further corporate sponsorship deals and fare revenue.

The Mayor today hailed the announcement. He said: "This multi-million pound deal is tremendous news for London, helping us to deliver a new addition to the city's skyline. The Emirates Air Line will be an exciting and innovative mode of transport easing travel for thousands and offering spectacular bird's eye vistas of our majestic Thames.

"The UK's first urban cable car will also act as a vibrant catalyst for the further regeneration of east London helping to attract jobs and investment for the benefit of Londoners."

It is not known if the cable car project, which critics have describes as a mayoral "vanity project", will be ready in time for the Olympics.

London Underground managing director Mike Brown said: "Main construction works began in July and we are on track to open next summer. Much of the manufacture, including the steel towers, is being done in the UK, boosting companies across the country."

Emirates Airline president Tim Clark said: "The Emirates Air Line will take off as an iconic landmark for London."

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23995705-emirates-buys-place-on-tube-map-in-pound-36m-cable-car-deal.do

PortoNuts

October 8th, 2011, 05:34 PM

tKLeeXmnjnI

PortoNuts

October 8th, 2011, 06:29 PM

3cH6tOawV0g

PortoNuts

October 8th, 2011, 08:40 PM

Revamp for 'oldest' Tube carriage

A £422,000 grant has been given to restore an underground carriage, thought to be the world's oldest, to mark 150 years of London Underground. Metropolitan Railway Carriage Number 353 was built in 1892 and ran on what is now known as the Circle Line.

The Heritage Lottery Fund money has been given to the London Transport Museum to restore the carriage to full working order. It will then become a key feature of the anniversary celebrations in 2013. The restoration work will take about a year to complete and will incorporate early Metropolitan Railway design and construction.

Following the anniversary, the carriage will tour around heritage railways in London and the South East for 10 years.

The carriage was withdrawn from service in 1905 when the Metropolitan Railway was electrified. It was then acquired by London Transport in 1974.

'International significance'

The work will be carried out by the Ffestiniog Railway, which is a specialist in heritage railway carriage restorations.

Sue Bowers, head of the Heritage Lottery Fund for London, said: "It is the London Underground system that helped transform the capital from a small city in the early Victorian period to the massive conurbation that it is today. As such, this carriage is not only of national importance, but international significance, as our underground system was the first in the world."

The Heritage Lottery Fund will also help to fund an apprentice to gain an NVQ Level 2 in carpentry as part of the project.

A further 159 people will be offered the opportunity to work towards a heritage and transport qualification through the restoration.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-15224445

Darloeye

October 8th, 2011, 10:03 PM

The Emirates Air Line has a nice ring to it. But not too sure about having the logo on the underground maps tho.

PortoNuts

October 9th, 2011, 10:35 PM

^^They wouldn't be doing it out of charity.

Darloeye

October 9th, 2011, 10:44 PM

^^^^ Yeah £36million. just not a fan of having their logo on maps

PortoNuts

October 11th, 2011, 04:44 PM

London Underground: Oyster Card top-up locations extended

People who regularly use London's transit system may be pleased to know that the number of locations where they can top up their Oyster Cards has now been increased.

South West Trains has said that all stations in the London Travelcard area will include facilities to add money to the contactless payment cards, Elmbridge Today reports.

This includes Thames Ditton and Hampton Court, which may mean travel is even easier for commuters and tourists.

Andy Pitt from London Travelcard said: "This is a significant improvement for our passengers travelling within the London area and will provide us with an opportunity to offer even more choice."

In August, the Guardian reported that Transport for London had upgraded its journey planning telephone service with the launch of voice recognition technology, which could prove useful to people using any stations served by the Oyster Card.

There is also a text messaging service for even better information about updates.

http://www.squidcard.com/corporate/emoneynews/transit/london-underground-oyster-card-topup-locations-extended1130.html

trainrover

October 12th, 2011, 08:47 PM

tKLeeXmnjnI
▲▲ :uh: ▼▼
I'm really astonished realising there being just a single cable to do the work, i.e., no back-up or secondary one
Never thought I'd see the day putting such a comment to western Europe ;) ... to imagine all that trouble and
--uhm-- detail into the airlining video (buttock-clutching apparel, etc, etc)...

:shit:

PortoNuts

October 13th, 2011, 04:11 PM

^^Cable cars have been around for quite a while. :cheers:

PortoNuts

October 13th, 2011, 05:32 PM

Jubilee line upgrade costs revealed as £721million

The Jubilee line upgrade cost £436million more than the original estimated figure - largely due to the flawed public private partnership agreement.

