120-584: The Royal National Hotel is a 3-star hotel in Woburn Place , Bloomsbury , central London , England. It is the largest hotel in the United Kingdom by number of rooms, numbering 1,630, and is eight storeys tall. 51°31′25″N 0°07′38″W / 51.5236°N 0.1271°W / 51.5236; -0.1271 This article about a hotel or resort in the United Kingdom is
240-592: A concrete slab roof. The western extensions took over certain existing District line services, which were fully withdrawn in 1964. Stations in central London were rebuilt to cater for a higher volume of passenger traffic. To prepare for the Second World War , some stations were equipped with shelters and basic amenities, and others with blast walls . Construction of the Victoria line , the first section of which opened in 1968, helped to relieve congestion on
360-476: A fourth terminal for the airport, and its location was to be to the southeast of the existing terminals. As the Piccadilly line's route to the existing terminals was out of place, a loop track was adopted as the best method to serve the new terminal. The westbound track between Hatton Cross and Heathrow Central would be retained for emergency services. Approval for British Airport Authority (BAA) to construct
480-557: A stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article about a London building or structure is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Woburn Place The A4200 is a major thoroughfare in central London . It runs between the A4 at Aldwych , to the A400 Hampstead Road / Camden High Street , at Mornington Crescent tube station , via Holborn , Bloomsbury , Euston and Somers Town . Kingsway
600-503: A 1930 trip to several European Countries. Several stations on the western extension originally built by the District Railway were reconstructed. The new designs used brick, concrete and glass to construct simple geometrical shapes, such as cylinders and rectangles. The first prototype station was Sudbury Town station , which has a brick cuboid box topped with a concrete slab roof for the main structure, with tall windows above
720-736: A 24 trains per hour (tph) peak-hour service on the line, while typical off-peak services are generally as follows (as of 6 July 2020): Trains also make an additional stop at Turnham Green in the early mornings and late evenings. Night Tube services have operated every 10 minutes between Cockfosters and Heathrow Terminal 5 since 16 December 2016. No Night Tube services operate to Heathrow Terminal 4 or Uxbridge. On 11 October 1909, peak-hour services were altered to have trains skipping certain stops to improve journey times. Trains were marked with "Non Stop", which were deemed unpopular and ambiguous among passengers. Illuminated signs were added on platforms in 1932 to address this issue. Pairs of stations were
840-465: A bridge, with the two portals having concrete retaining walls. Deep tube tunnels were bored from Hatton Cross to Heathrow Central (now Heathrow Terminals 2 & 3). On 19 July 1975, the line was extended to Hatton Cross. The Heathrow Central extension was inaugurated by the Queen around noon on 16 December 1977, with revenue services commencing at 3pm. In the 1970s, planning was already underway for
960-535: A concrete box which connected all the underground tunnels. The station and terminal were opened on 27 March 2008, splitting westbound Piccadilly line services into two: one via the Terminal 4 loop, another direct to Terminal 5. Plans to extend the Aldwych branch south to Waterloo were revived several times during the station's life. The extension was considered in 1919 and 1948, but no progress towards constructing
1080-597: A controversial strip bar that is the subject of many articles in local newspapers. The road was laid out in the 1810s as part of the Bedford Estate . It was called "Seymour Street", as shown in the map to the right, until 1938 when it was renamed. It took its new name from Eversholt which is a village in Bedfordshire (which comes from Anglo-Saxon meaning "wood of the wild boar") near Ampthill , which gave its name to Ampthill Square nearby, and follows
1200-451: A few months later on 1 April 1986, by the Prince and Princess of Wales . Regular traffic began twelve days later with trains serving Terminal 4 via a one-way loop to Terminals 1,2,3. The station only has a single platform, the only one with this configuration on the Piccadilly line. Terminal 5 required another extension, funded by BAA. However, its proposed alignment caused an issue: it
1320-440: A larger depot. It was estimated that ridership on the extension, which would cost £4.4 million, would be 36 million passengers a year. In addition to Enfield West, stations were designated at Southgate , Arnos Grove , Bounds Green , Wood Green , Turnpike Lane , and Manor House. Bounds Green station was almost cancelled in order to improve journey times. A more expensive provision was rejected, which included construction of
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#17328025850411440-427: A loop in 1986, and to Terminal 5 directly from the main terminal station in 2008. This line has two depots, at Northfields and Cockfosters, with a group of sidings at several locations. There are crossovers at a number of locations, some of which allow trains to switch to different lines. The Piccadilly line's electric power was formerly generated at Lots Road Power Station . This was taken out of use in 2003, and
1560-403: A manhole cover from a burst gas main, before being extinguished. Several thousand people were evacuated from nearby offices, and several theatres cancelled performances. There was also substantial disruption to telecoms infrastructure. On 8 April, press reports emerged stating that the fire may have been started as part of the 2015 Hatton Garden burglary ; however, the investigation into how
1680-804: A new management team. UERL also agreed with other independent railway companies such as the Central London Railway (CLR, now part of the Central line ) to jointly advertise a combined network known as the Underground. On 1 July 1910, the GNP&;BR and the other UERL-owned tube railways (the Baker Street and Waterloo Railway and the Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway ) were merged by an act of Parliament to become
1800-925: A new tube railway, the Fleet line (later renamed the Jubilee line ), to join the Bakerloo line at Baker Street then run via Aldwych and into the City of London before heading into south-east London. An interchange was proposed at Aldwych and a second recommendation of the report was the revival of the link from Aldwych to Waterloo. London Transport had already sought parliamentary approval to construct tunnels from Aldwych to Waterloo in November 1964, and in August 1965, parliamentary powers were granted. Detailed planning took place, although public spending cuts led to postponement of
