Projects, refurbs and upgrades

London Underground improvement projects, station refurbishments, new train stock etc - and the problems and issues that come with them

One Size Fits All?

Union reps were surprised to stumble across a "new Victoria Line train" being tested on a recent visit to Derby. It's odd that it could get so far along the production process without our reps being consulted. You could almost suspect that Metronet and LUL are trying to sneak things past us.

They...

Bog Standard

Refurbishment at Woodford has meant that the station's public toilets have been closed. The temporary replacement is portaloos in the car park. But it seems that they are only cleaned twice a week, meaning that they really are a vile, reeking hole.

Customers, unsurprisingly, are finding the rest of...

Mind The Dust

Beware working in the Ticket Hall at Bounds Green. There's some refurb work going on at the moment, and tiles have been removed from the walls leaving dusty brickwork exposed, without any covering.

One Station Supervisor has already suffered serious irritation to his eye from dust particles, and...

Blocked Drain

After five months' closure, the Waterloo & City line reopened last week, and immediately ran into trouble.

The cabling was incompatible with the signals, causing surges. The Correct Side Door Enabling kit didn't work. There were power feed problems - all of which should have been sorted through a...

Botchit

Queensway? Wasn't that closed for over a year for a root-and-branch refurb? Didn't the refurb overrun by several weeks so the contractor could have the time to get everything right?

So what happened earlier this week then? Sunday, the station closed for half an hour because both shiny new lifts...

Getting the Hump

When the Waterloo & City line reopens, it will have 'platform humps', raised areas that put the platform at the same level as the train for easy access for people using wheelchairs or buggies (or who have difficulty taking big steps).

Good idea. After all, the inaccessibility of the Underground to...

Up the Arsenal

Chaos at the top end of the Piccadilly Line last weekend, with Cockfosters to Arnos Grove closed for engineering work. Nothing unusual there, you might think, but some bright spark decided to schedule the closure for the date of the first-ever match at Arsenal's new Emirates Stadium. Result: lots of...

We all stand together?

London Underground says it prides itself on being a "Customer Led" organisation but apparently radical plans to upgrade Metropolitan Line trains have not gone down well with the travelling public of Harrow. The reason for this outrage is the possibility of 30% of seating being reduced on the new...

Gutter Press Goes Down The Drain

Metronet appears to be on a charm offensive, or is it a desperate attempt to rescue its deservedly woeful reputation?

Whichever, they invited the media down into the Drain, to tell us what a fabulous job they are doing down there and how confident they are that it will be finished on time. What do...

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