Transport for London has revealed that the signal upgrade, which ran more than 18 months over schedule, cost £721million, compared to the projected figure of £285.3million when the PPP contract was signed in 2002. The bulk of that sum, £614million, was spent on the Canary Wharf-based Tube Lines consortium, which was responsible for carrying out the upgrade.

However, Tube Lines missed the December 31, 2009, deadline for completing the work, while racking up around 150 weekend closures that caused massive inconvenience to residents of east London. The PPP agreement came to an end when TfL spent £310million to take Tube Lines in-house in June 2010, with the upgrade finally completed this July.

Mike Brown, Managing Director of London Underground, said: "The final Jubilee line upgrade cost completely vindicates our decision to end the waste and inefficiency of the PPP and transfer the work to TfL.

"Now we are free of the absurd constraints of the PPP contracts we are able to ensure that future upgrades, including the Northern line, are delivered in a much more efficient and economic way and with far less disruption to Londoners and businesses.

"TfL repeatedly made clear that the PPP was an extremely expensive and completely inefficient way in which to upgrade the Tube.

"Since we took control last summer we have completed the work that the PPP failed to deliver and overall reliability on the line, and across the Tube network as a whole, is now improving. Since the end of July this year, we have been running an extra three Jubilee line trains per hour, providing space for an extra 5,000 passengers."

http://www.wharf.co.uk/2011/10/jubilee-line-upgrade-costs-rev.html

PortoNuts

October 13th, 2011, 06:36 PM

Z8sNZcu6HdE

PortoNuts

October 14th, 2011, 12:36 AM

DWSQMJmswZI

PortoNuts

October 14th, 2011, 04:36 PM

YaBH_igieqU

PortoNuts

October 14th, 2011, 07:01 PM

by SE9.

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6180/6181272801_3f3659f8e6_b.jpg

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6090/6101750279_3f8ddf3342_b.jpg

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6155/6157075794_920e48528b_b.jpg

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6062/6105663222_5db17d1d6f_b.jpg

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5068/5704085774_58ddf1efc6_b.jpg

trainrover

October 14th, 2011, 08:12 PM

Cable cars have been around for quite a while.
Yeah ... meanwhile ... ... ... demoting cable cars to mere semi-cable is the newness that does the telling all on its own :skull: (it would probably be more the case of tertiary-cable ;))

Darloeye

October 14th, 2011, 09:51 PM

Them Pictures of the Docklands Light Railway and what part of London look like a American City

the_sage

October 15th, 2011, 12:31 AM

Them Pictures of the Docklands Light Railway and what part of London look like a American City

An American city would never have such modern transport infrastructure! ;-)

CairnsTony

October 15th, 2011, 12:56 AM

They all get paid loads though, maybe except for nurses
No maybe about it. I've worked as a nurse in the UK and here in Aus and earn more than double what I earned back in the UK only a few years ago.

PortoNuts

October 15th, 2011, 05:34 PM

DLR might have to be renamed in the future.

Tubeman

October 15th, 2011, 05:50 PM

DLR might have to be renamed in the future.

Why? Its primary purpose remains to serve the Royal and West India Docks.

hkskyline

October 15th, 2011, 06:31 PM

Do the new DLR trains have A/C?

PortoNuts

October 15th, 2011, 10:12 PM

Why? Its primary purpose remains to serve the Royal and West India Docks.

At least if it expands a lot beyond the Docklands.

ill tonkso

October 16th, 2011, 01:28 AM

Why? Its primary purpose remains to serve the Royal and West India Docks.

I think it needs Lines now. It's too big to be one system. Bankisham line anyone>

IanCleverly

October 17th, 2011, 10:16 PM

4PweK-ilGhE

kerouac1848

October 18th, 2011, 12:40 AM

I think it needs Lines now. It's too big to be one system. Bankisham line anyone>

Yeah, at least two, it already looks messy. Docklands and City for the Bank-CW-Lewisham/Woolwich services? Eastern Line for the rest? (sounds lame even though we have a northern and central line).

On a more general point there are too many brands now on London's transport, it's ridiculous. We have 2 threads showcasing 6 branded networks. The DLR and/or overground should just come under the tube system. Many other systems just integrate light-rail lines into the metro network (e.g. Barcelona), they don't create a whole separate brand for it. In London this is even more important because of the way our urban rail network is organised. Really, it's tube/metro, regional rail/S-bah/rer/etc and trams. No need for more.

SE9

October 18th, 2011, 02:50 PM

Most up-to-date DLR route map:

http://i56.tinypic.com/52nm86.jpg

Attus

October 18th, 2011, 05:09 PM

Hello,

can anyone tell me please whether underground and overground trains in London have sanding equipment (putting sand on the rail in order to avoid slippery) or not?

Darloeye

October 20th, 2011, 11:15 PM

how much would that new Docklands lane cost ?

