Wood Lane tube station
Encyclopedia
Wood Lane is a London Underground
station, located in the White City
area of west London
, England
, UK
. It is on the Circle and Hammersmith & City Line
s, between Latimer Road
and Shepherd's Bush Market stations. The station lies in Travelcard Zone 2
.
Although it is on a line which has been in operation since 1864, the station itself is new, having opened in 2008. It is situated near the site of a station of the same name
on this line which closed in 1959.
(MR) as the Hammersmith branch line. The railway became part of London Underground in 1922 and the took on a separate identity as the Hammersmith and City line in 1988.
In 1908 the Franco-British Exhibition
and the 1908 Summer Olympics
came to London, the first of a number of major events in White City which attracted infrastructural investment by railway companies. Among others, the MR opened its Wood Lane station
on the Hammersmith branch to serve the event area. The station opened and closed intermittently, and was renamed twice, as Wood Lane (White City) in 1920 and White City in 1947, before it finally closed in 1959 following fire damage. For the next 49 years, the Wood Lane area was served only by the neighbouring White City tube station
on the Central line; Hammersmith line trains passed over the lane without stopping, the nearest station on that line lying approximately 1 km (0.621372736649807 mi) away at Shepherd's Bush.
In 2005 work commenced on the large-scale Westfield Shopping Centre
. As part of the redevelopment work, a number of improvements were made to public transport in the area, including the rebuilding of Shepherd's Bush Central line station, the construction of a new Shepherd's Bush railway station
and two new bus interchanges to serve the planned shopping complex. It was also decided to build a new station on the Hammersmith & City line, on a site just south-west of the old Metropolitan station on Wood Lane. In 2006 Transport for London
decided on the name Wood Lane, reviving a historical name. This was the first time that a brand new station on the Tube had been given the name of a disused station.
The station opened on 12 October 2008. In December 2009 Wood lane was added to the Circle line when the line was extended to Hammersmith.
. The station building occupies an irregularly-shaped site between Wood Lane and the railway line viaduct, and presented particular challenges when constructed as it also lies across the deep-level Central Line. The lines remained operational during construction, which mostly took place at night. It was designed by Ian Ritchie Architects
and it is clad in shot-peened
stainless steel
, gold anodised aluminium
and granite
with a 25-metre-high glass screen façade.
The structure encases the railway viaduct and platforms are accessed via stairs and lifts either side of the brick arches. During construction of the station, the bridge of the Hammersmith & City line over Wood Lane had to be widened to accommodate a new track on the Central line, providing access to the new subterranean train depot below the Westfield site. A bridge pier
was removed and a new steel bridge structure slid into place over a new pier.
, a road which runs north from Shepherd's Bush in the White City
area. It serves the nearby Westfield shopping centre
and BBC Television Centre
, and Loftus Road
stadium, the home of Queen's Park Rangers FC, lies a short distance away.
Due to the heavy use of Oyster card
s across the Underground network and the proximity of the ticket office at White City, there is no staffed ticket office at this station, although there are ticket machines on-site.
The nearby White City bus station on Ariel Way is served by a number of London Bus
routes.
- other stations in the Shepherd's Bush
area.
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, located in the White City
White City, London
White City is a district in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, to the north of Shepherd's Bush. Today, White City is home to the BBC Television Centre and BBC White City, and Loftus Road stadium, the home of football club Queens Park Rangers FC....
area of 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...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. It is on the Circle and Hammersmith & City Line
Hammersmith & City Line
The Hammersmith & City line is a subsurface London Underground line. It connects Hammersmith in the west with Barking in the east, running through the northern part of central London. It is coloured salmon pink on the Tube map...
s, between Latimer Road
Latimer Road tube station
Latimer Road Station is a London Underground station in North Kensington on the Circle and Hammersmith & City lines between Wood Lane and Ladbroke Grove stations...
and Shepherd's Bush Market stations. The station lies in Travelcard Zone 2
Travelcard Zone 2
Fare zone 2 is an inner 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.-Background:...
.
