Essex Road railway station

Essex Road
Entrance on Canonbury Road
Essex Road Location of Essex Road in Greater London
Location	Canonbury
Local authority	London Borough of Islington
Managed by	Great Northern
Owner	Network Rail
Station code	EXR
DfT category	E
Number of platforms	2
Fare zone	2
National Rail annual entry and exit
2004–05	0.118 million
2005–06	0.116 million
2006–07	0.275 million
2007–08	0.385 million
2008–09	0.336 million
2009–10	0.401 million
2010–11	0.474 million
2011–12	0.483 million
2012–13	0.521 million
2013–14	0.572 million
2014–15	0.627 million
Key dates
1904	Opened (GN&CR)
1975	Closed (Northern City Line)
1976	Opened (British Rail City Line)
Other information
Lists of stations	DLR Underground National Rail Tramlink
External links	Departures Layout Facilities Buses
London Transport portal UK Railways portal

Essex Road railway station is a National Rail station in Canonbury in the London Borough of Islington. It is on the Northern City Line between Old Street and Highbury & Islington and is in Travelcard Zone 2. The station is located at the junction of Essex Road, Canonbury Road and New North Road, with the present entrance on Canonbury Road. Operated by Great Northern, it is the only deep level underground station in London served solely by National Rail trains. Between 1933 and 1975 the station was operated as part of the London Underground, as a short branch of the Northern line. Between 1922 and 1948 the station name was Canonbury & Essex Road. The name reverted to the original form in 1948.

History

The station was opened on 14 February 1904 by the Great Northern & City Railway (GN&CR) on its underground route between the Great Northern Railway (GNR) station at Finsbury Park and the Metropolitan Railway (MR) and City & South London Railway (C&SLR) station at Moorgate in the City of London.

The GN&CR was intended to carry main line trains and the tunnels were constructed with a larger diameter (16 ft/4.9 m) than the other deep tube railways being built at that time (roughly 11 to 12 ft/3.4 m to 3.7 m). From 1913 the MR took control of the GN&CR and ran it under its own name until it became part of the London Passenger Transport Board (LPTB) in 1933. In preparation for the LPTB's "Northern Heights" plan the line was transferred to the control of the Morden-Edgware Line (now the Northern line).

The Northern Heights plan involved the building of a connection to the surface platforms at Finsbury Park and the transfer of a London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) branch from there to Edgware, High Barnet and Alexandra Palace. By 1939 much of the work for the connection of the lines had been done and the opening of the connection was scheduled for autumn 1940 but the start of World War II put a halt to further construction. After the war the uncompleted parts of the plan were cancelled and Northern line trains continued to run to Finsbury Park on what became known as the Northern City Line or, from 1970, the Northern line Highbury Branch.

The station was, from the early 1960s, closed on Sundays. In the 1970s it was also closed on Saturdays.

The Northern City Line was closed on 4 October 1975 (due to its weekend closure, Essex Road closed the day before) and ceased to be part of the London Underground. The line was transferred to British Rail (BR) and the unused connection between Drayton Park and Finsbury Park from the cancelled Northern Heights plan finally received the tracks to connect the line to the surface platforms at Finsbury Park. On 8 August 1976, the City Line reopened as part of the BR network with main line size trains running to Old Street. On 8 November 1976, seventy-two years after the GN&CR first opened, the line was opened fully for main line trains from Moorgate to Finsbury Park and beyond as had been originally intended.

By comparison with other underground stations built at the beginning of the 20th century, the station's surface building is nondescript and unremarkable. Unlike many other central London underground stations, Essex Road was never modernised with escalators and access to the platforms is by lift or a spiral staircase. The station also lacks the automatic ticket gates present at most London Underground and many National Rail stations.

At the lower level the lifts and staircase (of 157 steps) are connected to the platforms via a passageway and a short staircase rising between the two tunnels. The Underground's former operation of the station is evident from the unused and rusty fourth rail which once provided a return of the current from the tube trains serving the line. The third rail is still in use, with return now through the running rails. Signs at street and platform level still mention Network SouthEast, even though it is now Great Northern that serves this station.

Services

Essex Road currently has the following National Rail services off-peak Monday - Friday (all operated by Great Northern):

• 6tph to London Moorgate
• 3tph to Welwyn Garden City via Potters Bar
• 3tph to Hertford North (1tph extended to Letchworth Garden City)

In peak hours, there is a service approximately every 4–15 minutes until 10:00am and again after 16:00pm, until the end of service.

Connections

London Buses routes 38, 56, 73, 271, 341 and 476 and night routes N38 and N73 serve the station.

Future

Great Northern have introduced a weekend service.

It is planned that by the end of 2018, once the connection between the East Coast Main Line, and the Thameslink route is completed, new rolling stock will be introduced.

Essex Road was a station on the proposed Chelsea-Hackney line. However, the scheme currently being pursued by the developers of Crossrail, known as Crossrail 2, does not provide for an interchange at Essex Road.

Gallery

• 

  Southbound platform looking north

• 

  Present signage showing the Network Southeast style of the late 1980s.

• 

  Platform roundel used during period of London Underground operation until 1975, now in the LT Museum.

External links

• Train times and station information for Essex Road railway station from National Rail
• London Transport Museum Photographic Archive
  • Essex Road station shortly after the Metropolitan Railway's merger into London Underground, 1933
  • Canonbury Road elevation, 1975
  • Platform showing original GN&CR tiling, 1975

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Highbury & Islington		Great Northern Northern City Line		Old Street
	Former Service
Preceding station		London Underground		Following station
Highbury & Islington towards Finsbury Park		Northern line Northern City branch		Old Street towards Moorgate
	Abandoned Northern Heights Line
Preceding station		London Underground		Following station
Highbury & Islington towards Bushey Heath, High Barnet or Alexandra Palace		Northern line		Old Street towards Moorgate