Tubeman

October 23rd, 2011, 12:17 AM

Hello,

can anyone tell me please whether underground and overground trains in London have sanding equipment (putting sand on the rail in order to avoid slippery) or not?

There are dedicated Sandite trains used by both LU and Network Rail, but regular trains do not spread sand to my knowledge.

LU trains do have de-icing units (roughly 1/3 of units on most lines), which have de-icing fluid and sleet brushes.

Attus

October 23rd, 2011, 09:14 AM

Thank you!

Stofvdw

October 24th, 2011, 10:41 AM

I'm not very familiar with the London Tube, but when I look at the maps, I always wonder why the DLR has not been extended with the short tube line "Waterloo-Bank". I think this would create a great transport link.

Are the tunnels too small?

sotonsi

October 24th, 2011, 11:53 AM

yes, and too bendy, and everything is in the wrong place at Bank.

davidaiow

October 24th, 2011, 11:22 PM

How much would it cost to rebuild bank from scratch with cross platform interchanges and clear walkways with travellators? Beyond the cost benefit ratio I'm guessing.

nr23Derek

October 25th, 2011, 08:31 AM

How much would it cost to rebuild bank from scratch with cross platform interchanges and clear walkways with travellators? Beyond the cost benefit ratio I'm guessing.
Probably cheaper to move the whole city of London financial district to a new site! It's a very confined space and a very busy station.

Derek

iampuking

October 26th, 2011, 01:47 AM

However they're planning to bore a new platform tunnel for the Northern line and convert one of the existing ones to a central passenger tunnel, which should improve passenger flow a lot.

PortoNuts

October 29th, 2011, 11:49 PM

Victoria Tube station escalator work ‘completed three months early’

Tube customers at Victoria station have full use of the busy interchange again after London Underground (LU) completed refurbishing the 42-year-old escalators in the main ticket hall three months ahead of schedule. The station is undergoing a £700m redevelopment, which will dramatically increase its size as well as improving accessibility for all.

A new ticket hall, interchange passage, escalators and lifts will be completed by 2018 to enable the station to cope with increasing numbers of customers. The escalator work that has just been completed will mean more reliable operation of the station in the meantime as well as returning capacity for customers getting on and off the Victoria line.

The three escalators which run down to the Victoria line platforms and which include the second most-used escalator in the world with 21 million customers hopping on each year, were out of service one at a time, in sequence, while they were being worked on. LU engineers worked ‘around the clock to complete the work as quickly as possible to minimise disruption for customers, who were asked to use other stations as much as possible during the works’.

While the works were carried out ‘LU staff worked hard to help all customers including disabled passengers get to their destinations as quickly and easily as possible, arranging alternative routes or transport where necessary’.

Howard Collins, LU’s Chief Operating Officer, said: “We have worked flat out to get all the escalators refurbished and back in customer service early – and over three months ahead of schedule – well ahead of the London 2012 Games when there will be increased demand.

“This work was crucial as part of modernising and enlarging Victoria Tube station, which is one of the busiest stations on London Underground, with 80 million passengers a year, expected to reach nearly 100 million a year by 2016. While the works were carried out we brought in extra station staff to assist and all our staff did an excellent job helping all customers, including disabled customers get to their destinations as quickly and easily as possible, arranging alternative routes or transport where necessary.

“We would like to thank customers for their patience during these works which we carried out in this way to avoid completely shutting the station or non-stopping trains.”

http://www.rail.co/2011/10/19/victoria-tube-station-escalator-work-completed-three-months-early/

PortoNuts

October 30th, 2011, 01:53 PM

fUtnNll7qxY

PortoNuts

October 31st, 2011, 12:14 AM

London subway boss says no bag checks for Olympics

There are no plans to check people's bags on the London subway as part of extra security planned for the Olympics next year, the head of the city's transport system said Wednesday.

The London Underground, known locally as the Tube, will be stretched to its limits during the Games. Critics of the aging and often overstretched system have expressed fears that additional security measures would further delay journeys.

But Peter Hendy, the commissioner for Transport for London, told The Associated Press that while authorities will take advice from the police, such additional checks are not envisioned. "It's almost giving in to terrorism," he said of the idea.

Hendy made the comments during an interview outlining plans to manage the huge increase in traffic expected on subways, trains and buses during the Games, which begin July 27 and end Aug. 12.

Surveillance camera use will be expanded for the Games, he said, although he offered no details on other security measures. Bag checks are expected to take place at venues hosting the competitions.

London suffered transit attacks in 2005, killing 52 commuters and four suicide bombers. Hundreds of thousands of spectators are expected to join the city's already busy subway, bus and rail system during the Olympics.

