Best Way to Segregate the Northern Line Part Two

In the last article, we explored how the northern section of the northern line could be segregated as a means of increasing capacity on this the busiest line on the London Underground. 

Within today’s article we will explore the way in which the southern part of the line is bulging right now and what is being done to disperse the passengers on the southern part of the line.

Northern Line South

The southern part of the northern line starts on the Bank branch between Bank and Charing Cross on the West End branch until Morden. The Bank branch is the oldest part of the line and it was part of the City & South London railway. It was one of the first electrified lines on the tube.

This part of the line has been growing for quite some time, and the Clapham stations are extremely busy before 9am. Balham and Tooting Bec stations are extremely busy and this is because of the so-called gentrification of these areas and the fact that there are more people living here compared to 10 or 20 years ago.

Part of the reasons behind this are the simple fact that not enough homes are being built in the London area.

CrossRail Two

Tooting Bec was one of the stations that was to have benefited from a new line called CrossRail Two.

This line would have connected it to Clapham Junction and North East London, however there were some major problems in the geology around the station.

 Northern Geology

Let’s break this down and the main problem is the London Clay recedes in this area and it becomes the Lambeth sands as it heads south towards Mitcham and Wimbledon.

This means that the tunnel would not be able to withstand the pressures surrounding it. This meant that the plans had to be redrawn and Balham was selected to take the strain. However, in light of the alleged mismanagement of the transport projects in the London area we are not sure whether this scheme will be built in the near future.

Recently, the northern line has been undergoing some behind the scenes construction work.

Northern Line Extension

A brand-new extension has been bored through the London Clay from Kennington to Battersea Power Station. And the plan has been to increase capacity at the Kennington loop.

Kennington station is being rebuilt at the moment and its capacity will be doubled when it eventually opens.

The main reason why the line has been extended is because the Vauxhall / Nine Elms area is being repurposed and the US embassy and other organisations have or are moving over there to work. And Battersea Power Station is being transformed in to a housing and business district.

This line is due to be opened in 2020 and it has been partly financed by a precept on the local business taxes raised in that area. If you don’t already know Kennington station is on a loop line and it was designed so that trains can move in to the various platforms without reversing the trains.

The new line had to be constructed so that the new tunnel does not affect the trains running on the loop. And one of the ways that this was achieved was through the use of blockades at times where tube usage was minimised during the holiday periods.

One of the major benefits of the Battersea Power Station extension is the fact that the line will be connected to the Charing Cross branch and this means that trains could run from Edgware to Battersea with minimal conflicts.

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