For weeks I've been changing between Bank (Northern Line) and Monument
despite dire warnings in LU publicity that this was not possible. Many
here will be aware that these warnings have been related more to crowd
management than actual escalator closures.

So I thought I'd pass on the news that since last weekend there is
absolutely no access from Monument down to the Northern Line (or any
other part of Bank station) following the closure of the down
escalator for repairs.

You can still go in the other direction without difficulty, from the
Northern Line up to Monument. However for some reason only the
passageway to the eastbound Circle line platform is open. To get from
the Northern Line to the westbound Circle line platform you need to go
up to the eastbound Circle line platform, then up to to ticket hall
level and finally down again to the westbound platform.

Hope that makes sense and is of use to somebody...

PaulO

On 17 Nov, 14:20, Paul Oter wrote:
For weeks I've been changing between Bank (Northern Line) and Monument
despite dire warnings in LU publicity that this was not possible. Many
here will be aware that these warnings have been related more to crowd
management than actual escalator closures.

So I thought I'd pass on the news that since last weekend there is
absolutely no access from Monument down to the Northern Line (or any
other part of Bank station) following the closure of the down
escalator for repairs.

You can still go in the other direction without difficulty, from the
Northern Line up to Monument. However for some reason only the
passageway to the eastbound Circle line platform is open. To get from
the Northern Line to the westbound Circle line platform you need to go
up to the eastbound Circle line platform, then up to to ticket hall
level and finally down again to the westbound platform.

Hope that makes sense and is of use to somebody...

PaulO

That's useful to know.

There's a couple of things I wish the would change around the DLR.

Firstly, rather than constantly closing the Northern Line in the
evening peak due to crowds who have no other way of getting to the
DLR, I would have thought it made sense to reverse one of the
escalators at that time, when there aren't so many people coming up
from the DLR anyway.

Secondly, I can't comprehend the reason for forcing people round in
circles once they get to the bottom of the staircase to the DLR
level. I've missed trains more than once while going round the houses
here, and it doesn't seem to achieve anything. In fact, it forces
everyone to join the platform at the end that the trains use, and
people clump there. If they allowed direct access from the bottom of
the stairs, people would have to walk along the platform, because the
trains don't go that far down yet.

On 17 Nov, 14:45, MIG wrote:
Secondly, I can't comprehend the reason for forcing people round in
circles once they get to the bottom of the staircase to the DLR
level. *I've missed trains more than once while going round the houses
here, and it doesn't seem to achieve anything. *In fact, it forces
everyone to join the platform at the end that the trains use, and
people clump there. *If they allowed direct access from the bottom of
the stairs, people would have to walk along the platform, because the
trains don't go that far down yet.

They tried that, and it definitely felt more dangerous coming to the
bottom of the stairs and suddenly finding yourself on an overcrowded
platform, with a big crowd between you and the train, and a dangerous
precipice on one side of that crowd.

U

On 17 Nov, 15:30, Mr Thant
wrote:
On 17 Nov, 14:45, MIG wrote:

Secondly, I can't comprehend the reason for forcing people round in
circles once they get to the bottom of the staircase to the DLR
level. *I've missed trains more than once while going round the houses
here, and it doesn't seem to achieve anything. *In fact, it forces
everyone to join the platform at the end that the trains use, and
people clump there. *If they allowed direct access from the bottom of
the stairs, people would have to walk along the platform, because the
trains don't go that far down yet.

They tried that, and it definitely felt more dangerous coming to the
bottom of the stairs and suddenly finding yourself on an overcrowded
platform, with a big crowd between you and the train, and a dangerous
precipice on one side of that crowd.

But presumably no more than it ever did ...?* I can see that it could
be unnerving if people stopped at that end of the platform instead of
moving on to where the trains currently stop, but there's no point
(yet) in a crowd waiting at that end of the platform. They have to
move on.

And the track is actually barriered at the stairs end if I remember
rightly, which it certainly isn't at the point where people currently
have to join the platform*.

*or at any other station where stairs lead down to the platforms.

On 17 Nov, 16:24, MIG wrote:
But presumably no more than it ever did ...?*

There are far more people using the stairs than usual. The current
barriering redirects them to where the main entrance to the platform
used to be.

*I can see that it could
be unnerving if people stopped at that end of the platform instead of
moving on to where the trains currently stop, but there's no point
(yet) in a crowd waiting at that end of the platform. *They have to
move on.