1920-485: A permanent additional stop at Turnham Green following this upgrade. When the line was opened from Finsbury Park to Hammersmith, its signalling system was identical to the Bakerloo and District lines. Small cabins at each location of crossover installed controlled the signals there. Single lamps displayed track clearance in the form of green or red, with variations of yellow at difficult-to-spot locations. This equipment
2040-480: A reversing siding built at Wood Green and no provision for the branch line. Arnos Grove was built to have four platforms facing three tracks for trains to reverse regularly, with seven stabling sidings instead of one reversing siding and two platforms. Most of the tunnelling works were completed by October 1931, with the Wood Green and Bounds Green station tunnels done by the end of the year. The first phase of
2160-526: A song by the English composer Edward Elgar , named The King's Way , celebrates the opening of Kingsway. The words are written by his wife, Caroline Alice Elgar . The song was first performed at an Alexandra Palace concert on 15 January 1910, sung by Clara Butt . Southampton Row is a major thoroughfare running northwest–southeast in Bloomsbury , Camden , central London , England. The street
2280-616: A stairwell by the middle. Escalators at Bounds Green, Wood Green and Manor House travel at 165 feet (50 m) per minute, which were then the quickest on the network. All of the original lifts were either replaced by new equipment or were converted to escalators. Alperton was the only above ground station to have an escalator, which was transferred over from the Festival of Britain , but was decommissioned in 1988. Stations such as Green Park and King's Cross St Pancras were installed with new lifts to provide step-free access to every platform by
2400-632: A theme of names related to the Duke of Bedford . It in turn gives its name to Eversholt Rail Group . Piccadilly line The Piccadilly line is a deep-level London Underground line running from the north to the west of London . It has two branches, which split at Acton Town , and serves 53 stations. The line serves Heathrow Airport , and some of its stations are near tourist attractions such as Piccadilly Circus (from Piccadilly Circus ) and Buckingham Palace (from Green Park ). The District and Metropolitan lines share some sections of track with
2520-536: A third track between Finsbury Park and Wood Green. Furthermore, since journey speed was a primary consideration in decision-making for the extension, the pencilled-in and much lobbied-for additional station near the corner of Green Lanes and St. Ann's Road in Harringay was dropped. Tunnel rings, cabling and concrete were produced in Northern England, while unemployed industrial workers there helped in
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#17328025850412640-543: A time at Manor House station was trialled. It failed due to opposition and potential dangers pointed out by the public. While early plans to serve Wood Green (specifically Alexandra Palace ) existed since the 1890s as part of the GN&;SR, this section to Finsbury Park was later dropped from the GNP&BR proposal in 1902 when the GN&SR was merged with the B&;PCR. In 1902, as part of an agreement for taking over
2760-428: Is Grade II listed. Some stations kept their original buildings. South Ealing , where a temporary wooden station ticket hall was constructed when the line was quadrupled, was an anomaly; a modern station was not provided until the 1980s. Green's stations such as Caledonian Road have bands of tiles arching overhead on the curved platform ceilings and above the tracks spaced 11–12 ft (3.4–3.7 m) apart. Along
2880-650: Is a major road in central London , designated as part of the A4200 . It runs from High Holborn , at its north end in the London Borough of Camden , and meets Aldwych in the south in the City of Westminster at Bush House . It was opened by King Edward VII in 1905. Together Kingsway and Aldwych form one of the major north–south routes through central London linking the ancient east–west routes of High Holborn and Strand . The name "King's Way" originally applied to what
3000-578: Is expected to expand, between Holloway Road and Holborn in the 2040s. The central section between Earl's Court and King's Cross St Pancras is in Fare Zone 1 , to Manor House and Turnham Green in Zone 2 , and to Bounds Green, Park Royal and Northfields in Zone 3 ; to Southgate, Sudbury Hill and Hounslow Central in Zone 4 , to Cockfosters, Hatton Cross and Eastcote in Zone 5 , and to Uxbridge and Heathrow Terminals in Zone 6 . 79 trains are required to operate
3120-604: Is now Theobalds Road , as it was the route that King James I took when travelling from London to his residence Theobalds Palace in Hertfordshire. The road was purpose-built as part of a major redevelopment of the area in the 1900s. Its route cleared away the maze of small streets in Holborn such as Little Queen Street and the surrounding slum dwellings. However, Holy Trinity Church in Little Queen Street
3240-498: Is the largest hotel in the UK. The British Medical Association building is at the junction of Upper Woburn Place with Tavistock Square. Property values are high in this area. For example, in 2005 a freehold office building at 19–29 Woburn Place (9,400 m , 101,000 sq ft) was sold for £22.6 million. On 7 July 2005, a suicide bomb planted by 18-year-old Hasib Hussain detonated aboard a double decker bus passing Tavistock Square as it
3360-647: The London Electric Railway Company (LER). The Underground railways still suffered financial issues, and to address this, the London Passenger Transport Board was established on 1 July 1933. There were significant station layout changes in the 1910s and 1920s. On 4 October 1911, Earl's Court had new escalators installed connecting the District and Piccadilly lines. They were the first to be installed on
3480-432: The 2012 Summer Olympics . Journey times on the Piccadilly line are usually around an hour and a half. Train dwell times are slightly longer at some stations, such as at Heathrow Terminals 4 and 5 stations. The former requires 8 minutes, while the latter needs 7 minutes to coordinate with the alternate Heathrow service schedule. The busiest section, as of 2016, is between King's Cross St Pancras and Russell Square. This
3600-533: The Development (Loan Guarantees and Grants) Act 1929 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. 7) instead of the Trade Facilities Act . The extension would pass through Manor House , Wood Green and Southgate , ending at Enfield West (now Oakwood ); based on the absence of property development along the line. In November 1929, the projected terminus was shifted further north to Cockfosters to accommodate
