15.02.18
Northern line extension: TfL warns of 5-month disruption to Bank branch services
TfL has cautioned passengers on the Northern Line about upgrade works which mean Bank branch services will go for a 5-month period without stopping at Kennington.
Starting on 26 May and finishing in mid-September, the work is part of the organisation’s plans to extend the Northern Line between Kennington and Battersea Power Station.
Engineers will construct four new passageways allowing passengers to change between branches more quickly and easily.
Stuart Harvey, TfL’s director of major projects, said the plans represented the “quickest and least disruptive” method of completing this section of the extension project.
While the upgrades are underway, officials have announced a temporary timetable from Morden on the Charing Cross branch, although Bank branch services will be reduced.
“We apologise to Northern Line customers and to local residents for the disruption this will cause to their journeys,” Harvey said.
“The Bank branch platforms at Kennington are simply too narrow to allow us to safely carry out this vital work behind hoardings while keeping the platforms open.
“Running Bank branch trains through Kennington without stopping will allow us to build the additional passageways we need in the quickest and least disruptive way possible, and are essential to enable customers to access the new Northern Line extension when it opens.”
In November, RTM reported on an important milestone in the extension programme when TfL announced that it had completed the tunnel boring process, connecting Kennington and Battersea via Nine Elms.
The extension will make the City and the West End accessible from Battersea in just 15 minutes, and it is anticipated that it will encourage the regeneration of the Vauxhall, Nine Elms and Battersea areas, with 25,000 new jobs and over 20,000 new homes.
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