Around 6.5 billion pounds ($10.2 billion) has been invested in upgrading and extending transport links. Transport for London has held seminars and reached out to businesses in the city, meeting with managers and individual companies in hopes of altering work patterns and encouraging people to work from home.

http://www.boston.com/news/world/europe/articles/2011/10/20/london_subway_boss_says_no_bag_checks_for_olympics/

PortoNuts

October 31st, 2011, 08:17 PM

lS80LdKkSjQ

PortoNuts

October 31st, 2011, 11:45 PM

Driverless Tube trains: Is this the end for drivers?

Driverless trains and ticketless technology will again be on the agenda as London Underground's (LU) 'Operational Vision' is due to be put in front of the Transport for London (TfL) board on Wednesday.

Here's the paper itself (.pdf).

Its sub heading is 'Technology Enables Change' and it very broadly outlines what last week's leaked report described on the direction LU is heading. It's called 'emerging thinking'. It does admit cabless trains will probably be on the network by 2020.

The report says: "Given the technology available now, it is very unlikely that, after the procurement of the trains for the Sub Surface Lines, LU will ever again buy a fleet of passenger trains with conventional drivers' cabs.

"This means that the new generation of Tube train being developed for the Bakerloo, Piccadilly and Central lines, to be introduced in the 2020s, could dramatically change the train staff operating model."

...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-15523336

PortoNuts

November 1st, 2011, 01:50 PM

3uEiBp66nXc

mcarling

November 1st, 2011, 02:31 PM

The report says: "Given the technology available now, it is very unlikely that, after the procurement of the trains for the Sub Surface Lines, LU will ever again buy a fleet of passenger trains with conventional drivers' cabs.

"This means that the new generation of Tube train being developed for the Bakerloo, Piccadilly and Central lines, to be introduced in the 2020s, could dramatically change the train staff operating model."

Driverless trains can't come fast enough. Capricious drivers holding London hostage for rapacious wages deserve only retirement. Londoners deserve reliable transport.

PortoNuts

November 1st, 2011, 05:28 PM

^^I think I'd still prefer people driving the trains.

_Night City Dream_

November 1st, 2011, 07:19 PM

How long are train cars and trains on different lines?

Trances

November 1st, 2011, 07:27 PM

As much I would rather have drivers, they must be replaced. They are out dated and how the city to ranson over wages and jobs when we are in need of improvement. Wish their could be an option to sack the lot and start over but replaced will suit too.

trainrover

November 1st, 2011, 09:18 PM

3uEiBp66nXc
Misrepresentative (overly stretched).

PortoNuts

November 1st, 2011, 11:26 PM

IanCleverly

November 2nd, 2011, 12:35 AM

Misrepresentative (overly stretched).

Isn't it just?

tEgPzgoUmXQ

trainrover

November 2nd, 2011, 12:45 AM

That's better, thanks!

Strange, to be hearing squealing wheels on British rail so much more than any clickety-clack nowadays (at London Bridge) :uh: What happened there?!?

Of all the new metro fleets around the world the last dozen years or so, London's S stock is the only one that's easy on the eyes :)

Tell me, is there a leaf-clearing programme such that no leaf be left behind, period? :uh:
http://i939.photobucket.com/albums/ad236/trainrover/NoLeaf.jpg
^^ clickable ... (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEgPzgoUmXQ)

It's startling to now see Montreal's and London's autumns synchronised.

PortoNuts

November 3rd, 2011, 12:28 PM

Frost & Sullivan analyses London Underground upgrade

The London Underground (LU), one of the most prominent metro systems globally, is undergoing a major network upgrade programme.

It is estimated that from 2011 to 2014/15, Transport for London (TfL) is investing approximately £1.4 billion annually for the Tube’s capital expenditure programme, including line upgrade activities such as re-signalling, new rolling stock procurement and track replacement. The sprawling network consists of nearly 402 km of track and 270 stations, performing approximately 4 million passenger journeys per day.

It carries approximately 1.10 billion passengers per annum, which is more than the yearly passenger journeys across the rest of the United Kingdom rail network put together.

With the Olympic and Paralympic Games taking place in London in 2012, the LU is projected to remain even more under intense scrutiny. “Restructuring a network as complicated and old as the LU is one fraught with great difficulties,” says Senior Research Analyst, Sudhakaran Jampala, from Frost & Sullivan.

“Since the beginning of the programme in 2003, the LU upgrade programme has been plagued by project delays and criticism for frequent line closures. TfL, however, is likely to move strongly towards complete transformation with effective objectives based project management procedures in place.”