3720-526: The Indica Bookshop was separated from the Indica Gallery , a counterculture art gallery supported by Paul McCartney , and moved to 102 Southampton Row in the summer of that year. As of 2022 a major route for buses, the street once formed part of a tram route that included a tunnel for trams . Woburn Place is a street in central London , England, named after Woburn Abbey , home to
Royal National Hotel - Misplaced Pages Continue
3840-660: The London Passenger Transport Board (LPTB) was formed, which included the Met, the DR and LER. The board decided that there was sufficient demand to run through trains to Uxbridge due to rapidly developing suburbs along the line. The extension of Piccadilly line trains to Uxbridge began on 23 October 1933, but with many trains still reversing at South Harrow. By then, most Piccadilly line trains continued beyond Hammersmith, and District line trains to Hounslow were reduced to off-peak shuttles to Acton Town. An enhanced off-peak Piccadilly line service
3960-603: The London Transport Museum , Harrods , Buckingham Palace and Piccadilly Circus . The 9.51 mi (15.3 km) tunnel ends east of Barons Court , where the line continues west, parallel to the District line , to Acton Town. A flying junction , in use since 10 February 1910, separates trains going to the Heathrow branch from the Uxbridge branch. The Heathrow branch remains at surface level until
4080-631: The Metropolitan line between Rayners Lane and Uxbridge. The distance between Cockfosters and Uxbridge is 31.6 mi (50.9 km). The Piccadilly line began as the Great Northern, Piccadilly & Brompton Railway (GNP&BR), one of several railways controlled by the Underground Electric Railways Company of London (UERL), whose chief director was Charles Tyson Yerkes , although he died before
4200-566: The Victoria line , cross-platform interchange was to be provided at a few stations, which included Finsbury Park on the Piccadilly line. This meant that the Piccadilly line had to be realigned there, and the Northern City line platforms, being parallel to the existing Piccadilly line platforms, were to be transferred to the pair of lines. The Northern City line would be redirected to the surface platforms. The westbound Piccadilly line track would be rerouted onto one of these platforms, with
4320-469: The 1930s. Crossovers with other lines are present on the Piccadilly line. A connecting tunnel from the northbound Piccadilly line at King's Cross St Pancras to the northbound Northern line Bank branch was constructed in 1927. At Finsbury Park, a set of crossovers in the south were retained where trains can cross over onto the Victoria line. Lillie Bridge was the main depot when the Piccadilly line
4440-563: The Aldwych branch platforms as the wartime engineering quarters whilst the branch service was temporarily closed. The latter produced Torpedo Data Computers at the transfer concourse between the District and Piccadilly lines. Aldwych station was used as storage for British Museum exhibits. On 13 October 1940, a bomb explosion caused the westbound platform tunnel at Bounds Green station to collapse, killing nineteen shelterers. Train services were suspended for two months. In preparation for
4560-468: The Brompton & Piccadilly Circus Railway (B&PCR). The GN&SR's and B&PCR's separate routes were linked with an additional section between Piccadilly Circus and Holborn . A section of the DR's scheme for a deep-level tube line between South Kensington and Earl's Court was also added in order to complete the route. This finalised route, between Finsbury Park and Hammersmith stations,
4680-576: The DR and Met. The DR opened a spur from Ealing Common to South Harrow in June 1903. The Met opened its extension to Uxbridge in July 1904. Through trains of the DR were eventually extended to Uxbridge on 1 March 1910, henceforth sharing tracks with the Met between Rayners Lane and Uxbridge. The viaduct from Studland Road Junction west of Hammersmith to Turnham Green was quadrupled on 3 November 1911. The London and South Western Railway (L&SWR) used
4800-483: The District line and the underground lines planned. Work began in 1902 at Lots Road, by Chelsea Creek , and in February 1905 Lots Road Power Station began generating electricity at 11 kV 33 + 1 ⁄ 3 Hz , conveyed by high-voltage cables to substations that converted this to approximately 550 V DC . On the Piccadilly line, electricity was transmitted via underground ducts to Earl's Court, which
4920-484: The Dukes of Bedford who developed much of Bloomsbury. It is located in the Bloomsbury area of Camden . To the north is Tavistock Square and to the south-east is Russell Square . Past Tavistock Square the road becomes Upper Woburn Place until the junction with Euston Road . The Royal National Hotel building is located in the south-west side of Woburn Place north of Russell Square, with 1,630 rooms on eight floors,
Royal National Hotel - Misplaced Pages Continue
5040-642: The GN&SR, the Great Northern Railway (GNR) imposed a sanction on Yerkes to abandon the section north of Finsbury Park and they would construct the terminus below ground. Finsbury Park remained as an overcrowded terminus of the line, and was described as "intolerable". Many passengers arriving at both stations had to change onto buses, trams, and suburban rail services to complete their journeys further north. The GNR attempted to address this issue by considering electrification several times, but to no avail due to shortage of funds. Meanwhile,
5160-471: The Heathrow loop, between Acton Town and Rayners Lane, and between Arnos Grove and Cockfosters. Full service was restored on 4 August, four weeks after the bombing. On 15 December 2006, a 100-year celebration of the Piccadilly line was launched. A birthday card was revealed by Tim O'Toole , then London Underground Managing Director at Leicester Square station . Most of the deep level stations opened in
5280-637: The LER proposed an extension in 1920 but was overruled by the GNR, which was widely regarded as "unreasonable". In 1923, a petition by the Middlesex Federation of Ratepayers to repeal the 1902 act of Parliament emerged. It was reported that a "fierce exchange of arguments" occurred during a parliamentary session in March 1924 to request this change. Frank Pick , as the new assistant managing director of
5400-460: The Met to extend Piccadilly line trains to Rayners Lane for passengers to change trains. In 1929, quadrupling was to extend to Northfields for express trains to terminate there. This work was completed on 18 December 1932. Overall works for the extension began in 1931, approximately a year after permission was granted and funded under the Development (Loan Guarantees and Grants) Act 1929 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. 7). The Studland Road Junction area
