Northfields tube station
Encyclopedia
Northfields is a London Underground
station in Northfields
, west London
. The station is on the Heathrow branch of the Piccadilly Line
, between Boston Manor
and South Ealing
stations. It is located on Northfield Avenue (B452) near Lammas Park, and in Travelcard Zone 3
.
(MDR, now the District Line
), on 1 May 1883 on a line to Hounslow Town
(located on Hounslow High Street but now closed). The station opened as Northfields Halt on 16 April 1908. The station was renamed as Northfields and Little Ealing on 11 December 1911.
The station was rebuilt twice. As a Halt, the 1908 station was quite basic and provided only rudimentary shelters for passengers. The first rebuilding took place in the 1910s (possibly in conjunction with the 1911 renaming) and the station was given a proper booking hall on the bridge over the tracks and better platform canopies.
In the early 1930s a new Northfields station was built in conjunction with the preparations for the introduction of Piccadilly Line services on the Hounslow branch and the new Northfields depot that would house its trains. Located on the east side of Northfields Avenue, the new station was designed by Charles Holden
in a modern Europe
an style using brick, reinforced concrete
and glass. Like the stations at Sudbury Town
, Sudbury Hill
, Acton Town
and Oakwood
that Holden also designed, Northfields station features a tall block-like ticket hall rising above a low horizontal structure that contains station offices and shops. The brick walls of the ticket hall are punctuated with panels of clerestory
windows and the structure is capped with a flat concrete slab roof.
The new station opened on 19 May 1932 with the current name. It has two island platforms serving four sets of tracks (two eastbound and two westbound) and is connected directly to the Northfields depot immediately to the west of the station and south of the tracks. Trains may terminate at Northfields station and then run on to the west to enter the depot. To avoid operational conflicts between the eastbound depot exit track and the westbound running track to Boston Manor, the westbound running track passes under the depot track in a cutting. Trains normally enter and exit service at Northfields although there is also a single track connection from the depot to the westbound running track west of Boston Manor.
Piccadilly Line services started running to Northfields from Acton Town on 1 January 1933 and were extended to run to Hounslow West on 13 March 1933. From this date, the branch was operated jointly by both lines until District Line services were withdrawn west of Northfields on 9 October 1964 and between Acton Town and Northfields on 10 October 1964
London Underground
The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...
station in Northfields
Northfields, London
Northfields is a largely residential area of Ealing in west London. It is centred on Northfield Avenue, a shopping street of mostly independent shops and restaurants...
, west London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. The station is on the Heathrow branch of the Piccadilly Line
Piccadilly Line
The Piccadilly line is a line of the London Underground, coloured dark blue on the Tube map. It is the fifth busiest line on the Underground network judged by the number of passengers transported per year. It is mainly a deep-level line, running from the north to the west of London via Zone 1, with...
, between Boston Manor
Boston Manor tube station
Boston Manor is a London Underground station serving the Boston Manor area between Brentford and Hanwell in west London. The station is on the Heathrow branch of the Underground's Piccadilly Line, between Osterley and Northfields stations...
and South Ealing
South Ealing tube station
South Ealing is a London Underground station in west London. The station is on the Heathrow branch of the Piccadilly Line, between Acton Town and Northfields stations...
stations. It is located on Northfield Avenue (B452) near Lammas Park, and in Travelcard Zone 3
Travelcard Zone 3
Fare zone 3 is a zone of Transport for London's zonal fare system used for calculating the price of tickets for travel on the London Underground, London Overground, Docklands Light Railway and, since 2007, on National Rail services...
.
History
The route through Northfields station was opened by the Metropolitan District RailwayMetropolitan District Railway
The Metropolitan District Railway was the predecessor of the District line of the London Underground. Set up on 29 July 1864, at first to complete the "Inner Circle" railway around central London, it was gradually extended into the suburbs...
(MDR, now the District Line
District Line
The District line is a line of the London Underground, coloured green on the Tube map. It is a "sub-surface" line, running through the central area in shallow cut-and-cover tunnels. It is the busiest of the sub-surface lines. Out of the 60 stations served, 25 are underground...
