Euston railway station
Template:Short description Template:Redirect Template:Good article Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use British English Template:Infobox London station Euston railway station (Template:IPAc-en Template:Respell; or London Euston) is a major central London railway terminus and connected London Underground station managed by Network Rail in the London Borough of Camden. It is the southern terminus of the West Coast Main Line, the UK's busiest inter-city railway. Euston is the tenth-busiest station in Britain and the country's busiest inter-city passenger terminal, being the gateway from London to the West Midlands, North West England, North Wales and Scotland.
Intercity express passenger services to the major cities of Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool, Glasgow and Edinburgh, and through services to Template:Rws for connecting ferries to Dublin are operated by Avanti West Coast. Overnight sleeper services to Scotland are provided by the Caledonian Sleeper. London Northwestern Railway provide commuter and regional services to the West Midlands, whilst the Lioness line of the London Overground provides local suburban services in the London area via the Watford DC Line which runs parallel to the West Coast Main Line as far as Template:Rws. Euston tube station is connected to the main concourse and Euston Square tube station is nearby. King's Cross and St Pancras railway stations are about Template:Convert east along Euston Road.
Euston, the first inter-city railway terminal in London, was planned by George and Robert Stephenson. It was designed by Philip Hardwick and built by William Cubitt, with a distinctive arch over the station entrance. The station opened as the terminus of the London and Birmingham Railway (L&BR) on 20 July 1837. Euston was expanded after the L&BR was amalgamated with other companies to form the London and North Western Railway, and the original sheds were replaced by the Great Hall in 1849. Capacity was increased throughout the 19th century from two platforms to fifteen. The station was controversially rebuilt in the mid-1960s when the Arch and the Great Hall were demolished to accommodate the electrified West Coast Main Line, and the revamped station still attracts criticism over its architecture. Euston is to be the London terminus for the planned High Speed 2 railway and the station is being redeveloped to accommodate it.
Name and locationEdit
The station is named after Euston Hall in Suffolk, the ancestral home of the Dukes of Grafton, the main landowners in the area during the mid-19th century.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It is set back from Euston Square and Euston Road on the London Inner Ring Road, between Cardington Street and Eversholt Street in the London Borough of Camden.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It is one of 20 stations managed by Network Rail.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> As of the 2022-23 estimates of station usage, it is the tenth-busiest station in BritainTemplate:Efn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> It is the eighth-busiest terminus in London by entries and exits.<ref name="network_rail">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Euston bus station is in front of the main entrance.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
HistoryEdit
Euston was the first inter-city railway station in London. It opened on 20 July 1837 as the terminus of the London and Birmingham Railway (L&BR).<ref name=NREuston/> It was demolished in the 1960s and replaced with the present building in the international modern style.Template:Sfn
The site was chosen in 1831 by George and Robert Stephenson, engineers of the L&BR. The area was mostly farmland at the edge of the expanding city, and adjacent to the New Road (now Euston Road), which had caused urban development.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The name Euston came from Euston Hall, the seat of the duke of Grafton, who owned the locality.