5520-534: The National Grid Network. Emergency lighting, powered by batteries, is available at every station, with emergency supply from a support power station in Greenwich . The line has two depots, at Cockfosters and Northfields . The former site is near Trent Park , and was the preferred site over Oakwood , which was smaller, and its only access point was south of the station. Subsequently, Oakwood
5640-411: The Piccadilly and Northern lines were finally connected via new escalators, albeit with construction delayed due to financial difficulties. As a result, Russell Square station retained its lifts. To prepare for the Second World War , several stations had blast walls added. Others, such as Green Park, Knightsbridge and King's Cross St Pancras, had floodgates installed. The line was also involved in
5760-402: The Piccadilly line. To cater to the rapid growth of road traffic to Heathrow Airport , several rail lines were considered to serve the airport. An average increment of 1 million passengers a year between 1953 and 1973, and rising issues with airline coach services from major terminals due to location, traffic congestion, larger aircraft capacity and increasing leisure travel further increased
5880-618: The Piccadilly line. Printed in dark blue (officially "Corporate Blue", Pantone 072) on the Tube map , it is the sixth-busiest line on the Underground network, with nearly 218 million passenger journeys in 2019. The first section, between Finsbury Park and Hammersmith , was opened in 1906 as the Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway (GNP&BR). The station tunnels and buildings were designed by Leslie Green , featuring ox-blood terracotta facades with semi-circular windows on
6000-612: The Piccadilly line. With funds still being insufficient to electrify the railway, the LNER reluctantly agreed to the latter. An extension was highly likely at this stage, based on a study in October 1925 by the London & Home Counties Traffic Advisory Committee . Pick, together with the Underground board, began working on the extension proposal. Much pressure was also received from a few districts such as Tottenham and Harringay , but it
6120-427: The Piccadilly line; some sections of the Piccadilly had to be rerouted for cross-platform interchange with the new line. Several plans were made to extend the Piccadilly line to serve Heathrow Airport. The earliest approval was given in 1967, and the Heathrow extension opened in stages between 1975 and 1977. This served only Terminals 2 and 3 and the former Terminal 1. The line was extended again twice, to Terminal 4 via
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#17328025850416240-712: The Thames Embankment; this Kingsway tramway subway joined the North and South London tram systems. In 1958 the disused tunnel was reopened at the southern end to make a new connection, the Strand Underpass, for light traffic between Waterloo Bridge and Kingsway in order to reduce congestion. Also beneath Kingsway was a branch of the Piccadilly tube line from Holborn to Aldwych station on the Strand; this
6360-470: The Underground, distributed photographs of the congestion at Finsbury Park to the press. All of this pressure finally prompted the government to initiate "The North and North-East London Traffic Inquiry", with initial reports only recommending a one-station extension to Manor House . The London and North Eastern Railway (LNER), being the successor of the GNR, was placed in the position of electrifying its own services or withdrawing its veto of an extension of
6480-415: The Underground. On 10 December 1928, a rebuilt Piccadilly Circus station, designed by Charles Holden , was opened. This included a new booking hall located below ground and eleven escalators, replacing the original lifts. One of the shafts at Holloway Road station was used as an experiment for spiral escalators , but never used. An experiment to encourage passengers to step on the escalator three at
6600-449: The broadest streets in central London at 100 feet (30 m) wide. There were several proposed names for the new street, including King Edward VII Street , Empire Avenue , Imperial Avenue and Connecticut Avenue . The name "Kingsway" was in honour of King Edward VII , who opened the street. It was unique in containing below it a tunnel for a tramway , which started just north of Southampton Row, passed beneath Aldwych and continued to
6720-421: The construction of the extension. Construction of the extension started quickly, with the boring of the twin tube tunnels between Arnos Grove and Finsbury Park proceeding at the rate of a mile per month. Twenty-two tunnelling shields were used for the tunnels, and tunnel diameters were slightly larger than the old section, at 12 ft (3.7 m). Sharp curves were also avoided to promote higher average speeds on
6840-573: The early receivers in 1971. Stations in Central London were modernised. Green Park received a new shelter at the southern entrance; Piccadilly Circus had its ticket hall moved below street level. Both of these changes were designed by Holden, with the latter's station ticket hall having artwork commemorating Frank Pick added in 2016. Green Park also was built with a new entrance at a corner of Devonshire House, which has Portland Stone clad steel frames. It features Graeco-Roman details, and
6960-561: The eastern approach to Hounslow West station , where it enters a cut-and-cover tunnel . West of Hatton Cross, the line enters tube tunnels to Heathrow Airport and branches to the Terminal 4 loop or to a terminus at Terminal 5 . On the Uxbridge branch, the line shares tracks with the District line between Acton Town and south of North Ealing . Traversing terrain with cuttings and embankments, it continues to Uxbridge, sharing tracks with
7080-556: The end of 1933, which sharply increased to 70 million by 1951. Despite there being no official opening ceremonies, the Prince of Wales visited the extension on 14 February 1933. The Hounslow West (then Hounslow Barracks) extension of the Piccadilly line, together with the Uxbridge extension, aimed to improve services on the District line which at the time were serving both branches from Acton Town (then Mill Hill Park). The Uxbridge extension followed along existing routes on
7200-497: The entrance, one of which took over part of the Barclays Bank branch there. Both of the latter two stations retained their existing platforms, but the access from the surface was reconstructed with their entrances closer to the closed stations. These new entrances were provided with escalators, which replaced the lifts, improving passenger circulation. The Aldwych branch was deemed unprofitable. In 1929, an extension to Waterloo