Under the oversight of TfL, a new signalling system came into operation on the Jubilee line in June 2011, which has been converted to Automatic Train Control (ATC) using the Thales SelTrac S40 Communications-Based Train Control (CBTC) system.

The system is projected to increase capacity by 33 per cent before the 2012 Olympics, adding another 12,500 passengers per hour and reducing journey time by 22 per cent. On the Victoria line, the 1967 train stock has been replaced with Bombardier 2009 stock built in Derby.

The new trains allow the implementation of the Invensys Distance To Go – Radio (DTG-R) Automatic Train Protection (ATP) product, which would help to increase the number of trains per hour to 33 from 27, once the upgrade is complete.

By 2016, the LU will have also replaced over 40 per cent of its fleet on the 4 sub-surface railway (SSR) lines (District, Hammersmith & City, Circle and Metropolitan) and the ‘Deep Tube’ Victoria line, with a total of 1,778 Bombardier MOVIA metro trainsets. They contain features such as CCTV cameras, increased aisle width, passenger-driver two-way communication enabled emergency alarms, as well as air conditioning and walkthrough gangways.

“Once the upgrade of the Hammersmith & City and Circle lines is complete, capacity will increase by 65%, which is an additional 17,000 passengers an hour,” says Mr. Jampala.

...

http://www.rail.co/2011/11/02/frost-sullivan-analyses-london-underground-upgrade/

PortoNuts

November 3rd, 2011, 12:45 PM

‘Revamped service information boards’ on Tube network

Customers on the Tube will be greeted with ‘clearer and more extensive travel information in stations from this week as redesigned service update information boards are rolled out across the network’, Transport for London had announced.

The boards, which are located in the ticket halls of London Underground (LU) stations, have been revamped in response to customer research on how TfL could offer more information to passengers to enable them to get up-to-the-minute updates and make choices about their onward journey.

The new design will group any disrupted lines together at the top of the screen so that customers can see at a glance if their journey is likely to be affected. Disrupted lines will carry information alongside them to describe the extent and direction of the problem affecting them, rather than simply stating ‘minor’ or ‘severe’ delays as the current screen design does.

Unaffected lines will be listed below those that are disrupted, and the foot of the new-look screen will carry rotating messages giving more information around any service disruption. The changes will also be reflected in web and mobile phone page views.

Gareth Powell, LU’s director of strategy and service development, said:

“The key changes we’ve made mean that electronic service update information is now much clearer – these changes will allow customers moving quickly through a busy station to see at glance whether their line is affected, and give them the information they need to make an alternative travel choice if they wish to.

“Other train operating companies in the south-east are working together to improve customer information and Transport for London is assisting in that project, so that passengers on national rail within a certain distance of London could get live travel information at major interchanges and key stations.”

http://www.rail.co/2011/11/01/revamped-service-information-boards-on-tube-network/

PortoNuts

November 3rd, 2011, 08:32 PM

Richard Tracey backs proposals for driverless Underground

London Assembly Conservative Group transport spokesman, Richard Tracey, has backed a report presented to the Transport for London Board that proposes to introduce driverless trains on the London Underground.

Mr Tracey, who ‘first proposed that the Tube go driverless a year ago’ said: “When I first suggested the way forward for London Underground is to adopt driverless technology I was seen as maverick. So I am very pleased that my ideas for the Tube have become mainstream thinking for future investment plans.

“A driverless Underground would deliver safe, fast and efficient mass transit for London. It would usher in a step change in the way we get about our capital city and it should be embraced.

“Many other cities around the world, which have both new and old metro systems, run driverless trains. Indeed it’s nothing particularly revolutionary in London either: the DLR has been driverless since the 1980s and the Victoria, Central and Jubilee are all highly automated where drivers no longer actually drive the trains.

“Once upgrades are completed the Northern, Circle, District, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan lines will operate in the same way too. So I endorse this Transport for London report. Driverless Tube? It can’t come soon enough.”

http://www.rail.co/2011/11/03/richard-tracey-backs-proposals-for-driverless-underground/

iampuking

November 4th, 2011, 05:27 AM

How long are train cars and trains on different lines?

Approximately...

Bakerloo: 7 x 16m cars = 112m
Central: 8 x 16m cars = 130m
Circle/H&C/District (Edgware Road - Wimbledon): 6 x 16m cars = 95m
District: 6 x 18m cars = 112m
Jubilee: 7 x 18m cars = 126m
Metropolitan: 8 x 16m cars = 130m
Northern: 6 x 18m cars = 112m
Piccadilly: 6 x 18m cars = 112m
Victoria: 8 x 16m cars = 130m
W&C: 4 x 16m cars = 65m

PortoNuts

November 5th, 2011, 04:07 PM

Underground could be running driverless trains as early as 2018

Three out of four Tube trains will be able to operate without drivers by 2018, Transport for London directors have been told.