The station and railway have been owned by the L&BR (1837–1846),Template:Sfn the London and North Western Railway (LNWR) (1846–1923), the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) (1923–1948),Template:Sfn British Railways (1948–1994), Railtrack (1994–2002)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and Network Rail (2002–present).<ref name=nr>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Old stationEdit
The plan was to construct a station near the Regent's Canal in Islington to provide a connection for London dock traffic. An alternative site at Marble Arch, proposed by Robert Stephenson, was rejected by a provisional committee, and a proposal to end the line at Maiden Lane was rejected by the House of Lords in 1832. A terminus at Camden Town, announced by Stephenson the following year, received royal assent on 6 May, before an extension was approved in 1834, allowing the line to reach Euston Grove where the original station was built by William Cubitt.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn
Initial services were three trains to and from Template:Rws with journeys taking just over an hour. On 9 April 1838, they were extended to a temporary halt at Template:Rws near Bletchley where a coach service was provided to Template:Rws. The line to Curzon Street station in Birmingham opened on 17 September 1838, the journey of Template:Convert took around Template:Frac hours.Template:Sfn
The incline from Camden Town to Euston involved crossing the Regent's Canal on a gradient of more than 1 in 68 (1.47%). Because steam trains at the time could not climb such an ascent, they were cable-hauled on the down line towards Camden until 1844, after which bank engines were used.Template:Sfn The L&BR's act of Parliament prohibited the use of locomotives in the Euston area, following concerns of residents about noise and smoke from locomotives toiling up the incline.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
The station was built with space left vacant for extra platforms, as it was originally planned for the Great Western Railway (GWR) to use Euston, as the terminus of the Great Western Main Line. In the event, the GWR chose to build their own terminus at Paddington. The spare land was instead used for more platforms for ever expanding services as the railway network grew.<ref name="Jenkins L&BR">Template:Cite book</ref>
The station building, designed by the classically trained architect Philip Hardwick,Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn had a Template:Convert trainshed by structural engineer Charles Fox. It had two Template:Convert platforms, one each for departures and arrival. The main entrance portico, the Euston Arch, also by Hardwick, symbolised the arrival of a major new transport system and was "the gateway to the north".Template:Sfn It was Template:Convert high, supported on four Template:Cvt by Template:Cvt hollow Doric propylaeum columns of Bramley Fall stone, the largest ever built.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn It was completed in May 1838 and cost £35,000 (now £Template:Inflation).Template:Sfn The old station building was probably the first one in the world with all-wrought iron roof trusses.Template:Sfn
The first railway hotels in London were built at Euston. Two hotels designed by Hardwick opened in 1839 on either side of the Arch; the Victoria on the west had basic facilities while the Euston on the east was designed for first-class passengers.Template:Sfn
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Between 1838 and 1841, parcel handling grew from 2,700 parcels a month to 52,000.Template:Sfn By 1845, 140 staff were employed but trains began to run late because of a lack of capacity.Template:Sfn The following year, two platforms (later 9 and 10) were constructed on vacant land to the west of the station that had been reserved for Great Western Railway services.Template:Sfn The L&BR amalgamated with the Manchester & Birmingham Railway and the Grand Junction Railway in 1846 to form the LNWR. The company headquarters were established at Euston requiring a block of offices to be built between the Arch and the platforms.Template:Sfn
The station's facilities were expanded with the opening of the Great Hall on 27 May 1849 replacing the original sheds. The Great Hall was designed by Hardwick's son Philip Charles Hardwick in classical style. It was Template:Convert long, Template:Convert wide, and Template:Convert high with a coffered ceiling and a sweeping double flight of stairs leading to offices at its northern end.Template:Sfn Architectural sculptor John Thomas contributed eight allegorical statues representing the cities served by the line.Template:Sfn The station faced Drummond Street, further back from Euston Road than the front of the modern complex; Drummond Street now terminates at the side of the station but then ran across its front.<ref>www.motco.com Template:Webarchive – 1862 map, showing position of 1849 station.</ref> A short road, Euston Grove, ran from Euston Square towards the arch.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
A bay platform (later platform 7) for local services to Kensington (Addison Road) opened in 1863.Template:Sfn Two new platforms (1 and 2) were added in 1873 along with an entrance for cabs from Seymour Street. At the same time, the station roof was raised by Template:Convert to accommodate smoke from the engines.Template:Sfn