7320-496: The entrances. This design was replicated across many other stations. Due to the workload, some stations' designs were carried out as collaborations with the Underground's own Architect, Stanley Heaps (Boston Manor, Osterley, Ealing Common and Hounslow West), or architects from other practices ( Reginald Uren for Rayner's Lane) or entirely by another practice in Holden's style (Felix Lander for Park Royal). The new stations built for
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#17328025850417440-421: The escalators to the ticket hall closed for repairs. Access was temporarily via the Victoria line or Midland City platforms . New escalators were fully installed on 27 February 1989. On 7 July 2005, a Piccadilly line train was attacked by suicide bomber Germaine Lindsay in the day's London bombings . The blast occurred at 08:50 BST while the train was between King's Cross St Pancras and Russell Square. It
7560-486: The evacuation of 200,000 children, by transporting them towards both ends of the line, then transferring them to main line trains to continue their journeys to different country distribution hubs. Some underground stations were fitted with bunk beds , toilets and first aid facilities, and sewerage . The disused Down Street was converted to an underground bunker for government use. Other stations such as Holborn and Earl's Court also had essential wartime uses. The former had
7680-417: The existing line when the new tunnels were complete. They were fitted into the original Northern City line tunnels which had a greater tunnel diameter until two running tunnels were able to merge. The old and unused running tunnel was disconnected and blocked off when the junction tunnel was near its completion. Alteration of temporary points junctions and shifting of signals completed the diversion tunnels. In
7800-409: The extension to Arnos Grove opened on 19 September 1932, without ceremony. The line was further extended to Enfield West on 13 March 1933 and finally to Cockfosters on 31 July 1933, again without ceremonies. The total length of the extension was 7.6 mi (12.3 km). Free tickets were distributed to residents on the first days of service on each extension. Initial ridership was 25 million at
7920-559: The extension. A parliamentary report of 1919 recommended through running to Richmond and Ealing . The Richmond extension plan was revived in 1922 by Lord Ashfield , the Underground's chairman. It was decided that the Piccadilly line extension was favourable over the CLR's as it was cheaper and had more capacity available. By 1925, the District line was running out of capacity west of Hammersmith, where services were headed to South Harrow, Hounslow Barracks, Richmond and Ealing Broadway . Demand
8040-417: The extension. Platforms 400 ft (120 m) long were originally planned for each station to fit 8-car trains, but were cut short to 385 ft (117 m) when built. Some stations were also built with wider platform tunnels to cater to expected high patronage. To connect with buses and trams, interchange stations were provided with exits which led passengers directly to the bus terminal or tram stop from
8160-492: The fire started stated on 9 April that it came from an electrical fault. The original buildings were built between 1903 and 1905. They were mostly mid-rises in stone, and in various styles including neoclassical and neo-Baroque. Many survive but some have been replaced. Notable buildings include: The closest tube stations are Holborn , which is at the top of the road, at the junction with High Holborn, as well as Temple , and formerly Aldwych , which closed in 1994. As part of
8280-536: The first floor. When Underground Electric Railways of London (UERL) took over the line, it was renamed the Piccadilly line. Subsequent extensions were made to Cockfosters , Hounslow West and Uxbridge in the early 1930s, when many existing stations on the Uxbridge and Hounslow branches were rebuilt to designs by Charles Holden of the Adams, Holden & Pearson architectural practice. These were generally rectangular, with brick bases and large tiled windows, topped with
8400-427: The first phase between Finsbury Park and Hammersmith were built to a design by Leslie Green . This consisted of two-storey steel-framed buildings faced with dark oxblood red glazed terracotta blocks, with wide semi-circular windows on the upper floor. Earl's Court and Barons Court stations was built with a red brick building by Harry Wharton Ford, with semicircular windows on the second level and embedded names of
8520-542: The first section of the line opened. It currently runs on tracks built by The GNP&BR, the District Railway (DR) and the Metropolitan Railway (Met), and received major extensions in the 1930s and 1970s. The GNP&BR was formed from the merger of two earlier, but unbuilt, tube-railway companies taken over in 1901 by Yerkes's consortium: the Great Northern & Strand Railway (GN&SR) and
8640-420: The four-track section. Signalling was redone on the new Uxbridge branch. Speed control was introduced at several stations to enhance the signalling system after World War II. This enabled a train to proceed slowly into an occupied platform without stopping in front of another before it departed, thus improving headways. The last semaphore signal, at Ealing Common , was replaced in November 1953. A control room
8760-478: The fourth terminal was granted in 1979. Permissions for constructing for the loop was approved and received royal assent under the London Transport Act 1981 (c. xxxii) on 30 October 1981. The station box would be built by BAA as part of the £200 million construction cost of the new terminal. By 1982, construction of the fourth terminal building was behind schedule, and in July 1982 the location of
8880-514: The line is now powered from the National Grid network . 1973 Stock trains are used on the line, 78 of which are needed to operate a 24 trains per hour (tph) service (a train every 2 + 1 ⁄ 2 minutes) during peak hours. These trains are due to be replaced by 2024 Stock in 2025. The Piccadilly line is a 45.96 mi (73.97 km) long north–west line, with two western branches splitting at Acton Town , serving 53 stations. At
9000-549: The link was made. In the years after the Second World War, a series of preliminary plans for relieving congestion on the London Underground had considered various east–west routes through the Aldwych area, although other priorities meant that these were never proceeded with. In March 1965, a British Rail and London Transport joint planning committee published "A Railway Plan for London", which proposed