These include trains on all lines except Piccadilly, Bakerloo and Waterloo and City. A report presented to the TfL board said that once the new stock of trains for the sub-surface lines is complete it is "unlikely" Tube bosses "will ever again buy a fleet of passenger trains with conventional drivers' cabs", and upgrading the signalling systems meant "by 2018...some 70 per cent of the network will be automatic".

Plans for driverless trains across the network from 2020 were revealed by the Evening Standard last week.

London Assembly Tory group transport spokesman Richard Tracey said: "It makes total sense. Thirty cities around the world have driverless trains. They are perfectly safe."

But Caroline Pidgeon, leader of the Assembly Lib-Dem group and the transport committee, said the Assembly would need "absolute guarantees" about safety.

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-24006006-underground-could-be-running-driverless-trains-as-early-as-2018.do

PortoNuts

November 5th, 2011, 04:35 PM

ZUkUDgu5dE0

IanCleverly

November 6th, 2011, 03:04 PM

BBC Two to take viewers underground in new observational documentary series

Janice Hadlow announces a major new documentary series with unique access to London underground.

The 6x60 series, The Tube, takes viewers behind the scenes of the world’s oldest, biggest and busiest underground train network. Made by Blast! Films, the series will tell the inside story of one of the most critical moments in the tube’s history as the underground network undergoes the biggest upgrade of any railway system ever planned in the world.

Running a system built and designed in 1863 for the demands of the 21st Century is an extraordinary feat. The upgrade will be done under immense pressure to keep lines open and minimise the length of station closures.

Cameras will go to the places viewers have always wanted to see – behind the hoardings to reveal the massive new engineering works, inside the command centre to see what running this most complex of train sets is really like and illuminating a hidden underground world that only comes to life at night.

The series will meet the people who run and use the tube, from obsessive MD Mike Brown down to the litter collector who walks miles every night collecting rubbish off the track. And then of course there are the passengers – the tourists, the suburban commuters, the drunkards getting the last train home, the school outings, the buskers and the down and outs.

Continues Here (http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/tube.html)

Digiguide (http://digiguide.tv/) also brings up an episode of 'Big, Bigger, Biggest' on the London Underground on the National Geographic Channel in December.

DOCUMENTARY: Big, Bigger, Biggest
Channel: National Geographic
Date: Sunday 4th December 2011
Time: 22:00 to 23:00 (starting in 28 days)
Duration: 1 hour.
London Underground Revealed. Special Episode 1.
Documentary series examining the technology behind some of the largest feats of engineering in the world.
(Dolby Stereo, Widescreen)

IanCleverly

November 6th, 2011, 04:35 PM

KEHSyTyvZw8&

Full Victoria Line (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victoria Line) ride

PortoNuts

November 10th, 2011, 02:39 AM

London Underground unveils proposals to boost Bank capacity

Plans that would see the creation of wider platforms, better access to lines and step-free access to a new ticket hall at one of the Tube’s busiest stations will go on public display from today.

London Underground (LU) will showcase the proposals for the Bank station capacity upgrade project from 8 to 11 November at an exhibition in the City as part of the consultation on the plans.

The proposed project aims to relieve congestion and increase capacity at Bank and Monument, the fourth busiest interchange on the Tube network, with a range of solutions that would ease overcrowding:

- A new southbound Northern line running tunnel that will create extra space to reduce crowding on the platforms

. A new Northern line concourse with additional interchange passageways and escalators to the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) and Central line

- Lifts to a new ticket hall in King William Street to provide step-free access between street level, the Northern line and DLR.

- LU’s application for a Transport Works Act Order will be submitted in late 2012 and, if granted, construction would begin in 2015 with completion scheduled for 2021.

David Waboso, LU’s Director of Capital Programmes, said: “Bank is one of the busiest stations on the network and we’ve been working closely with the City of London Corporation on plans to create more capacity at this important interchange.

“Most of the work will be below the ground and we’ll keep disruption to a minimum during construction, but it’s important that the public have the chance to comment on what we’re proposing to improve their Tube network.”

Members of the project team will be available to answer any questions about the proposals at an exhibition at 10 King William Street, London EC4N 7TW.

http://www.rail.co/2011/11/08/london-underground-unveils-proposals-to-boost-bank-capacity/

PortoNuts

November 10th, 2011, 04:07 AM

6VmwN5CZBtg

trainrover

November 10th, 2011, 06:14 PM

^^ file's corrupted

KEHSyTyvZw8&

^^ Is this one also corrupted or do passengers really not choke from apparent mustiness (2' to 5', approximately)? :? besides, I can't remember the last time I boarded an empty car ...