The continued growth of long-distance railway traffic led to major expansion along the station's west side starting in 1887. It involved rerouting Cardington Street over part of the burial ground (later St James's Gardens)<ref>Location of St James's burial ground Template:Coord</ref> of St James's Church, Piccadilly,<ref name="UKG">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> which was located some way from the church.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> To avoid public outcry, the remains were reinterred at St Pancras Cemetery.Template:Sfn Two more platforms (4 and 5) opened in 1891.Template:Sfn Four departure platforms (now platforms 12–15), bringing the total to 15, and a booking office on Drummond Street opened on 1 July 1892.Template:Sfn<ref name=NREuston>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
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The line between Euston and Camden was doubled between 1901 and 1906.Template:Sfn A new booking hall opened in 1914 on part of the cab yard. The Great Hall was redecorated and refurbished between 1915 and 1916 and again in 1927.Template:Sfn The station's ownership was transferred to the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) in the 1923 grouping.Template:Sfn
Apart from the lodges on Euston Road and statues now on the forecourt, few relics of the old station survive.Template:Sfn The National Railway Museum's collection at York includes Edward Hodges Baily's statue of George Stephenson from the Great Hall;<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> the entrance gates;<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}Template:Dead link</ref> and a turntable from 1846 discovered during demolition.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}Template:Dead link</ref>
London, Midland and Scottish Railway redevelopmentEdit
By the 1930s Euston was again congested and the LMS considered rebuilding it. In 1931 it was reported that a site for a new station was being sought, the most likely option was behind the existing station in the direction of Camden Town.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The LMS announced in 1935 that the station (including the hotel and offices) would be rebuilt using a government loan guarantee.Template:Sfn
In 1937 it appointed the architect Percy Thomas to produce designs.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He proposed an American-inspired station that would involve removing or resiting the arch, and included office frontages along Euston Road and a helicopter pad on the roof.Template:Sfn<ref name=bull>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Redevelopment began on 12 July 1938, when Template:Convert of limestone was extracted for the building and new flats were constructed to rehouse people displaced by the works. The project was shelved indefinitely because of World War II.Template:Sfn
The station was damaged several times during the Blitz in 1940. Part of the Great Hall's roof was destroyed, and a bomb landed between platforms 2 and 3, destroying offices and part of the hotel.Template:Sfn
New stationEdit
Passengers considered Euston to be squalid and covered in soot and it was restored and redecorated in 1953, when an enquiry kiosk in the middle of the Great Hall was removed.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Ticket machines were modernised. By this time the Arch was surrounded by property development and kiosks and in need of restoration.Template:Sfn
British Railways announced that Euston would be rebuilt to accommodate the electrification of the West Coast Main Line in 1959.Template:Sfn Because of the restricted layout of track and tunnels at the northern end, enlargement only could be accomplished by expanding southwards over the area occupied by the Great Hall and the Arch.Template:Sfn<ref name=NewEuston1968>The New Euston Station 1968. British Rail information booklet.</ref> Permission to demolish the Arch and Great Hall was sought from London County Council and it was granted on condition that the Arch would be restored and re-sited. BR estimated it would cost at least £190,000 (now £Template:Inflation) and was not viable.Template:Sfn
The Arch's demolition, announced by the Minister of Transport, Ernest Marples in July 1961, drew objections from the Earl of Euston, the Earl of Rosse and John Betjeman. Experts did not believe the work would cost £190,000 and speculated it could be done more cheaply by foreign labour. On 16 October 1961, 75 architects and students staged a demonstration against its demolition inside the Great Hall and a week later Sir Charles Wheeler led a deputation to speak with the Prime Minister Harold Macmillan. Macmillan replied that as well as the cost, there was nowhere large enough to relocate the Arch in keeping with its surroundings.Template:Sfn
Demolition began on 6 November and was completed within four months.Template:Sfn The station was rebuilt by Taylor Woodrow Construction to a design by London Midland Region architects of British Railways, William Robert Headley and Ray Moorcroft,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> in consultation with Richard Seifert & Partners.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Redevelopment began in summer 1962 and progressed from east to west, the Great Hall was demolished and an Template:Convert temporary building housed ticket offices and essential facilities.Template:Sfn Euston worked to 80% capacity during the works with at least 11 platforms in operation at any time.Template:Sfn Services were diverted elsewhere where practical and the station remained operational throughout the works.Template:Sfn
The first phase of construction involved building 18 platforms with two track bays to handle parcels above them, a signal and communications building and various staff offices. The parcel deck was reinforced using 5,500 tons of structural steelwork.Template:Sfn Signalling on the routes leading out of the station was reworked along with the electrification of the lines, including the British Rail Automatic Warning System.Template:Sfn Fifteen platforms had been completed by 1966, and the electric service began on 3 January. An automated parcel depot above platforms 3 to 18 opened on 7 August 1966.Template:Sfn The station was opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 14 October 1968.Template:Sfn