9120-428: The lower landings. Floodlighting was used considerably to provide a spacious ambience. Ventilation ducts were by the platforms walls, sealed with bronze art deco style grilles . Oakwood was built with a concrete canopy, with roof lights and cylindrical light fittings designed by Heaps. The line from Cockfosters to Heathrow and South Harrow is controlled from a control centre at South Kensington , which replaced
9240-489: The need for public transport connections. Other than the Piccadilly line extension from Hounslow West , a Southern Railway spur (section now transferred to part of South Western Railway ) from Feltham was also contemplated. These schemes were brought into parliamentary discussion in November 1966, and were approved with royal assent as the London Transport Act 1967 (c. xxxix) and British Railways Act 1967 (c. xxx) respectively on 27 July 1967. Partial government funding
9360-440: The new extensions, several stations were considered for closure to increase overall line speeds. Down Street closed on 21 May 1932, Brompton Road on 29 July 1934, and York Road on 17 September 1932. All three stations were lightly used. Down Street and Brompton Road were replaced, respectively, by relocated entrances at Hyde Park Corner and Knightsbridge . Knightsbridge's new below-ground ticket hall required stairwells from
9480-489: The new track alignment. The 1931 ticket hall was retained, with connections to the new platforms. A cut-and-cover excavation method was used between Hounslow West and Hatton Cross , a new station on the extension. This 2-mile section had a shallow trench dug, with the tunnel walls supported by intersecting concrete piles . The line had to cross the River Crane just east of Hatton Cross; therefore it emerges briefly on
9600-544: The north. Eversholt Street starts at Euston Road , between Euston Square Gardens and Euston Fire Station . It travels north, including Euston House , the grade-II listed Royal George , the grade-II listed 64 Eversholt Street , the grade-II listed Church of St Mary the Virgin , the grade-II listed Eversholt House , and Camden Council's The Crowndale Centre which includes Camden Town Library . It joins Camden High Street at Mornington Crescent station . It also includes
9720-506: The northern end, Cockfosters is a four-platform three-track terminus, and the line runs at surface level to just south of Oakwood . Southgate station is in a tunnel, with tunnel portals to the north and south. Due to the difference in terrain, a viaduct carries the tracks through Arnos Park to Arnos Grove . The line then descends into twin tube tunnels, passing through Wood Green , Finsbury Park and central London. The central area contains stations close to tourist attractions, such as
9840-567: The northern extension were also part of the design schemes undertaken by Holden. Southgate was distinctively different, with a round base carrying a cylindrical panel of clerestory windows, topped by an illuminated feature with a bronze ball. The ticket halls had passimeters, which functioned as free-standing ticket booths. Most of them ceased to be used when automatic ticket gates were introduced, although some have been converted for retail use. Many of these Holden-designed stations are listed buildings , Oakwood, Southgate, and Arnos Grove being among
9960-596: The northern pair of tracks while the District Railway used the southern pair. The LER proposed an extension in November 1912 to Richmond due to available capacity to the west and the fact that passenger interchanges were large at Hammersmith. It would connect with the L&;SWR tracks at Turnham Green. It was approved as the London Electric Railway Act 1913 ( 3 & 4 Geo. 5 . c. xcvii) on 15 August 1913, but World War I resulted in no works done on
10080-549: The old Earl's Court control centre, which was shared with the District line. Rayners Lane signal cabin is responsible for signalling the Piccadilly line from just northwest of South Harrow to Uxbridge, as well as the Metropolitan line joining at Rayners Lane. The signalling system is expected to be upgraded in line with the Deep Tube upgrade, which will increase line frequencies up to 33 tph. Trains may also be able to make
10200-456: The outer. Permission was granted to quadruple tracks to Acton Town in 1926 in conjunction with permit renewal for the extension. The Richmond extension never happened, but provisions allocated would allow this option to be revisited later. Extensions would instead be to Hounslow Barracks and South Harrow, taking over DR services to the latter, with an estimated cost of £2.3 million. In 1930, unsuccessful negotiations were made between LER and
10320-550: The platform walls, geometrical patterns of tiles were arranged in a horizontal band; varying among stations. Arc lighting was complemented with incandescent lamps to illuminate the platforms. Signage decorations, also designed by Green, present spelt out the station name in letters 15 in (38 cm) high. Stations on the northern extension had particular biscuit (square) tiles on platform walls, with different frieze colours at each station. A few stations like Southgate and Bounds Green have art deco uplighters on escalators and
10440-403: The railways which operated through the station. Both station buildings are Grade II listed, and this building design at the former replaced a wooden hut building. Extensions of the Piccadilly line towards the west and north in the 1930s had new stations designed by Charles Holden of Adams, Holden & Pearson architectural practice. These designs were inspired by modern architecture seen in
10560-483: The redevelopment a tram tunnel was built underneath the road. The trams ceased to run in the 1950s and, since 1961, the southern end of the tunnel has been used by cars under the name of the Strand Underpass . The northern entrance to the tunnel still exists (with its tram lines still in situ, see image right) and can be found at the junction of Southampton Row and Vernon Place. On 27 December 1909,
10680-406: The scheme in 1967 before tenders were invited. With the Aldwych branch receiving no extensions, it remained a lightly used shuttle service from Holborn. The branch was considered for closure many times, but it survived. Saturday services were fully withdrawn on 5 August 1962. Maintenance costs of replacing the aged lifts were high at over £3 million, which failed to meet safety standards at
10800-411: The south, the Piccadilly would be diverted to descend sharply under the northbound Victoria line tunnel, and then ascending to the original level which had a difference of 5 ft (1.5 m) approximately 200 ft (61 m) north of Arsenal station . The old westbound tunnel had to be supported on a trestle for works to be done. The trestle and old tracks were entirely removed once the diversion
