Jubilee Line Extension

The Jubilee Line Extension is the extension of the London Underground Jubilee line from Green Park to Stratford through south and east London. An eastward extension of the line was first proposed in the 1970s and a modified route was constructed during the 1990s. It opened in stages from May to December 1999.

The entrance to the Canary Wharf station

Stations

The extension diverges just east of Green Park, eastward to:

StationLondon boroughInfrastructure Architects[1]
WestminsterWestminsternew ticket hall and two additional deep-level platforms Hopkins Architects
WaterlooLambethnew ticket hall and two additional deep-level platforms JLE Project Architects
SouthwarkSouthwarknew station with two deep-level platforms MacCormac, Jamieson, Prichard
London Bridgenew ticket hall and two additional deep-level platforms Weston Williamson and JLE Project Architects
Bermondseynew station with two deep-level platforms Ian Ritchie
Canada Waternew station with two deep-level platforms and two new sub-surface platforms on East London Line JLE Project Architects and Heron Associates
Canary WharfTower Hamletsnew station with two deep-level platforms Foster + Partners
North GreenwichGreenwichnew station with three deep-level platforms Alsop, Lyall and Störmer
Canning TownNewhamnew station with two surface platforms, two new elevated platforms for the DLR and two surface platforms for the North London line Troughton McAslan
West Hamnew station building with two additional surface platforms Van Heyningen and Haward Architects
Stratfordnew station building, plaza and three additional surface platforms WilkinsonEyre and Troughton McAslan

Before the extension, the Jubilee line terminated at Charing Cross. The section between Charing Cross and Green Park, which diverges to the northwest, is now unused for passenger services but is maintained for emergency use. The abandoned platforms are occasionally rented out by TfL as a film set e.g. Skyfall, Thor: The Dark World and Woman in Black II. [2] This section may be re-used as part of an extension of the Docklands Light Railway from Bank.

Planning

Original 1970s plans

The Jubilee line between Baker Street and Charing Cross was intended to be the first phase of the Fleet Line (as the Jubilee line was originally called).[3] In the first version of the Fleet Line Extension plan, the line ran from Charing Cross via Aldwych and Ludgate Circus to Fenchurch Street station, then via tunnel under the River Thames to connect to the East London line north of Surrey Docks (now Surrey Quays) from where it would take over Underground services to New Cross Gate and New Cross with tunnels continuing from the latter to Lewisham.[lower-alpha 1] In anticipation of this, the tunnels of the first phase of the line continued eastward from Charing Cross under Strand almost as far as Aldwych.

This plan was modified shortly before the Jubilee line opened in 1979. Under the new plan (known for planning purposes as the River Line), it would run to Fenchurch Street as before and continue via the Isle of Dogs, Royal Docks and Woolwich Arsenal to the "new town" at Thamesmead. A branch from Silvertown to Beckton would have provided a link to a new depot.[lower-alpha 2] This route is not dissimilar to the Crossrail route through the Docklands.

Jubilee Line Extension

Plans to extend the line were revived in the late 1980s, prompted by the Canary Wharf development, which massively increased the predicted numbers of jobs in the Isle of Dogs and required a transport network with much greater capacity than provided by the Docklands Light Railway (DLR). Initially, Olympia and York, the developers of Canary Wharf, proposed building the Waterloo and Greenwich Railway from Waterloo through London Bridge to Canary Wharf and then to Westcombe Park in Greenwich, costing £400 million. However, London Transport resisted this, preferring to wait for the results of studies into new railway construction. One of these, the East London Railway Study, recommended an extension of the Jubilee line from Green Park to Westminster, then following the route of the Waterloo and Greenwich Railway, continuing to Stratford via Canning Town alongside the North London Line. This option was adopted, with an estimated cost of £2.1 billion to which Olympia and York would make a £400 million contribution, the original cost estimate of the Waterloo and Greenwich Railway (Mitchell 2003). In the end it cost £3.5bn, partly because of huge cost overruns during construction. Where initially the developers were to pay for a large part of the extension, their final contribution was less than 5%.[6]