People seemed to clump around where the front of train ends up (and I
think the only indicator is), which meant everyone else was stuck at
the end of the platform where the train wasn't, with people pouring
down the stairs behind them.

*or at any other station where stairs lead down to the platforms.

Stairs that dump onto one end of a platform is appalling at busy
stations. A big reason for the Northern Ticket Hall work at King's
Cross, and the 1990s rebuild of Angel, is to eradicate this.

U

On 17 Nov, 16:34, Mr Thant
wrote:
On 17 Nov, 16:24, MIG wrote:

But presumably no more than it ever did ...?*

There are far more people using the stairs than usual. The current
barriering redirects them to where the main entrance to the platform
used to be.

*I can see that it could
be unnerving if people stopped at that end of the platform instead of
moving on to where the trains currently stop, but there's no point
(yet) in a crowd waiting at that end of the platform. *They have to
move on.

People seemed to clump around where the front of train ends up (and I
think the only indicator is), which meant everyone else was stuck at
the end of the platform where the train wasn't, with people pouring
down the stairs behind them.

*or at any other station where stairs lead down to the platforms.

Stairs that dump onto one end of a platform is appalling at busy
stations. A big reason for the Northern Ticket Hall work at King's
Cross, and the 1990s rebuild of Angel, is to eradicate this.

Well, true, but still common. Still the case at Shepherds Bush,
unfortunately, where I recently went for the first time since the new
top was put on it. But it would need an Angel-scale rebuilding of
tracks to fix it.

On 17 Nov, 14:20, Paul Oter wrote:
For weeks I've been changing between Bank (Northern Line) and Monument
despite dire warnings in LU publicity that this was not possible. Many
here will be aware that these warnings have been related more to crowd
management than actual escalator closures.

So I thought I'd pass on the news that since last weekend there is
absolutely no access from Monument down to the Northern Line (or any
other part of Bank station) following the closure of the down
escalator for repairs.

You can still go in the other direction without difficulty, from the
Northern Line up to Monument. However for some reason only the
passageway to the eastbound Circle line platform is open. To get from
the Northern Line to the westbound Circle line platform you need to go
up to the eastbound Circle line platform, then up to to ticket hall
level and finally down again to the westbound platform.

Hope that makes sense and is of use to somebody...


I'm sure may will already be well aware of this but it's worth
mentioning anyway - Bank station is but a very short walk up from
Cannon Street station - it's exit 8 from Bank station is just at the
top of Walbrook. Anyone coming from the west on the District line
would obviously do well to change using this route rather than walk up
King William Street from Monument to Bank, and I suppose this could
well also be the case for those pax coming from the east on the
District who need to change at Bank too (AFAICS that's principally
people heading south on the Northern line - so long as the H&C line is
working properly, that is!).

All that said, out-of-station interchange has only been set up to work
between Bank and Monument stations - so the Bank/Cannon Street change
isn't available to people holding a single ticket, and will mean those
using Oyster PAYG will be charged for two separate journeys.

Of course this change is also really handy for mainline pax arriving
on trains at Cannon Street heading for the Central line (and v.v.).

In article
,
(Mizter T) wrote:

All that said, out-of-station interchange has only been set up to work
between Bank and Monument stations - so the Bank/Cannon Street change
isn't available to people holding a single ticket, and will mean those
using Oyster PAYG will be charged for two separate journeys.

Why hasn't it been set up then, for the duration of the Bank/Monument
works at least? It's a shorter distance as you say. And Why not Mansion
House-Bank while we're at it? That's no longer than Monument-Bank and
quicker from the West.

--
Colin Rosenstiel

On 18 Nov, 13:58, wrote:
In article
,

(Mizter T) wrote:
All that said, out-of-station interchange has only been set up to work
between Bank and Monument stations - so the Bank/Cannon Street change
isn't available to people holding a single ticket, and will mean those
using Oyster PAYG will be charged for two separate journeys.

Why hasn't it been set up then, for the duration of the Bank/Monument
works at least? It's a shorter distance as you say. And Why not Mansion
House-Bank while we're at it? That's no longer than Monument-Bank and
quicker from the West.

I think Monument is nearest to the Northern and DLR (when the Lombard
Street entrance is open*), Cannon Street is nearest to the Central
Line and Mansion House is nearest to the Waterloo and City (if there's
an entrance where I think there is and it's open).

Bank probably covers nearly as wide a stretch as the three District
stations put together ... But Cannon Street is always nearest to the
entrance at Bank that you can be sure of being open, at the top of
Walbrook.

*I assume it's open at weekends at the moment?