10920-486: The southbound Victoria line using the other. The northbound Victoria line would reuse the old westbound Piccadilly line platform and a part of the old tunnels, with the Piccadilly line diversion tunnels spanning 3,150 ft (960 m). Construction of the diversion began in October 1964, with the Northern City line having a temporary closure. At the northern junction, step plate junctions were built to divert
11040-491: The station was moved from below the terminal building to a nearby car park. Construction of the 2.5 mi (4.0 km) extension began on 9 February 1983, with an estimated cost of £24.6 million. Tunnelling for the loop was completed in seventeen months. It was expected that the extension would open with the new terminal. However, the terminal opening was delayed, with the loop service completed and commissioned on 4 November 1985. The terminal and station were finally opened
11160-578: The subsurface ticket hall. The exits were purposed to improve connections which avoided chaotic passenger flow such as at Finsbury Park. Wood Green was an exception due to engineering difficulties, with the ticket hall at street level instead. Ventilation shafts were provided at Finsbury Park Tennis Courts, Colina Road and Nightingale Road, supplementing the existing fans within the stations. Provisions for future branch lines to Enfield and Tottenham were made at Wood Green and Manor House respectively, both to have reversing sidings. This had since changed, with only
11280-586: The time. In August 1993, a public inquiry was held for closure of the short branch line. On 30 September 1994, the branch was closed to traffic. The disused station is now used for commercial filming and as a training facility. On 18 November 1987, the large King's Cross fire broke out, the incident being near the Northern/Piccadilly line escalators which killed 31 people. As a result, wooden escalators were replaced at all Underground stations. The Piccadilly line platforms remained open, but with
11400-469: Was also low on the South Harrow branch because of infrequent services and competition among other rail lines in the vicinity of each station. This prompted the Piccadilly line extension to be an express service between Hammersmith and Acton Town, with the future Heathrow Airport extension safeguarded in 40 years' time. The Piccadilly line would run on the inner pair of tracks, and the District line on
11520-405: Was approved, costed at £750,000, but no progress was made on its construction. Dover Street (now Green Park ), Leicester Square and Holborn stations received new sets of escalators, the latter having four in a single shaft. These were completed in the early 1930s. As part of the 1935–40 New Works Programme , Earl's Court was largely reconstructed at street level. At King's Cross St Pancras ,
11640-468: Was built at Earl's Court to centralise supervision of most of the line signalling in the 1960s, while Rayners Lane signal cabin was, and still is, the main control centre of the Rayners Lane to Uxbridge portion; shared with the Metropolitan line. 1930s automatic signalling equipment was updated in the 1970s and 1980s. The UERL built a large power station that would be capable of providing power for
11760-461: Was built with an island platform, with its intended three-track terminus layout moved to Cockfosters. Light maintenance and cleaning of trains is done here, with the latter site, being the main depot, having train maintenance facilities. Northfields depot is also double-ended, with access from just west of Boston Manor station and Northfields station. For it to be built, the latter station had to be rebuilt nearer to South Ealing station . The depot
11880-624: Was closed in 1994. Aldwych station is still used for television and film sets that require underground scenes. During the Second World War the branch was used to store art treasures from the British Museum , including the Elgin Marbles . On 1 April 2015, electrical cables under the pavement in Kingsway caught fire, leading to serious disruption in central London. The fire continued for the next two days, with flames shooting out of
12000-460: Was closed to allow this connection to be built. Terminals 1,2,3 became a temporary terminus; shuttle buses served Terminal 4 from the Hatton Cross bus station. Part of the junction between the through and loop tracks needed to be rebuilt. The Terminal 5 project team shut down two aircraft stands from Terminal 3 so that an access shaft could be constructed. The new junction was then built into
12120-474: Was crossing Southampton Row at the junction with Russell Square when he conceived the idea of a nuclear chain reaction , which led directly to the development of nuclear weapons and nuclear power . The Sue Ryder Care charity, established in 1953, is registered at 114–118 Southampton Row. Also in 1953, John Cass opened a bookshop on Southampton Row, where he began publishing books and journals which were acquired by Taylor & Francis in 2003. In 1966,
12240-581: Was decided that the optimal route would be the midpoint of the GNR and the Hertford Line . This was backed by the committee, and parliamentary approval for the extension was obtained on 4 June 1930, under the London Electric Metropolitan District Central London and City and South London Railway Companies Act 1930 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. lxxxviii). Funding was obtained from legislation under
12360-536: Was established by the London County Council in 1896 in Southampton Row to provide specialist art teaching for workers in the craft industries. The architect William Lethaby (1857–1931) was the first Principal , as recorded by a blue plaque on Southampton Row. Sir John Barbirolli , the conductor and cellist, was born in Southampton Row on 2 December 1899. A commemorative blue plaque
12480-432: Was formally opened on 15 December 1906. On 30 November 1907, the short branch from Holborn to the Strand (later renamed Aldwych ) opened; it had been planned as the last section of the GN&SR before the amalgamation with the B&PCR. Initial ridership growth was low due to high use of new electric trams and motor buses. Financial stability was an issue, and as a result the company heavily promoted their railways via
12600-682: Was in January 1823, and was named Mudie's journal, the Political Economist and Universal Philanthropist . The first studio of the sculptor Robert William Sievier (1794–1865) was in Southampton Row until 1837, where he relocated to Henrietta Street, near Cavendish Square , and he also had a separate residence in Upper Holloway . The Central School of Art and Design , formerly the Central School of Arts and Crafts ,