The extension was authorised in 1990. A station was originally planned at Blackwall, but this was replaced by diverting the line between Canary Wharf and Stratford underneath the Thames to serve the Greenwich peninsula at North Greenwich station. Plans for the Millennium Dome did not yet exist, and this diversion was made to provide for a planned housing development on the site of disused gasworks. British Gas plc contributed £25 million to the scheme.[7] The stations at Southwark and Bermondsey were not initially certain.[8] Main works were authorised by the London Underground Act 1992,[9] with additional works allowed by the London Underground (Jubilee) Act 1993.[10]

The project required the construction of a new depot to serve the extended line, given the increased number of trains could not be accommodated at the existing Neasden Depot - a site at Stratford Market was chosen.[11][12]

Construction

Construction officially started in December 1993 and was expected to take 53 months.[13] Tunnelling was delayed after a collapse during the Heathrow Express project in October 1994, which used the same New Austrian Tunnelling method.[14] Indeed, construction under Westminster caused the Elizabeth Tower to tilt slightly. [15] By November 1997 a September 1998 date was planned.[16] By June 1998, opening was planned in Spring 1999.[17] By November 1998, a phased opening, previously rejected, was being considered, with Stratford to North Greenwich planned for spring 1999, to Waterloo for summer 1999, and the link to the Jubilee line for autumn 1999.[18][19]

The new Stratford Market Depot was completed in March 1998 - allowing for testing and commissioning of the new 1996 Stock trains, as well as the testing of the new extension itself.[20][21] Following this, the first phase of the line opened on 14 May 1999, the second on 24 September, and the third on 20 November. Westminster, complicated by the interface with the subsurface platforms, which remained in operation, opened on 22 December 1999, shortly before the Millennium Dome deadline.[22] By February 1999, however, the cost of the extension had gone up to a total of £3.3 billion.[23]

The extension was supposed to have moving block signalling, designed by Westinghouse, in order to reach 36 trains per hour at peak times. As design of this overran, causing delays into 1999, this was postponed in favour of more traditional signalling.[24] Twelve years later these features were completed, allowing for up to 33 trains per hour.[25] It was built with a wider tunnel diameter of 4.35 m allowing a passenger walkway used for emergency purposes, unfortunately wider trains are not possible due to the narrower tunnel dimension northwards of Green Park.[26]

The extension has proved extremely successful in relieving congestion on the DLR and in opening up access to parts of east London with formerly poor transport links.[27] As such it allowed (theoretical- barring peak/off-peak timetable restrictions i.e. to Chesham or Mill Hill East etc.) access to all other London Underground stations with only a single change (except Kensington Olympia).[26]

Design
Platform screen doors at Westminster.

The design of the extension is radically different from anything else on the London Underground. Stations are characterised by cavernous, stark interiors lined with polished metal panels and moulded concrete walls and columns. Canary Wharf has been compared to a cathedral, with it being said that the neighbouring One Canada Square, if laid on its side, could fit in the station with room to spare. Westminster has a dramatic vertical void nearly 40 m (130 ft) deep.

The size of the stations was a response to safety concerns—overcrowding and a lack of exits had been significant factors in the 1987 King's Cross disaster—and an attempt to "future-proof" stations by designing from the start for a high use. Most platforms and halls are full only in a busy rush hour,[27] all provide step-free access, dual exits at either platform ends, ventilation, as well as fireproof lifts.[25] To ease flow extra escalators (at least 3 per station)[25] were installed, totalling 115 over the entire extension, increasing the total number of escalators over the entire Underground network by almost half.[26]

A number of leading architects were employed to design the stations, with the lead being given by Roland Paoletti. It was decided from the outset that although each station would be designed as an individual entity, they would be linked by a common design philosophy and functional elements. Spaciousness was the most noticeable, along with the shared theme of grey and silver polished metal and concrete interiors. More subtly, many stations were designed to admit as much natural light as possible. At Bermondsey and to a lesser extent at Canada Water and Southwark, rotundas and shafts allow daylight to reach, or nearly reach, the platforms.[27]