Although it is on a line which has been in operation since 1864, the station itself is new, having opened in 2008. It is situated near the site of a station of the same name
Wood Lane (Metropolitan Line) tube station
Wood Lane was a station in west London on the Hammersmith branch of the Metropolitan Railway . It was located on the Hammersmith & City line viaduct adjacent to the bridge over Wood Lane and close to a similarly named station on the Central London Railway...
on this line which closed in 1959.
History
The present-day Hammersmith and City line was opened on 13 June 1864 by the Metropolitan RailwayMetropolitan railway
Metropolitan Railway can refer to:* Metropolitan line, part of the London Underground* Metropolitan Railway, the first underground railway to be built in London...
(MR) as the Hammersmith branch line. The railway became part of London Underground in 1922 and the took on a separate identity as the Hammersmith and City line in 1988.
In 1908 the Franco-British Exhibition
Franco-British Exhibition (1908)
The Franco-British Exhibition was a large public fair held in London in the early years of the 20th Century. The exhibition attracted 8 million visitors and celebrated the Entente Cordiale signed in 1904 by the United Kingdom and France....
and the 1908 Summer Olympics
1908 Summer Olympics
The 1908 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the IV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in 1908 in London, England, United Kingdom. These games were originally scheduled to be held in Rome. At the time they were the fifth modern Olympic games...
came to London, the first of a number of major events in White City which attracted infrastructural investment by railway companies. Among others, the MR opened its Wood Lane station
Wood Lane (Metropolitan Line) tube station
Wood Lane was a station in west London on the Hammersmith branch of the Metropolitan Railway . It was located on the Hammersmith & City line viaduct adjacent to the bridge over Wood Lane and close to a similarly named station on the Central London Railway...
on the Hammersmith branch to serve the event area. The station opened and closed intermittently, and was renamed twice, as Wood Lane (White City) in 1920 and White City in 1947, before it finally closed in 1959 following fire damage. For the next 49 years, the Wood Lane area was served only by the neighbouring White City tube station
White City tube station
White City tube station is a London Underground station situated on Wood Lane in White City in west London. The station is on the Central Line, between Shepherds Bush and East Acton stations, in Travelcard Zone 2.-History:...
on the Central line; Hammersmith line trains passed over the lane without stopping, the nearest station on that line lying approximately 1 km (0.621372736649807 mi) away at Shepherd's Bush.
In 2005 work commenced on the large-scale Westfield Shopping Centre
Westfield London
Westfield London is a shopping centre in White City in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. The centre was developed by the Westfield Group at a cost of £1.6bn,...
. As part of the redevelopment work, a number of improvements were made to public transport in the area, including the rebuilding of Shepherd's Bush Central line station, the construction of a new Shepherd's Bush railway station
Shepherd's Bush railway station
Shepherd's Bush station is a railway station located in the district of Shepherd's Bush in west London, England, UK. It opened in 2008 on the West London Line and is served by London Overground and Southern rail services...
and two new bus interchanges to serve the planned shopping complex. It was also decided to build a new station on the Hammersmith & City line, on a site just south-west of the old Metropolitan station on Wood Lane. In 2006 Transport for London
Transport for London
Transport for London is the local government body responsible for most aspects of the transport system in Greater London in England. Its role is to implement the transport strategy and to manage transport services across London...
decided on the name Wood Lane, reviving a historical name. This was the first time that a brand new station on the Tube had been given the name of a disused station.
The station opened on 12 October 2008. In December 2009 Wood lane was added to the Circle line when the line was extended to Hammersmith.
Design and construction
Construction work was carried out by CostainCostain Group
Costain Group plc is a British construction and civil engineering company headquartered in Maidenhead. It was part of the original Channel Tunnel consortium and is involved in Private Finance Initiative projects.-History:...
