Disused stations

[Journeyman]

Underground History was put together by a friend of mine, and it's been a real labour of love. I'm an ex-LU employee and I assisted him with getting into a number of the sites he's covered. I did it all through official channels and the LU press office cleared everything, but sometime around 2003 LU started getting very nervous about people knowing too much about abandoned stations and where they were, what they were used for etc., and I was prevented from helping him gain access to any more, or going in any myself unless for duty purposes. There was a lot of talk on anarchist/urbex websites around that time about trying to break into disused sites, which obviously made LU extremely worried about security - they wanted Underground History taken offline completely, but eventually agreed to let it remain online, having realised that all the information on it was available elsewhere anyway. They did request removal of some info, though.

However, LU are still sensitive about too much info on these sites being out there, which is why more isn't in the public domain. If anyone publishes more than they're happy with, they'll get contacted and asked to remove it.

 

[Mojo]

However, LU are still sensitive about too much info on these sites being out there, which is why more isn't in the public domain. If anyone publishes more than they're happy with, they'll get contacted and asked to remove it.

However nowadays with LT Museum’s funding issue, access to many abandoned locations has been easier and has been given more publicity than ever before with the Museum’s line of “Hidden London” tours.

 

[Journeyman]

However nowadays with LT Museum’s funding issue, access to many abandoned locations has been easier and has been given more publicity than ever before with the Museum’s line of “Hidden London” tours.

That's true - for some time they didn't run any at all, but they've realised that they can charge silly money and still be swamped with loads of punters.

 

[Jack Barry]

However nowadays with LT Museum’s funding issue, access to many abandoned locations has been easier and has been given more publicity than ever before with the Museum’s line of “Hidden London” tours.

As Journeyman has said they charge silly prices and there are quite a lot of people who pay them and will keep paying them.

 

[Jack Barry]

Underground History was put together by a friend of mine, and it's been a real labour of love. I'm an ex-LU employee and I assisted him with getting into a number of the sites he's covered. I did it all through official channels and the LU press office cleared everything, but sometime around 2003 LU started getting very nervous about people knowing too much about abandoned stations and where they were, what they were used for etc., and I was prevented from helping him gain access to any more, or going in any myself unless for duty purposes. There was a lot of talk on anarchist/urbex websites around that time about trying to break into disused sites, which obviously made LU extremely worried about security - they wanted Underground History taken offline completely, but eventually agreed to let it remain online, having realised that all the information on it was available elsewhere anyway. They did request removal of some info, though.

However, LU are still sensitive about too much info on these sites being out there, which is why more isn't in the public domain. If anyone publishes more than they're happy with, they'll get contacted and asked to remove it.

At one time visits were easy to arrange although some locations were not allowed, I remember the guy who arranged them for LURS telling me that he had tried for a number of locations but LT would not allow. This was before 2003 but there were a couple of staff who arranged visits Phil & John, I don't know if they were working together on it but at some stage they were told to stop as they were not fully authorised. There was a group who visited Euston and went trackside with no protection that slipped through the net. I tried to get on the list for the visits but there was a waiting list as long as your arm and then they were stopped.

 

[Mojo]

As Journeyman has said they charge silly prices and there are quite a lot of people who pay them and will keep paying them.

I don’t get the relavence of your post. My quote was in reference to there being some kind of secrecy about the stations by LUL, whereas in fact the opposite is now the case whereby such tours are open to all.

 

[Jack Barry]

I don’t get the relavence of your post. My quote was in reference to there being some kind of secrecy about the stations by LUL, whereas in fact the opposite is now the case whereby such tours are open to all.

Your post (32) is not about secrecy you mentioned about museum funding or have I misread what you have said?

 

[Ex LT]

I used to work at head office many years ago and I saw papers relating to the disused stations and the uses that were made even now I would not want to reveal fully what was done although I suspect that this ended a long time ago.

 

[holborncentral]

I think the only ones used for document archival are the tunnels built as air raid shelters towards the end of the war, at or near various stations on the Northern Line. They were never used for actual rail purposes, but were designed to be able to do so.

Weren't there plans at one stage to use those shelters as stations to form an 'express' Northern line to relieve congestion on the main one?

 

[rebmcr]

Weren't there plans at one stage to use those shelters as stations to form an 'express' Northern line to relieve congestion on the main one?

The opposite — the shelters were converted from the original plan which was to use them for an 'overtaking' service. The additional running tunnels of course were never built.

 

[Jack Barry]

I used to work at head office many years ago and I saw papers relating to the disused stations and the uses that were made even now I would not want to reveal fully what was done although I suspect that this ended a long time ago.

So how many of them were used as planned?

 

[Jack Barry]

Weren't there plans at one stage to use those shelters as stations to form an 'express' Northern line to relieve congestion on the main one?

If you go to the LT Museum library at Covent Garden they have a document which covers the express lines also has some plans and lots of figures.

 

[Ex LT]

So how many of them were used as planned?

All were put to some use as planned but there were some which had a use which never happened, we know Down Street was used as an Headquarters but there was another one which was to do the same but it was never fully finished.

 

[Jack Barry]

Which station had the grid control room.

 

[AlistairCL]

Which station had the grid control room.

According to Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Paul's_tube_station) St Paul's had an electricity grid control room for London and Southeast England during the Second World War.