12720-475: Was initially opened. Trains entering service on the line had to reverse and enter the District line tracks first via West Kensington . When the Piccadilly and District line tracks were realigned in the 1930s, access points into the depot had to be altered. When the line was extended to Northfields and Cockfosters in 1933, all trains except seven were stabled at the newer depot. Once the Cockfosters depot
12840-638: Was introduced on 29 April 1935, cutting off-peak District line services down to the Acton Town– South Acton shuttle. South Harrow short trips proved to be an inconvenience. The solution was to move reversing facilities to Rayners Lane. A new reversing siding was built there in 1935, which allowed some peak hour trains to terminate beginning in May 1936. Regular reversals were fully implemented in October 1943. Peak-hour District line trains to Hounslow were fully withdrawn on 9 October 1964. In conjunction with
12960-503: Was named after Thomas Wriothesley, 4th Earl of Southampton . It was previously known as King Street In 1822, the Chartist Henry Hetherington registered a printing press at 13 Kingsgate Street (a smaller street parallel to King street, but demolished during the 1903-05 Kingsway development). This was an eight-roomed house, including shop and printing premises—at an annual rent of £55. His first published book
13080-526: Was obtained in April 1972 for the 3.5 mi (5.6 km) Piccadilly line extension, and the estimated cost of construction was £12.3 million. On 27 April 1971, a construction ceremony was launched by Sir Desmond Plummer , leader of the Greater London Council , by bulldozing "the first sod ". Platforms at Hounslow West had to be relocated below-ground to the north of the existing for
13200-573: Was opened earlier than the Hounslow extension, on 4 July 1932, and fully electrified two months later. Single sidings are placed at Rayners Lane, Oakwood, Down Street (Hyde Park Corner), and Wood Green. Arnos Grove, Acton Town, South Harrow, Uxbridge, Hammersmith and Heathrow Terminal 5 have more than one siding for reversing trains or storing them. Four crossovers were built for the initial line opening in 1906, Hounslow Central on 3 March 1923, and double crossovers at South Harrow were added in
13320-551: Was opened, Lillie Bridge was converted to a maintenance depot, where it housed only engineers' and materials trains. Most original deep-level stations were installed with lifts and stairs, with some descending directly down to platform level. Many of these were given an overhaul in the 1930s with escalators replacing lifts for quicker passenger flow. Underground stations on the Cockfosters extension were built with access mainly via escalators; each station shaft are able to fit three escalators, but some stations had two escalators with
13440-531: Was part of a co-ordinated Islamist terrorist attack on London's transport network, and was synchronised with three other attacks: two on the Circle line and one on a bus at Tavistock Square . The Piccadilly line bomb led to the largest number of fatalities, with 26 people reported killed. Owing to it being a deep-level line, evacuation of station users and access for the emergency services proved difficult. Shuttle services were introduced between Hyde Park Corner and
13560-496: Was partially rebuilt, with some of the old viaducts retained to date. The junctions diverging to Richmond were reconfigured at Turnham Green. Reversing facilities were initially designated at the latter, but these were not built. Trial runs of Piccadilly line trains began on 27 June 1932. On 4 July 1932, services were extended to South Harrow, which replaced DR services. Northfields services were introduced on 9 January 1933, and on 13 March, were extended to Hounslow West. On 1 July 1933,
13680-783: Was placed on the wall of the Bloomsbury Park Hotel in May 1993 to mark his birthplace. In 1907, the Institute of Education moved to its first purpose-built building on Southampton Row. In 1938, the Institute moved to the Senate House complex of the University of London on Malet Street , not far away to the northwest. On 12 September 1933, the Hungarian physicist Leó Szilárd , an exile from Nazi Germany,
13800-571: Was ready for switchover. New tracks were laid at a rapid rate; it was done in about thirteen hours on 3 October 1965. Both lines were connected via junctions south of Finsbury Park for stock movement and engineering trains. It was intended for Green Park to have cross-platform interchange, but was deemed impossible due to the lines crossing at right angles. The Victoria line opened on 1 September 1968 from Walthamstow Central to Highbury & Islington via Finsbury Park, and on 7 March 1969 to Warren Street via King's Cross St Pancras, providing relief to
13920-409: Was reported that London Underground was unhappy with the terminal's location on the site of the old Perry Oaks sludge works which was originally intended for Terminal 4. It was now impossible for all three terminals to be served on the same route, and the final solution was to have twin tunnels serving Terminal 5 from Terminals 1,2,3. From 7 January 2005 until 17 September 2006, the loop via Terminal 4
14040-586: Was spared, whereas the Sardinian Embassy Chapel , an important Roman Catholic church attached to the Embassy of the Kingdom of Sardinia , was demolished to make way for the new street. Plans were published by London County Council in 1898, authorised by the London County Council (Improvements) Act 1899 ( 62 & 63 Vict. c. cclxvi) and the road was formally opened in 1905. It is one of
14160-466: Was supplied by Westinghouse and operated using compressed air. The exception was between West Kensington and Hammersmith, where it was controlled by District Railway signal boxes, and had semaphore signals instead. The Piccadilly line extensions resulted in resignalling on tracks west of Barons Court. Signal cabins were adjusted and new ones were added at Hammersmith, Acton Town and Northfields. A mixture of semaphore and colour-light signals were used on
14280-611: Was then distributed to different substations. Power supply for the Cockfosters extension was initially generated by the North Metropolitan Electric Power Supply Company at Wood Green. It was later supplied by Lots Road station. The National Grid network took over the supply on the Ravenscourt Park to Uxbridge and Northfields section. Lots Road was permanently closed on 31 October 2003, being also replaced by power supply from
14400-479: Was travelling from Marble Arch to Oxford Circus on route 30 , killing 13 passengers, plus Hussain himself. The bus had been diverted to Woburn Place due to road closures resulting from the earlier bombings. Eversholt Street is a street in the London Borough of Camden in London , England . It lies in Somers Town, London : stretching a kilometre from Euston railway station in the south to Camden Town in
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