The station is a long, low structure, Template:Convert wide and Template:Convert deep under a Template:Convert high roof. It opened with integrated automatic ticket facilities and a range of shops; the first of its kind for any British station.Template:Sfn The plan to construct offices above the station whose rents would help fund the cost of the rebuilding was scrapped after a government White Paper was released in 1963 that restricted the rate of commercial office development in London.Template:Sfn
In 1966, a "Whites only" recruitment policy for guards at the station was dropped after the case of Asquith Xavier, a migrant from Dominica, who had been refused promotion on those grounds, was raised in Parliament and taken up by the Secretary of State for Transport, Barbara Castle.<ref name="BBC-54272188">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
A second development phase by Richard Seifert & Partners began in 1979, adding Template:Convert of office space along the station frontage in the form of three low-rise towers overlooking Melton Street and Eversholt Street.Template:Sfn The offices were occupied by British Rail,Template:Sfn then by Railtrack, and by Network Rail which has now vacatedTemplate:Efn all but a small portion of one of the towers. The offices are in a functional style; the main facing material is polished dark stone, complemented by white tiles, exposed concrete and plain glazing.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
The station has a large concourse separate from the train shed. Originally, no seats were installed there to deter vagrants and crime, but were added after complaints from passengers.Template:Sfn Few remnants of the older station remain: two Portland stone entrance lodges, the London and North Western Railway War Memorial and a statue of Robert Stephenson by Carlo Marochetti, from the old ticket hall, stands in the forecourt.Template:Sfn
A large statue by Eduardo Paolozzi named Piscator dedicated to German theatre director Erwin Piscator is sited at the front of the courtyard, which as of 2016 was reported to be deteriorating.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Other pieces of public art, including low stone benches by Paul de Monchaux around the courtyard, were commissioned by Network Rail in 1990.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The station has catering units and shops, a large ticket hall and an enclosed car park with over 200 spaces.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The lack of daylight on the platforms compares unfavourably with the glazed trainshed roofs of traditional Victorian railway stations, but the use of the space above as a parcels depot released the maximum space at ground level for platforms and passenger facilities.Template:Sfn
Since 1996, proposals have been formulated to reconstruct the Arch as part of the redevelopment of the station,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and its use as the terminus of the High Speed 2 line.<ref name=CMgr>Template:Cite news</ref>
PrivatisationEdit
Ownership of the station transferred from British Rail to Railtrack in 1994, passing to Network Rail in 2002 following the collapse of Railtrack.<ref name=nr/> In 2005 Network Rail was reported to have long-term aspirations to redevelop the station, removing the 1960s buildings and providing more commercial space by using the "air rights" above the platforms.Template:Sfn
In 2007, British Land announced that it had won the tender to demolish and rebuild the station, spending some £250 million of its overall redevelopment budget of £1 billion for the area. The number of platforms would increase from 18 to 21.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2008, it was reported that the Arch could be rebuilt.<ref>Template:Cite newsTemplate:Subscription required</ref> In September 2011, the demolition plans were cancelled, and Aedas was appointed to give the station a makeover.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In July 2014 a statue of navigator and cartographer Matthew Flinders, who circumnavigated the globe and charted Australia, was unveiled at Euston; his grave was rumoured to lie under platform 15 at the station,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> but had been relocated during the original station construction and in 2019 was found behind the station during excavation work for the HS2 line.<ref name="UKG"/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
High Speed 2Edit
In March 2010 the Secretary of State for Transport, Andrew Adonis announced that Euston was the preferred southern terminus of the planned High Speed 2 line, which would connect to a newly built station near Curzon Street and Fazeley Street in Birmingham.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> This would require expansion to the south and west to create new sufficiently long platforms. These plans involved a complete reconstruction, involving the demolition of 220 Camden Council flats, with half the station providing conventional train services and the new half high-speed trains. The Command Paper suggested rebuilding the Arch, and included an artist's impression.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
