28-29/270 - Kenton and Northwick Park

There are two stations in north west London that appear as they do not have a lot in common. They are on different lines, opened 11 years apart and one was nearly closed permanently in the 1980s. Despite being two completely different stations, Kenton and Northwick Park have one thing in common, they share an OSI.

An Out of Station Interchange (OSI) occurs when two separate stations are geographically located close enough it is deemed that if a journey requires you to change between the two stations on foot, that is still classed as one journey. For example, the quickest way to travel from Harrow-on-the-Hill to South Kenton would be to take the Metropolitan line to Northwick Park, walk to Kenton station, and take the Bakerloo line (or London Overground) to South Kenton. Despite this being two separate journeys, because Transport for London have classified this as an OSI, it will only cost you one journey.

TfL have recently done more to promote OSI's and on foot interchanges, most notably in the December 2018 tube map where little dashed black lines appeared dotted around London to highlight "Under a 10 minute walk between station". The dashed lines have received criticism. Some critics suggest from a first glance the lines look similar to the northern line, suggesting numerous branch lines. I also believe that TfL have missed some stations that are within close enough proximity to require a connection on the map, especially West Ruislip to Ickenham. 

The first railway in the area opened in 1837, the London and Birmingham Railway, which would be within close proximity with Kenton station. Four decades later in 1880 the Metropolitan Railway extended from Kilburn (now on the Jubilee line) to Harrow (now named Harrow-on-the-Hill), which passes through the location of Northwick Park station. Kenton station opened in 1912 when the London and North Western Railway opened their 'New Line' from London Euston to Watford Junction. The 'New Line' ran alongside the London and Birmingham Railway. Bakerloo line services started serving Kenton in 1917. Northwick Park station opened on the Metropolitan line in 1923 as Northwick Park and Kenton. 

Kenton station is a quiet station with just over 2 million passengers using the station each year. The station entrance is barely noticeable from the A4006, the roundel and signage is on the opposite side of the road. The Bakerloo line and London Overground share the tracks through this section from Queen's Park to Harrow & Wealdstone. Kenton station closed in September 1982 as Bakerloo line services were closed north from Stonebridge Park. The closure was short-lived and Kenton station reopened in July 1984. 

A short walk away, Northwick Park is also barely noticeable. Access to the station can be achieved by a passage from Northwick Avenue, or a series of paths on the other side of the station. Despite only being served by 'slow' Metropolitan line services, last year Northwick Park was used by nearly 2 and a half million more passengers than nearby Kenton. It takes less than 20 minutes to travel from Northwick Park to Baker Street on the Metropolitan line, where as it takes over half an hour from Kenton to Baker Street on the Bakerloo line. Considering the close proximity this could be a factor in the disparity in the passenger usage figures. 

Why not travel to north west London and experience one of London's classic Out of Station Interchanges. If you are planning on doing the tube challenge visiting all 270 stations in 24 hours, this interchange is a classic tactic. For more London transport trivia, follow me on Twitter and Instagram @TubeSpottingDan 

The Human Tube Map

On Sunday 4 August 2019 I, like 180+ other people, traveled to Crayford in south London to do something exciting and take part in the Human Tube Map. Organised by Geoff Marshall and Vicki Pipe, the duo behind All The Stations, nearly 200 people wearing different coloured T-Shirts arranged to form the shape of the tube map. The result was fantastic, and a lot of fun. The YouTube video can be found here. 

If you want to try and spot where I was standing, I was roughly where Tower Hill is and wearing a green t-shirt for the District line. We all got to chose which T-shirt we wanted to wear. Speaking to people on the day, many opted for the colour that represents their favourite line, or station, or the line they live on. The reason I chose green was simple, it was the only plain coloured T-shirt I own! 

Being part of the Human Tube Map was an enjoyable experience. After we arrived, we organised ourselves into our lines before being arranged out on the map, line by line. Central line was first, then the northern line, then Piccadilly line, circle and district lines followed (I can't remember the final pattern!). It was great to meet Geoff and Vicki and to see many people who I only know through Twitter and social media. 

Discussing the Emirates Air Line

If you are planning a day out in London, how many people say "let's go on the Emirates Air Line"? Not many, just 1.3m people a year travel on the Emirates Air Line. The British Museum, Tate Modern, and London Eye all receive at least three times as many visitors each year. 7 years since opening in June 2012 I ask the question, has the Emirates Air Line been a success? 

Costing £60m, the Emirates Air Line is a 1-kilometre gondola crossing the river Thames from North Greenwich to the Royal Docks. Transport for London was committed for the project to be opened in time for London 2012 Olympic Games, they were successful, but at £35m over budget. When building the Millennium Dome (now known as the O2) the developers were keen to provide a car free transport strategy for visitors, and the idea of a cable car emerged. But since the idea emerged, North Greenwich has seen the Jubilee Line Extension and the Docklands Light Railway on the north side at Royal Docks. 

The 36 gondolas can accommodate a maximum capacity of 2,500 passengers per hour, yet five months after opening, the usage data revealed that the Emirates Air Line was operating at less than 10% of its capacity. It was hoped that commuters may use the service, so a special commuter fare was established costing £16 for 10 trips, however, just 0.01% of journeys were made using this fare. In November 2013 just four Oyster card users registered for a discount if they made more than five journeys a week. So if commuters are not using the service, who is?

TfL market the Emirates Air Line as a "unique view of London", and a cost of just £3.50 for adults using Oyster it is a cost-effective way of seeing views of 'London'. The London Eye costs £27 and lifts to the viewing gallery at the Shard cost £25. Although considerably more expensive than the Emirates Air Line, the London Eye and the Shard are more centrally located and offer better views of London. If you want views of St Paul's, Tower Bridge, the Tower of London or the Houses of Parliament, travelling on the Emirates Air Line would be a disappointment. A tourist tip, if you want these views but believe the London Eye and the Shard are too expensive, try the Sky Garden, tickets are free and you get similar views. 

The Emirates Air Line is ultimately a piece of transport infrastructure. With poor user ship, I am critical of its success, especially when Sustrans were commissioned by TfL in 2008 to review a proposed pedestrian and cycle bridge in east London. The study revealed that "the bridge is feasible" and at an estimated cost of £66m, just £6m more than a poorly used gondola, and the bridge would have provided active travel links over the river Thames benefiting major business districts and the environment. 

Urban cable cars across the world have been very successful. In 2004 Medellin, Columbia, became the first city in the world to integrate cable cars into an existing subway system. Cities across the globe have been following suit, urban cable cars are means of transport in Nizhny Novgorod in Russia, La Paz in Bolivia, and Ankara in Turkey.




I do not believe the Emirates Air Line has been as successful in London as it could have been. It is in the wrong place to capture tourists and it does not provide useful transport links to an area served by the Jubilee line to the south and the DLR to the north. Ultimately I am unsure if Emirates Air Line is a tourist attraction or a transport solution. Would a cable car be beneficial to London? I think it could if it offered a service that was more attractive than alternative transport modes, including driving and using public transport. If you have not visited the Emirates Air Line, I do recommend you have a visit and make your own opinion. There are somethings that TfL have done well with the cable car, including the branding, it does feel like a TfL service. Each gondola has a red moquette, the cable car is identified by roundels and the wayfinding matches TfL's font.

Have you used the Emirates Air Line? Do you agree with my observations? Follow me on Twitter and Instagram (@TubeSpottingDan) for more conversations on transport in London.