London Underground

Everyday living
1

Hello

Are there any London Underground tube station platforms that fulfill the following criteria:

  • The train station must be on or within the Circle line. This is an approximation rather than a hard and fast rule
  • Does not have a lifT
  • Does not have any steps but you have to go on an escalator to get from the pavement level to the Tube train platform

I do not think there are any, please prove me wrong

Thanks

Patrick

3

I’m not sure I understand the question.

From memory (I was a Londoner for many years, before moving to Bristol), I thought very few tube stations have lifts (the famous exception is Covent Garden), and the vast majority have escalators.

So is the “catch” that those with escalators all have at least some steps too?

If you are looking for “step free” access to the street, there are very few, but they are marked on the actual underground maps with a wheelchair symbol. There are not many, but there are a few:

Try this journey planner:

Or these Underground maps:

Tina

4

Euston would fit your criteria, although you have to negotiate three sets of escalators plus a bit of walking to get from the station concourse to the tube platforms.

Stations such as Kings Cross, Green Park and Westminster have step free access (via lifts) to the platforms, and Victoria is in the process of being converted.

The standard tube map shows which stations have step free access, and all buses are accessible to wheelchairs.

5

We travelled on the underground for a couple of days during our trip to London. My daughter has just returned from a year in Toronto and was shocked at how small the carriages were. She said that in Toronto the gap between the two rows of seats could take around five people standing abreast. It also didn’t seem to matter what time we got on the tube, we were always standing and squashed together like sardines. Surely they could put on more carriages - I know the trains are regular, but every one is still over packed. Not an enjoyable experience - my daughter had to stop me from getting taxi’s just to avoid the tube.