The station is to have seven new platforms dropped from an original planned eight, taking the total to 23, with 10 dedicated to HS2 services and 13 to conventional lines at a low level.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> The flats demolished for the extension would be replaced by significant building work above. The Underground station would be rebuilt and connected to adjacent Euston Square station. As part of the extension beyond Birmingham, the Mayor of London's office believed it will be necessary to build the proposed Crossrail 2 line via Euston to relieve 10,000 extra passengers forecast to arrive during an average day.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="TSC 280611">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="DTF CONS">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
To relieve pressure on Euston during and after rebuilding for High Speed 2, HS2 Ltd has proposed the diversion of some services to Template:Rws (for Crossrail). This would include eight commuter trains per hour originating/terminating between Template:Rws and Template:Rws inclusive.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In 2016, the Mayor Sadiq Khan endorsed the plans and suggested that all services should terminate at Old Oak Common while a more appropriate solution is found for Euston.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
The current scheme does not provide any direct access between High Speed 2 at Euston and the existing High Speed 1 at St Pancras. In 2015, plans were announced to link the two stations via a travelator service.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Platforms 17 and 18 closed in May and June 2019 for High Speed 2 preparation work.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
The Euston Downside Carriage Maintenance Depot was demolished in 2018 in preparation for the start of tunnelling.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The two office towers in front of the station were demolished between January 2019 and December 2020.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The third tower at 1 Eversholt Street is not part of these plans. Two hotels on Cardington Street adjacent to the west of the station were also demolished.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The cemetery in adjacent St James's Gardens was also controversially excavated in 2018-19, resulting in an estimated 60,000 graves having to be exhumed, and the entire site being cleared of all human remainsTemplate:Snd the largest exhumation in British history,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and the corpses having to be reburied in Brookwood Cemetery in Brookwood, Surrey.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In August 2019, the Department for Transport (DfT) ordered an independent review of the project, chaired by the British civil engineer Douglas Oakervee.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The Oakervee Review was published by the Department for Transport the following February, alongside a statement from the Prime Minister Boris Johnson confirming that HS2 would go ahead in full, with reservations.<ref name="Oakervee-Review">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The review said the rebuild was "not satisfactory" and called the management "muddled" and recommended a change of governance.<ref name=AJ91020>Template:Cite news</ref> In Summer 2020, the government asked Network Rail's chairman, Sir Peter Hendy, to lead an oversight board; in October 2020, the Architects' Journal reported that more than £100m had already been spent on engineering and architectural design fees.<ref name=AJ91020 />
In October 2023, the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced that construction of the Euston terminus and approach tunnel would not be government funded and that it could only go ahead with private sector investment.<ref name="BBC 5/10/23">Template:Cite news</ref> Transport for London commissioner Andy Lord was sceptical that the private sector would pay for the link to Old Oak Common.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
CriticismEdit
Demolition of original stationEdit
The demolition of the original buildings in 1962 was described by the Royal Institute of British Architects as "one of the greatest acts of Post-War architectural vandalism in Britain"<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and was approved directly by Harold Macmillan.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The attempts made to preserve the earlier building, championed by Sir John Betjeman, led to the formation of the Victorian Society and heralded the modern conservation movement.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> This movement saved the nearby high Gothic St Pancras station when threatened with demolition in 1966,Template:Sfn ultimately leading to its renovation in 2007 as the terminus of HS1 to the Continent.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref>
ArchitectureEdit
Euston's 1960s style of architecture has been described as "a dingy, grey, horizontal nothingness"<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and a reflection of "the tawdry glamour of its time", entirely lacking in "the sense of occasion, of adventure, that the great Victorian termini gave to the traveller".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Writing in The Times, Richard Morrison stated that "even by the bleak standards of Sixties architecture, Euston is one of the nastiest concrete boxes in London: devoid of any decorative merit; seemingly concocted to induce maximum angst among passengers; and a blight on surrounding streets. The design should never have left the drawing-board – if, indeed, it was ever on a drawing-board. It gives the impression of having been scribbled on the back of a soiled paper bag by a thuggish android with a grudge against humanity and a vampiric loathing of sunlight".<ref>Template:Cite news Template:Subscription required</ref>
Passenger experienceEdit