. The station building occupies an irregularly-shaped site between Wood Lane and the railway line viaduct, and presented particular challenges when constructed as it also lies across the deep-level Central Line. The lines remained operational during construction, which mostly took place at night. It was designed by Ian Ritchie Architects
Ian Ritchie Architects
Ian Ritchie Architects Ltd is a leading British architectural practice, founded in London in 1981 by Ian Ritchie. Ritchie also co-founded the engineering firm Rice Francis Ritchie with Peter Rice and Martin Francis in Paris in 1981.-Recognition:...
and it is clad in shot-peened
Shot peening
Shot peening is a cold working process used to produce a compressive residual stress layer and modify mechanical properties of metals. It entails impacting a surface with shot with force sufficient to create plastic deformation...
stainless steel
Stainless steel
In metallurgy, stainless steel, also known as inox steel or inox from French "inoxydable", is defined as a steel alloy with a minimum of 10.5 or 11% chromium content by mass....
, gold anodised aluminium
Aluminium
Aluminium or aluminum is a silvery white member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al, and its atomic number is 13. It is not soluble in water under normal circumstances....
and granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
with a 25-metre-high glass screen façade.
The structure encases the railway viaduct and platforms are accessed via stairs and lifts either side of the brick arches. During construction of the station, the bridge of the Hammersmith & City line over Wood Lane had to be widened to accommodate a new track on the Central line, providing access to the new subterranean train depot below the Westfield site. A bridge pier
Pier (architecture)
In architecture, a pier is an upright support for a superstructure, such as an arch or bridge. Sections of wall between openings function as piers. The simplest cross section of the pier is square, or rectangular, although other shapes are also common, such as the richly articulated piers of Donato...
was removed and a new steel bridge structure slid into place over a new pier.
Location
The station is situated on Wood LaneWood Lane
Wood Lane is a street in London. It runs north from Shepherd's Bush, under the Westway past Wormwood Scrubs where it meets Scrubs Lane. The road is wholly in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham...
, a road which runs north from Shepherd's Bush in the White City
White City, London
White City is a district in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, to the north of Shepherd's Bush. Today, White City is home to the BBC Television Centre and BBC White City, and Loftus Road stadium, the home of football club Queens Park Rangers FC....
area. It serves the nearby Westfield shopping centre
Westfield London
Westfield London is a shopping centre in White City in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. The centre was developed by the Westfield Group at a cost of £1.6bn,...
and BBC Television Centre
BBC Television Centre
BBC Television Centre at White City in West London is the headquarters of BBC Television. Officially opened on 29 June 1960, it remains one of the largest to this day; having featured over the years as backdrop to many BBC programmes, it is one of the most readily recognisable such facilities...
, and Loftus Road
Loftus Road
Loftus Road is a football stadium in Shepherd's Bush, London. It is home to the English football team Queens Park Rangers of the Premier League and has a capacity of around 18,500. The four stands are called the Loftus Road End , Ellerslie Road Stand, South Africa Road Stand and the School End,...
stadium, the home of Queen's Park Rangers FC, lies a short distance away.
Due to the heavy use of Oyster card
Oyster card
The Oyster card is a form of electronic ticketing used on public transport services within the Greater London area of the United Kingdom. It is promoted by Transport for London and is valid on a number of different travel systems across London including London Underground, buses, the Docklands...
s across the Underground network and the proximity of the ticket office at White City, there is no staffed ticket office at this station, although there are ticket machines on-site.
Transport links
Wood Lane station is a short walk from White City station on the Central line providing an easy interchange between the lines.The nearby White City bus station on Ariel Way is served by a number of London Bus
London Buses
London Buses is the subsidiary of Transport for London that manages bus services within Greater London, UK. Buses are required to carry similar red colour schemes and conform to the same fare scheme...
routes.
See also
Shepherd's Bush stationsShepherd's Bush stations
Shepherd's Bush is an area of west London, United Kingdom, which has been served by a number of London Underground and commuter rail stations over past 150 years, many of which have had similar names...
- other stations in the Shepherd's Bush
Shepherd's Bush
-Commerce:Commercial activity in Shepherd's Bush is now focused on the Westfield shopping centre next to Shepherd's Bush Central line station and on the many small shops which run along the northern side of the Green....
area.
- Wood LaneWood Lane (Central Line) tube stationWood Lane tube station is a disused station on the Central Line of the London Underground. It was built to serve the Franco-British Exhibition of 1908 and the 1908 Summer Olympics....
- a closed station on the Central Line