"Tunnels Under London" by Nigel Pennick (1981) differs slightly: "The lift shafts at the old Post Office station (St Pauls' original name) were commandeered by the Central Electricity Generating Board which built a nine-story (sic) deep national headquarters in them.". The book explained many stations had redundant lift shafts after the lifts were replaced by escalators.

 

[Jack Barry]

Thanks I don't use wiki as there are quite a few errors and have been caught out in the past. It is only as good as the people who update it.

 

[rebmcr]

Duplicate post

If you see something that doesn't look right, use the Report button to alert a member of forum staff, since not every thread is seen by the moderators.

See it, Report it, Sorted.

 

[Jack Barry]

If you see something that doesn't look right, use the Report button to alert a member of forum staff, since not every thread is seen by the moderators.

See it, Report it, Sorted.

I did report I just wanted to make it stand out.

 

[AlistairCL]

I did report I just wanted to make it stand out.

If my reponse to your post was inappropriate I apologise!

I too find Wikipedia articles variable in quality, so I included the other source, a booklet that I own. I also found the following: http://incebps.org.uk/Links/The CEGB Story.pdf, which repeats the information.

 

[Jack Barry]

If my reponse to your post was inappropriate I apologise!

I too find Wikipedia articles variable in quality, so I included the other source, a booklet that I own. I also found the following: http://incebps.org.uk/Links/The CEGB Story.pdf, which repeats the information.

No need to apologise you did nothing wrong and thanks for the additional information something for me to follow up.

 

[Busaholic]

According to Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Paul's_tube_station) St Paul's had an electricity grid control room for London and Southeast England during the Second World War.

"Tunnels Under London" by Nigel Pennick (1981) differs slightly: "The lift shafts at the old Post Office station (St Pauls' original name) were commandeered by the Central Electricity Generating Board which built a nine-story (sic) deep national headquarters in them.". The book explained many stations had redundant lift shafts after the lifts were replaced by escalators.

The latter just sounds far more likely to me, but then I've no specialist knowledge.

 

[Ex LT]

Which station had the grid control room.

As others have said Post Office/St Pauls was the location it seemed that the Northern and Piccadilly lines were more important than the others they were connected at Kings Cross and there was even a cross over which was put in for emergency measures and I don't mean signal failures although it could be used for them as well.

 

[DavidGrain]

Which ones have the document archives please as I am not aware.

Before the war there was a plan to build a North South 'Cross Rail' across London. Some stations were built but the running tunnels between them were never built because of the outbreak of the war. This Google Street View shows the entrance to the deep level tube which was to be built underneath the Northern Line at Goodge Street. During the war it was used as an air raid shelter and also for a time as Eisenhower's London HQ, hence the modern name of The Eisenhower Centre. I used to pass this building many times and always wondered what it was. As it had the London Transport name on it in those days I assumed it was a vent shaft for the Northern Line. It is now used as a document and film store. There is another unnamed building the other side of Tottenham Court Road which would have been the other entrance to the station.

 

[Clip]

View attachment 51341

Before the war there was a plan to build a North South 'Cross Rail' across London. Some stations were built but the running tunnels between them were never built because of the outbreak of the war. This Google Street View shows the entrance to the deep level tube which was to be built underneath the Northern Line at Goodge Street. During the war it was used as an air raid shelter and also for a time as Eisenhower's London HQ, hence the modern name of The Eisenhower Centre. I used to pass this building many times and always wondered what it was. As it had the London Transport name on it in those days I assumed it was a vent shaft for the Northern Line. It is now used as a document and film store. There is another unnamed building the other side of Tottenham Court Road which would have been the other entrance to the station.

Ive always wondered what that was too and now i know!! Thankyou.

 

[rebmcr]

Before the war there was a plan to build a North South 'Cross Rail' across London.

Wasn't it just additional "fast" tracks for the Northern Line? I don't recall evidence of it to be joining together any existing mainline routes.

 

[Jack Barry]

Wasn't it just additional "fast" tracks for the Northern Line? I don't recall evidence of it to be joining together any existing mainline routes.

As far as I am aware there was to be a connection with the main Northern line at Tooting Broadway in regard to the shelters south of the river the ones north of the river I seem to remember that it was Tottenham Court Road where the connection was to be there is a report in the LT museum on maximum capacity of lines which has all the details.

 

[DavidGrain]

Wasn't it just additional "fast" tracks for the Northern Line? I don't recall evidence of it to be joining together any existing mainline routes.

I was being a little sarky using the term 'Cross Rail' in quotes. Yes it was an express Northern Line

 

[edwin_m]

Seem to remember that the shelters were built at places where there would not be stations, as platforms would have needed bigger tunnels.

 

[DavidGrain]

Seem to remember that the shelters were built at places where there would not be stations, as platforms would have needed bigger tunnels.

You might be thinking of the Central Line tunnels in East London which was the eastward extension of the Central Line which was not completed until after war. These tunnels were used during the war for various purposes including a factory for war production.

 

[edwin_m]

http://www.subbrit.org.uk/rsg/features/deep_level_shelters/index.html

It was decided that each shelter would comprise two parallel tubes 16 foot 6 inches internal diameter and 12,000 feet long and would be placed below existing station tunnels at Clapham South, Clapham Common, Clapham North, Stockwell, Oval, Goodge Street, Camden Town, Belsize Park, Chancery Lane and St. Pauls. It may be assumed that at these points the deep-level express tubes would have no stations as the diameter was too small.