Michael Palin, explorer and travel writer, in his contribution to Great Railway Journeys titled "Confessions of a Trainspotter" in 1980, likened it to "a great bath, full of smooth, slippery surfaces where people can be sloshed about efficiently".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Journalist Barney Ronay described the station as "easily, easily the worst main station in Western Europe" and that using it is "like being taken away to be machine gunned in the woods by various mobile phone and soft drinks companies".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Access to parts of the station is difficult for people with physical disability. The introduction of lifts in 2010 made the taxi rank and underground station accessible from the concourse, though some customers found them unreliable and frequently broken down.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref> Wayfindr technology was introduced to the station in 2015 to help people with visual impairment to navigate the station.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In September 2023, the Office of Rail and Road issued Network Rail with an improvement notice in relation to its failure to put in place effective measures to tackle overcrowding.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Network Rail admitted that the station was designed for a different era and that "the passenger experience at Euston remains uncomfortable at times".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Office of Rail and Road declared in December 2023 that Network Rail had complied with the notice and implemented measures to better manage passenger traffic flows and overcrowding.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In October 2024, London TravelWatch warned that passengers at Euston are being put in danger when the station becomes severely overcrowded during periods of disruption to services.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Transport Secretary Louise Haigh subsequently asked Network Rail to declutter the station concourse and improve how it handles train announcements.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Network Rail reacted by switching off the advertising board installed in January 2024 after removal of the main departure boards, and issued a five point improvement plan.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
IncidentsEdit
On 26 April 1924, an electric multiple unit collided with the rear of an excursion train carrying passengers from the FA Cup Final in Coventry.Template:Sfn Five passengers were killed. The crash was blamed on poor visibility owing to smoke and steam under the Park Street Bridge.Template:Sfn
On 27 August 1928, a passenger train collided with the buffer stops. Thirty people were injured.Template:Sfn
On 10 November 1938, a suburban service collided with empty coaches after a signal was misinterpreted. 23 people were injured.Template:Sfn
On 6 August 1949, an empty train was accidentally routed towards a service for Manchester, colliding with it at about Template:Cvt. The crash was blamed on a lack of track circuiting and no proper indication of when platforms were occupied.Template:Sfn
1973 IRA attackEdit
Extensive but superficial damage was caused by an IRA bomb that exploded close to a snack bar at approximately 1:10 pm on 10 September 1973, injuring eight people.<ref name=ira>Template:Cite news</ref> A similar explosive had detonated 50 minutes earlier at King's Cross.Template:Sfn The Metropolitan Police had received a three-minute warning,<ref name=ira/> and were unable to evacuate the station completely, but British Transport Police managed to clear much of the area just before the explosion.Template:Sfn In 1974, the mentally ill Judith Ward confessed to the bombing and was convicted of this and other crimes, despite the evidence against her being highly suspect and Ward retracting her confessions. She was acquitted in 1992; the true culprit has yet to be identified.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Cultural referencesEdit
The station has been the backdrop for a musical film clip as well as the subject in songs since the 1960s. Barbara Ruskin both wrote and recorded the song "Euston Station" which was released in 1967.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Catalog of Copyright Entries: Third Series Volume 21, Part 5, Number 1, Section I
Music Current and Renewal Registrations January-June 1967 - Page 167 EUSTON STATION: w & m Barbara Ruskin</ref> In 1969, rock group Ambrose Slade shot a promo film at the station for their Beginnings album. Craig Davies recorded the song "Euston Railway Station Blues" which was released in the late 1980s. Jane Kitto's 2002 song "Busdriver" is about getting on the no. 73 bus from Euston station to Stoke Newington. In another travel theme it was referenced by The Smiths in their song "London" as a way to get to the city from Manchester.<ref>Rail, April 7 - April 20, 2021 - Page 64 Euston station: a muse for musicians, JONATHAN KEEN explores Euston's connection with music from its past, to the present and the future, THE PAST</ref>
National Rail servicesEdit
Euston has services from four different train operators:
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Avanti West Coast operates InterCity West Coast services:<ref name="Avanti">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
- 2 tph (trains per hour) to Template:Rws via Template:Rws, extended to/from Template:Stn (at peak hours), of which:
- 1 tph extends to Template:Rws via Template:Rws and Template:Rws
- 2 trains per day (tpd) run further to Template:Rws only, with 1 train every 2 hours running to Template:Rws and 4 tpd running to Template:Rws. Services to Scotland run via Template:Rws.
