On Jul 14, 2:53*pm, "Basil Jet"
wrote:

Peter Masson wrote:

Hackney Central/Hackney Downs are very close.

I doubt if it's a fun walk after dark.

It's alright. However the difference between the staffed, clean and
evidently cared for LO station at Hackney Central and the unstaffed
Hackney Downs, with it's grotty little entrance on Dalston Lane that
feels more like it was an afterthought or a subsidiary or side
entrance, is quite noticeable. Which is stupid really, as Hackney
Downs to Liverpool Street has metro-esque frequencies.

Were there not some plans to somehow link the stations up directly?
Whatever, the entrance situation at Hackney Downs can and should be
radically improved (basically totally rebuilt - perhaps with the
entrance directly under the bridge if it's possible to knowk through
the brickwork there), and it should be staffed at all times too.

There does seem to be a need for a passenger service between Willesden
Junction and Ealing Broadway

Peter

Interesting suggestion. While I don't disagree can you justify it? And,
are you suggesting just that short hop or using that piece of track as part
of something bigger (e.g. Barking (by electrifying Goblin) to Heathrow)?

On 14 July, 15:15, Mizter T wrote:
On Jul 14, 2:53*pm, "Basil Jet"

wrote:
Peter Masson wrote:

Hackney Central/Hackney Downs are very close.

I doubt if it's a fun walk after dark.

It's alright. However the difference between the staffed, clean and
evidently cared for LO station at Hackney Central and the unstaffed
Hackney Downs, with it's grotty little entrance on Dalston Lane that
feels more like it was an afterthought or a subsidiary or side
entrance, is quite noticeable. Which is stupid really, as Hackney
Downs to Liverpool Street has metro-esque frequencies.

Were there not some plans to somehow link the stations up directly?
Whatever, the entrance situation at Hackney Downs can and should be
radically improved (basically totally rebuilt - perhaps with the
entrance directly under the bridge if it's possible to knowk through
the brickwork there), and it should be staffed at all times too.

Yep - it's not the nicest walk (pretty rough blocks on once side) but
in the 5 years I lived in the neighbourhood I walked between the
stations regularly at all times of day and night, and never had the
slightest problem.

Fully agree on the naffness of Hackney Downs's (eats shoots and
leaves?) entrance, and wish that they could solve the problem of the
short-walk-but-not-really-an-interchange with Central. What about a
more radical solution of closing the Downs station and building new
platforms above the NLL? (I appreciate how unlikely this would be to
ever be implemented....)

snip
It's alright
snip
Yep - it's not the nicest walk (pretty rough blocks on once side) but
in the 5 years I lived in the neighbourhood I walked between the
stations regularly at all times of day and night, and never had the
slightest problem.

I too agree but would add that waiting on the platform at Hackney Downs
can be a bit more perturbing.

Also, without wanting to be a bore, may I mention that Hackney Downs is
another station Google maps shows in the wrong place? A stranger to the
station might well think from the map they have to go along Institute
Place; and that is what Google directions indicate.

--
R

"Graham Harrison" wrote in message
...
There does seem to be a need for a passenger service between Willesden
Junction and Ealing Broadway

Interesting suggestion. While I don't disagree can you justify it?
And, are you suggesting just that short hop or using that piece of track
as part of something bigger (e.g. Barking (by electrifying Goblin) to
Heathrow)?
I doubt that there'd be enough passengers to justify taking Heathrow paths
away from HEx and HConn/Crossrail. But how about Barking - Gospel Oak (would
need rebuilding so that through trains could call) - Willesden Junction -
Ealing Broadway - Greenford. There would be same platform interchange at
Ealing Broadway for Heathrow, and it would give a better route to Heathrow
from the FCC Bedford line and the Jubilee Stanmore line (via West
Hampstead), and, at least if Willesden Junction were ever to gain Slow Line
platforms, the Milton Keynes line.

IMHO curtailing the Ealing Greenford line to a shuttle from West Ealing will
be a considerable disbenefit - passengers for the LUL District Line will
have to change twice at West Ealing and Ealing Broadway, though passengers
for the Central Line will be able to circulate the other way via Greenford.

Peter

On 14 July, 11:27, Tom Barry wrote:
Mizter T wrote:
On Jul 13, 8:45 pm, "neverwas" wrote:

This has been accompanied by a new London Overground 'microsite' on
the TfL website, which sings the praises of LO and the routes they
operate:
Oddly they have used the *(Google) map locations which appear to come
from nationalrail.co.uk rather than the ones with the tube symbol. *So
some of the markers are way out: eg Homerton is marked about 300m East
of its proper location.