PortoNuts

November 10th, 2011, 11:10 PM

Tube to test driverless trains in four years

Driverless Tube trains could be running in a trial by 2015 - three years sooner than expected, confidential London Underground documents reveal today. The Waterloo & City line, the direct one-stop link between Waterloo mainline station and Bank, will be tested first, followed by the Bakerloo, Piccadilly and Central lines.

The document, seen by the Evening Standard and headed "Introduction to Deep Tube Programme", lists W&C line trials as starting in 2015 with Bakerloo line trials a year or two later. It states the "feasibility stage" of the overall plan "is focusing on an initial trial implementation on the W&C line".

It "provides an opportunity to transform London Underground operation enabled by technology".

The plan for driverless trains and wholescale changes to LU - including axing 1,500 more staff and scrapping all but 30 of the 250-plus ticket offices - will now form a major campaign issue in the run-up to the mayoral election. Changes have led to union claims of stations being left unstaffed.

Mayoral candidate Ken Livingstone pledged "there will be a driver in every train and staff at every station" if he is re-elected. Bob Crow, the RMT union leader, said: "Put it in your manifesto that there will be a driver on every train and you will win."

He said: "Far from the 'blue sky thinking' LU were banging on about when we leaked their plans two weeks ago we now find the programme is at an advanced stage and ready to kick off in four years' time. This whole policy is being driven for political purposes by Tory Mayor Boris Johnson and the RMT believes that even his own officials know that it is madness."

He promised that the RMT would lead the "most strenuous and high-profile campaign" against the "reckless gamble" to change the Tube.

A Transport for London spokesman said: "The design specification for the next generation of Deep Tube trains is currently under development and is expected to feature technologies to reduce vehicle weight, improve energy efficiency and the possibility of air conditioning. Components and systems would of course require testing prior to introducing a new train, but the project remains in the early stages of planning."

Mr Johnson's spokesman said: "As technology changes it is right the London Underground should explore how they can run services in the most efficient, reliable and best possible way for the millions of passengers they carry every day."

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-24007455-tube-to-test-driverless-trains-in-four-years.do

iampuking

November 11th, 2011, 06:09 AM

^^ file's corrupted

^^ Is this one also corrupted or do passengers really not choke from apparent mustiness (2' to 5', approximately)? :? besides, I can't remember the last time I boarded an empty car ...

The tube is pretty musty but not that musty. Never have I noticed a strong mist appearing when on the tube, it must be a problem with the camera.

PortoNuts

November 12th, 2011, 01:19 AM

EyzeHkKdu-8

trainrover

November 12th, 2011, 02:19 AM

Who's gonna christen the tube by filming its tunnels in infrared :naughty:

PortoNuts

November 12th, 2011, 02:35 AM

^^Thought the same, away with the darkness. :cheers:

PortoNuts

November 12th, 2011, 04:49 PM

TO7OtGpmaiY

PortoNuts

November 13th, 2011, 06:58 PM

ZjQsHe2wUcg

trainrover

November 13th, 2011, 10:04 PM

^^ When London fleets were easy on the eyes.

iampuking

November 14th, 2011, 03:43 AM

Who's gonna christen the tube by filming its tunnels in infrared :naughty:

Buy the video125 driver's eye views. The tunnel sections are not filmed in infrared AFAIK but you can see far more.

When London fleets were easy on the eyes.

Do you not like the looks of the new rolling stock? I like them.

trainrover

November 14th, 2011, 09:07 PM

Only the S stock ... the other ones appear 'overly' lavish :dunno:

iampuking

November 15th, 2011, 02:26 AM

Lavish? I wouldn't go that far... They seem pretty spartan to me.

trainrover

November 15th, 2011, 02:51 AM

Then I ought to have written cluttered instead of lavish (lines, ridges, mismatchings, etc.). E.g., the S stock has a clean appearance whereas the D stock strikes me as too bare, bland -- I don't know how to articulate this.

Nothing seems to have been spared in the S stock interiors, mind you, (e.g., arm rests have been retained) they still look plush to me.

sotonsi

November 15th, 2011, 03:14 AM

While not having 60-year-old suspension means the ride quality is better than A stock, the seats have far less cushioning, and from out in the zones that used to not be numbered it starts to be noticeable that the chair you are sitting on isn't that nice to sit on for long.

They are far from plush.