- 1 tph extends to Template:Rws via Template:Rws and Template:Rws
- 1 tph to Template:Stnlnk via Template:Rws, with certain trains extended along the North Wales Main Line to Template:Rws or Template:Stnlnk for the ferries to Ireland, such as Irish Ferries as well as Stena Line to Dublin Port, one train on Mon-Fri to Template:Stnlnk<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}</ref>
- 3 tph to Template:Stn via Template:Rws, of which:
- 2 tph operate via Template:Rws
- 1 tph operate via Template:Rws, Template:Rws and Template:Rws
- 1 tph to Template:Stnlnk via Crewe and Template:Rws
- 1 tph to Template:Stnlnk via Template:Rws. Additional services operate to/from Preston, Lancaster and Carlisle during peak times.
London Northwestern Railway operates regional and commuter services.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
- 2 tph to Template:Rws via Template:Rws
- 1 tph to Template:Rws
- 2 tph to Template:Rws via Template:Rws
- 1 tph to Template:Rws via Template:Rws and Template:Rws
London Overground operates local commuter services.
- 4 tph to Template:Stnlnk via the Lioness line (Watford DC line)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Caledonian Sleeper operates two nightly services to Scotland from Sunday to Friday inclusive.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
- Highland sleeper to Template:Stnlnk via Template:Stnlnk and Template:Stnlnk, Template:Stnlnk via Template:Stnlnk, Template:Stnlnk via Template:Stnlnk and Template:Stnlnk via Stirling and Perth
- Lowland sleeper to Glasgow Central and Edinburgh Waverley via Template:Stnlnk
Great Western Railway will operate InterCity Greater Western services on occasional days from Template:Tooltip.<ref name="GWR">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
- 1 tph to Template:Stn via Template:Rws and Template:Rws, of which:
- 1 tp2h (trains per 2 hour) extends to Template:Rws via Template:Rws and Template:Rws
- 1 tph to Template:Stnlnk via Template:Stnlnk, of which:
- 1 tpd extends to Template:Stnlnk
Night Riviera will operate a nightly service to Cornwall from Sunday to Friday inclusive, on occasional days from Template:Tooltip.<ref name="GWR"/>
- sleeper to Penzance via Taunton, Plymouth and St Austell .
London UndergroundEdit
Template:Overground RDT {{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}}
Euston was poorly served by the early London Underground network. The nearest station on the Metropolitan line was Gower Street, around five minutes' walk away. A permanent connection did not appear until 12 May 1907, when the City & South London Railway opened an extension west from Angel. The Charing Cross, Euston & Hampstead Railway opened an adjacent station on 22 June in the same year; these two stations are now part of the Northern line. Gower Street station was quickly renamed Euston Square in response.Template:Sfn A connection to the Victoria line opened on 1 December 1968.Template:Sfn
The underground network around Euston is planned to change depending on the construction of High Speed 2. Transport for London (TfL) plans to change the safeguarded route for the proposed Chelsea–Hackney line to include Euston between Tottenham Court Road and King's Cross St Pancras.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> As part of the rebuilding work for High Speed 2, it is proposed to integrate Euston and Euston Square into a single tube station.<ref name="TSC 280611"/> Template:Adjacent stations
See alsoEdit
- Birmingham Curzon Street railway station (1838–1966) – the original Birmingham counterpart to the original Euston station
- Pennsylvania Station (1910–1963) – a similarly demolished and rebuilt station
ReferencesEdit
NotesEdit
CitationsEdit
SourcesEdit
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External linksEdit
- Station information on Euston railway station from Network Rail
- Euston Station and railway works – information about the old station from the Survey of London online.
- Euston Station Panorama
- Euston London Guide
Template:Transport in London Template:London Overground navbox Template:Major railway stations in Britain Template:London landmarks Template:Railway stations served by Avanti West Coast Template:Railway stations served by Caledonian Sleeper Template:Railway stations served by Great Western Railway Template:Railway stations served by West Midlands Trains