I think the use of Google Maps might possibly be a result of the
leaner TfL marketing operation post-Bozza cutbacks. I do think it
looks a bit cheap, though I'm sure it could be defended as making use
of free/low-cost tools that are out there etc.

Whatever the reason, it's got some obvious crap - they've got Westfield
located in the residential area of Shepherd's Bush north of Uxbridge
Road and west of the H&C bridge. *The Emirates Stadium is moved a few
hundred yards east, too. *

From other limited experience, Google Maps seems to put the arrows in
the right place if you look at them from the Google site, but puts
them in the wrong place when you embed maps in other sites.

Peter Masson wrote:

But how about Barking -
Gospel Oak (would need rebuilding so that through trains could call)
- Willesden Junction - Ealing Broadway - Greenford.

Gospel Oak is one of the worst sited stations in London - its catchment area
is a quarter parkland and a quarter cut off by other railways. Building
platforms at Tufnell Park (with entrances at both ends of Churchill Road)
and running the Greblin through Gospel Oak without stopping must have a
better cost-benefit ratio.

IMHO curtailing the Ealing Greenford line to a shuttle from West
Ealing will be a considerable disbenefit - passengers for the LUL
District Line will have to change twice at West Ealing and Ealing
Broadway, though passengers for the Central Line will be able to
circulate the other way via Greenford.

But the curtailment must surely be to make capacity for other trains between
West Ealing and Ealing Broadway, and your plan doesn't address that.

"Peter Masson" wrote in message
...


"Graham Harrison" wrote in
message ...
There does seem to be a need for a passenger service between Willesden
Junction and Ealing Broadway

Interesting suggestion. While I don't disagree can you justify it? And,
are you suggesting just that short hop or using that piece of track as
part of something bigger (e.g. Barking (by electrifying Goblin) to
Heathrow)?
I doubt that there'd be enough passengers to justify taking Heathrow paths
away from HEx and HConn/Crossrail. But how about Barking - Gospel Oak
(would need rebuilding so that through trains could call) - Willesden
Junction - Ealing Broadway - Greenford. There would be same platform
interchange at Ealing Broadway for Heathrow, and it would give a better
route to Heathrow from the FCC Bedford line and the Jubilee Stanmore line
(via West Hampstead), and, at least if Willesden Junction were ever to
gain Slow Line platforms, the Milton Keynes line.

IMHO curtailing the Ealing Greenford line to a shuttle from West Ealing
will be a considerable disbenefit - passengers for the LUL District Line
will have to change twice at West Ealing and Ealing Broadway, though
passengers for the Central Line will be able to circulate the other way
via Greenford.

Peter

I wonder if curtailment at West Ealing is about capacity through the flat
junction? Which makes any use of the line up to the NLL from the GWML an
issue as well. Combine the 2 routes and I suspect you have a complete
no-no so long as they remain flat junctions.

It all depends what the real target is. Willesden Junction to Ealing would
be nice but I can't really see it's a requirement. Willesden Junction to
Heathrow makes more sense but other than using the GWML/NLL link the only
other route I can see would be through South Acton then along the
(unelectrified) line to Kew, along the Hounslow loop to wherever Airtrack
joins (if that ever happens and if the junctions point the right way).

"Graham Harrison" wrote

I wonder if curtailment at West Ealing is about capacity through the flat
junction? Which makes any use of the line up to the NLL from the GWML an
issue as well. Combine the 2 routes and I suspect you have a complete
no-no so long as they remain flat junctions.

West Ealing will remain a flat junction, though current timetabling makes
the best of it, with up and down Greenford trains passing each other at or
close to the junction. The Crossrail proposals take the spur from Acton
Wells round the back of Acton Main Line station, with a diveunder so that
the down spur joins the down relief without conflicting with the up relief.

Peter

On Mon, 13 Jul 2009 17:41:05 +0100, "Peter Masson"
wrote:



"Tim Roll-Pickering" wrote

I thought the Cross Town LinkLine connecting Camden Road to North Woolwich
opened in 1979, before Livingstone was running the GLC?
Indeed. Initially it was a dmu operation between North Woolwich and Camden
Road, with no intermediate stations between Stratford and Canonbury. At
first off-peak trains at least were very lightly loaded - on one occasion,
when I was the only passenger in the front coach (of 2), the driver invited
me into the cab.


Possibly the same driver who gave me a cab ride? I had only been working
for BR for a few weeks and this was one of the first rides I took with
my priv pass. ISTR the driver was very keen that the new service should
be a success - which, eventually, it was.


--
Bill Hayles

http://billnot.com