One imagines that leisure travellers from Rickmansworth out will start to use timetables more and make sure they go on Chiltern trains and avoid the Met. This is exacerbated by the move to have off-peak Met trains run semi-fast, rather than fast, from next month.

trainrover

November 15th, 2011, 10:17 PM

Ouch! I hear you, sotonosi, demotions to semi-fast and all :ohno:

Which leads me to ask, any chance of somebody posting pics/vids of the fast lanes (I seem to remember --Marylebone ones aside-- six-tracking TfL segments) :?

sotonsi

November 15th, 2011, 11:27 PM

There's a short bit of 6-tracking near and through Wembley Park (between, to the south, where the Met fast and slow lines merge/diverge and, to the north, where the Jubilee dives under).

Harrow-on-the-Hill nearly has a similar thing, but Southbound Chiltern line through the station (platform 2) shouldn't really count - while maintained by TfL, it cannot see any TfL services (platform 1 doesn't usually, but it is actually possible for Met line services to use it)

Obviously the Chiltern tracks run alongside the LU ones from south of West Hampstead to Harrow South Junction (where they become LU ones), making 6 tracks in total.

trainrover

November 15th, 2011, 11:36 PM

If so, when did they eliminate the fasts running Saturdays (I can't remember if they ran Sundays, back in the day...)? (I remember the first two stops to the outbound fasts being Harrow on the Hill, then Moor Park.)

sotonsi

November 15th, 2011, 11:59 PM

I guess the last timetable change (not leaf-fall). They aren't totally gone - I took a fast out of Baker Street on a Sunday recently (they always existed).

I took a semi-fast in to Baker Street on that Sunday, and what was weird was the GPS service announcements - at Amersham, trains on platform 2 - which do occasionally reverse there, without using the siding) have 'Fast Baker Street' on the side, and even make an announcement saying that this was a fast Baker Street train (the train did it, not the station), when in reality it was a terminating train that was going to the siding, before reversing there. Next, during a over-long wait at Rickmansworth, the LED screens in the train declared that the terminus had been changed, and that it was now heading to Baker Street, with annoucements declaring it an all stations train. It then did a similar thing at Harrow, saying that the next stop was Wembley Park. I'm fairly sure that nothing changed, and it was always meant to be semi-fast, but it's a bizarre way of doing it. The system needs some improvements - most importantly, not getting people going over the bridge at Amersham (and back) for no reason.

PortoNuts

November 16th, 2011, 11:14 PM

0KtnMNopCx8

trainrover

November 17th, 2011, 01:32 AM

Sounds like shadow administration (hello, is anybody in there?!?), sotonsi. Does the GPS in GPS service anouncement stand for global positioning system ... if so, I guess this goes to show that Earth's become a shadow world :ohno:

PortoNuts

November 17th, 2011, 06:53 PM

Sub Surface Renaissance

Considerable publicity has already emerged on the new S stock trains being delivered to the Metropolitan Line. However, these are only part of a massive overall programme to upgrade all of London Underground’s sub surface lines. With a variety of ageing rolling stock, and some signalling systems that date back to the 1940s, the lines are overdue for modernisation.

Hedley Calderbank is the Upgrade Sponsor within London Underground (LU) to ensure that the project plans are financially on course to deliver all the required benefits to LU’s business.

He gave the rail engineer a fascinating insight into the project, its planning and delivery.

The business plan

In the PPP era, the two organisations awarded the contracts were required to put forward plans for major improvement works. Metronet, responsible for the Sub Surface Railway (SSR), was committed to a complete upgrade of trains and signalling on all those routes as a single project.

The existing track layouts had been unchanged for years – some even dated back to the loco hauled days of the Metropolitan Railway. Piecemeal renewals had kept everything largely unchanged as this had been the simplest thing to do.

As a result, many track layouts were less than optimised for the existing train service while the capabilities of both signalling and rolling stock fell well short of LU’s aspirations for capturing more traffic. The PPP organisational structure has been overtaken by events, but it was the catalyst for developing the SSR scheme as a single entity embracing the Metropolitan, District, Circle and Hammersmith & City lines.

The ensuing business case for the upgrade has been based around a number of elements:

- Shorter journey times for passengers – entry gate to exit gate

- Faster trains with better acceleration

- Provision of more frequent trains, thus giving less waiting time on station platforms

- Higher speeds on the Metropolitan line out in the north-west suburbs

- Fulfilment of suppressed demand because of existing service limitations

Considerable work has gone into proving that the business case is robust. The peak number of trains per hour on every route will be increased as follows:

- Metropolitan Line – from 21 to 28

- Circle and Hammersmith & City (central section) – from 28 to 32

- District (central section) – from 28 to 32

- Hammersmith & City – from 7 to 16, already partially achieved by the extended Circle line

- District Line branches – by 1 train on each

Many of these additions are interdependent but, once the existing signalling has been replaced, the peak passenger capacity of the network will be increased by more than 30%.

...

http://www.rail.co/2011/11/09/sub-surface-renaissance/