), on 1 May 1883 on a line to Hounslow Town
Hounslow Town tube station
Hounslow Town was a London Underground station in Hounslow in west London. The station was at the east end of Hounslow High Street at the junction with Kingsley Road...
(located on Hounslow High Street but now closed). The station opened as Northfields Halt on 16 April 1908. The station was renamed as Northfields and Little Ealing on 11 December 1911.
The station was rebuilt twice. As a Halt, the 1908 station was quite basic and provided only rudimentary shelters for passengers. The first rebuilding took place in the 1910s (possibly in conjunction with the 1911 renaming) and the station was given a proper booking hall on the bridge over the tracks and better platform canopies.
In the early 1930s a new Northfields station was built in conjunction with the preparations for the introduction of Piccadilly Line services on the Hounslow branch and the new Northfields depot that would house its trains. Located on the east side of Northfields Avenue, the new station was designed by Charles Holden
Charles Holden
Charles Henry Holden, Litt. D., FRIBA, MRTPI, RDI was a Bolton-born English architect best known for designing many London Underground stations during the 1920s and 1930s, for Bristol Central Library, the Underground Electric Railways Company of London's headquarters at 55 Broadway and for the...
in a modern Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an style using brick, reinforced concrete
Reinforced concrete
Reinforced concrete is concrete in which reinforcement bars , reinforcement grids, plates or fibers have been incorporated to strengthen the concrete in tension. It was invented by French gardener Joseph Monier in 1849 and patented in 1867. The term Ferro Concrete refers only to concrete that is...
and glass. Like the stations at Sudbury Town
Sudbury Town tube station
Sudbury Town is a London Underground station on the Uxbridge branch of the Piccadilly Line. The station is between Sudbury Hill and Alperton. It is located on Station Approach in Sudbury, a short distance from the junction of Bridgewater Road and Harrow Road . The forecourt of the station is...
, Sudbury Hill
Sudbury Hill tube station
Sudbury Hill is a London Underground station on the Uxbridge branch of the Piccadilly Line in Sudbury / Greenford, in northwest London. The station is between Sudbury Town and South Harrow. The station is in Travelcard Zone 4...
, Acton Town
Acton Town tube station
Acton Town is a London Underground station in Acton, west London, served by the Piccadilly and District lines. The station is at the junction of Gunnersbury Lane and Bollo Lane and is in Travelcard Zone 3.-Services:...
and Oakwood
Oakwood tube station
Oakwood is a London Underground station on the Piccadilly Line. It is the second most northerly station on the line, between Southgate and Cockfosters stations, and is in Travelcard Zone 5...
that Holden also designed, Northfields station features a tall block-like ticket hall rising above a low horizontal structure that contains station offices and shops. The brick walls of the ticket hall are punctuated with panels of clerestory
Clerestory
Clerestory is an architectural term that historically denoted an upper level of a Roman basilica or of the nave of a Romanesque or Gothic church, the walls of which rise above the rooflines of the lower aisles and are pierced with windows. In modern usage, clerestory refers to any high windows...
windows and the structure is capped with a flat concrete slab roof.
The new station opened on 19 May 1932 with the current name. It has two island platforms serving four sets of tracks (two eastbound and two westbound) and is connected directly to the Northfields depot immediately to the west of the station and south of the tracks. Trains may terminate at Northfields station and then run on to the west to enter the depot. To avoid operational conflicts between the eastbound depot exit track and the westbound running track to Boston Manor, the westbound running track passes under the depot track in a cutting. Trains normally enter and exit service at Northfields although there is also a single track connection from the depot to the westbound running track west of Boston Manor.
Piccadilly Line services started running to Northfields from Acton Town on 1 January 1933 and were extended to run to Hounslow West on 13 March 1933. From this date, the branch was operated jointly by both lines until District Line services were withdrawn west of Northfields on 9 October 1964 and between Acton Town and Northfields on 10 October 1964
External links
- London Transport Museum Photographic Archive
- The large building on the right is the London Underground's Northfields substation.
- This photograph was taken from a bridge leading to a now demolished exit in Weymouth Avenue. The foundations of the path to this exit remain on the northern embankment.