With things not going well for the Mayor and TfL on the railway front, they could have probably obtained some solace in the thought that the Mayor’s ambitious Healthy Streets policy was making good progress. …
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Crossrail: Timetable for Success?
Sufficient information is now available, unofficially, so that we can be fairly sure of the exact service pattern now proposed for Crossrail in December 2019. Furthermore, we can have a good guess at how it …
Continue readingBeyond Thameslink and Crossrail: A London Transport Update
Accounts of what is happening in the world of transport in London in the past few months have largely been focused on Crossrail and Thameslink. Whilst these two major construction projects (together totalling over £22billion) …
Continue readingHoly Grails and Thameslink Fails (part 2): The plan that went wrong
In looking at why the new May national rail timetable went so horribly wrong in the case of Thameslink and Great Northern services, it is necessary to look not only at the immediate causes but …
Continue readingHoly Grails and Thameslink Fails (Part 1): A Brief History of Thameslink
To understand the current issues with Thameslink, one has to understand its past. In this series, we explore the history of London’s only ‘through’ line and how that influences today. For many years it has …
Continue readingLondon Underground: The Forgotten Digital Railway
The railway’s attitude to signalling has changed a lot in the past few decades. In times gone by it was often regarded as something one unfortunately needed to run trains safely. On a modern metro …
Continue readingCrossrail: The Western Approach?
At the beginning of the year it seemed that Crossrail was experiencing something of an information blackout. At a TfL board meeting in late January, the Mayor, its chairman, moved all further discussion about the …
Continue reading2017 Quiz Analysis and Winners
Sincere apologies for the time taken to do analysis on the questions and identify winners. This was not the intention but the lingering flu bug this year severely delayed finalising the details. If you want …
Continue readingCrossrail: Cutting it Fine
On 11 December 2017, TfL announced that they were seeking ‘launch partners’ for the opening of the Elizabeth line. What is on offer is “a unique opportunity that will align with this historic moment for London”. …
Continue readingTransforming Oxford Street Part 2: A Real Regeneration
There have been proposals to pedestrianise Oxford Street for many years, but until now nothing has happened. This was partly because it was regarded as too difficult and partly because the City of Westminster (who …
Continue reading2017 Quiz Answers
Here are the answers to the 2017 quiz. We were surprised by how well people did and the number of answers with almost all the questions correct. Question 1 We asked what was wrong with …
Continue readingTransforming Oxford Street Part 1: The Bustterfly Effect
Some readers may already be aware of the current consultation on the pedestrianisation of Oxford Street between Orchard Street (just to the west of Selfridges) and Oxford Circus. This is part of a programme to …
Continue readingThe London Reconnections 2017 Christmas Quiz
It’s that time of year again. Advent calendars are being opened, presents purchased and the tabloids are preparing their ‘outrage’ pieces about vital Christmas works. That means, of course, that is time for the London …
Continue readingHorrible Holborn: When Postponement Is Not An Option
Increasing capacity on a railway is not just about running more (or longer) trains. If the associated stations can’t cope with the increased passenger numbers, then remedial action is needed. Here, we look at major …
Continue readingThird World Class Capacity: The Austerity Upgrades
In our previous article on the cancellation of London Underground’s World Class Capacity programme we looked at the reasons for its cancellation. Now it is time to look at exactly what has been cancelled and what can be salvaged from the aborted programme.
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