The platforms saw another innovation: full-height platform screen doors, to improve airflow, prevent people from jumping or falling onto the track,[27] prevent litter depositing upon the track and stop dirt circulating around the network, amongst other features.[26] These are the first doors to be installed on a commercial railway, unlike Gatwick's people-mover doors, in Great Britain.[26]

Notes and references

Notes
  1. Stations were to be provided at Aldwych, Ludgate Circus, Cannon Street, Fenchurch Street, Surrey Docks, New Cross, New Cross Gate and Lewisham.[4]
  2. Parliamentary approval was granted for stations at St Katharine Docks, Wapping, Surrey Docks North, Millwall, North Greenwich, Custom House, Silvertown, Woolwich Arsenal and Beckton. Further stations at Thamesmead West and Thamesmead Central were planned if the line was continued beyond Woolwich.[5]

References
  1. 1948-, Bennett, David (2004). Architecture of the Jubilee Line Extension. London: Thomas Telford. ISBN 0727730886. OCLC 51870430.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  2. london75 (14 April 2015). "Filming on the London Underground". Insider London. Retrieved 10 October 2018.
  3. Wolmar, Christian (2005) [2004]. The Subterranean Railway: How the London Underground Was Built and How It Changed the City Forever. Atlantic Books. p. 308. ISBN 1-84354-023-1.
  4. Horne, Mike (2000). The Jubilee Line. Capital Transport. p. 36. ISBN 1-85414-220-8.
  5. Horne, Mike (2000). The Jubilee Line. Capital Transport. pp. 50–52. ISBN 1-85414-220-8.
  6. "LRB · James Meek · Crocodile's Breath". Lrb.co.uk. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  7. "Jubilee Line Extension (Hansard, 18 May 1992)". Hansard.millbanksystems.com. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  8. "London Underground Bill (By Order)". Hansard. 12 July 1990.
  9. "London Underground Act 1992 (c. iii) (c. 3)". Opsi.gov.uk. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  10. "London Underground (Jubilee) Act 1993 (c. ix) (c. 9)". England-legislation.hmso.gov.uk. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  11. Mitchell, Bob, C. Eng. (2003). Jubilee Line extension : from concept to completion. London: Thomas Telford. ISBN 0-7277-3028-2. OCLC 51945284.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  12. Bennett, David. (2004). Architecture of the Jubilee Line Extension. Institution of Civil Engineers. ISBN 978-0-7277-4577-4. OCLC 935052993.
  13. "Jubilee Line Extension". Hansard. 28 June 1993.
  14. "Record fine after tunnel collapse". BBC News. 15 February 1999.
  15. "The Jubilee Line Is 40 Years Old... Here Are Some Awesome Vintage Photos". Londonist. 19 April 2019. Retrieved 20 April 2019.
  16. "Jubilee Line Extension". Hansard. 10 November 1997.
  17. "Jubilee Line Extension". Hansard. 9 June 1998.
  18. "Jubilee Line Extension: Westminster Station". Hansard. 27 April 1998.
  19. "Jubilee Line Extension". Hansard. 27 November 1998.
  20. "LUL Stratford Market Depot" (PDF). Structural Steel Design Awards. 1998. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  21. "Stratford Market Depot | AJ Buildings Library". www.ajbuildingslibrary.co.uk. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  22. "Jubilee line facts". Transport for London. Archived from the original on 12 February 2008.
  23. Harper, Keith (16 February 1999). "Jubilee line cost races towards record books at £330m a mile". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 June 2015.
  24. "Moving block signals finally go ahead on Jubilee Line". New Civil Engineer. 3 October 2003.
  25. Green, Oliver (2012). The Tube: Station to Station on the London Underground. Botley, Oxford: Shire Publications Ltd. pp. 55–59, 109–115. ISBN 978-0-74781-227-2.
  26. Glover, John (2010). London's Underground (11th ed.). Hersham: Ian Allan Publishing Ltd. pp. 127–131. ISBN 978-0-7110-3429-7.
  27. "UK Jubilee Line Extension (JLE)" (PDF). omegacentre.bartlett.ucl.ac.uk. Bartlett School of Planning. Retrieved 28 October 2016.

Further reading

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