One of the missing pieces of the Elizabeth Line – Bond Street station (which provides connectivity to the West End of London) today opened to the public.
Bond Street station is set to further radically improve travel across London and the South East by providing a new link to one of the busiest shopping districts in Europe ahead of the festive period.
The first Elizabeth line services arrived at the station at 05:47 this morning. Friend of the blog Jen on the Move was on-site first thing with a vlog.
From today, there will be a train service every five minutes, increasing to every three to four minutes at peak times from Sunday 6 November. There will be no service on Sunday 30 October, but a week later the Elizabeth line will run services seven days a week.
The opening of Bond Street completes the central section of the Elizabeth line as the last of the 10 new stations to open.
As with the other central section stations, Bond Street has its own distinct character that reflects the environment and heritage of the local area in addition to architectural forms and materials that are consistent throughout all the new Elizabeth line stations.
The new station is step-free from street to train with two lifts to street level, further enhancing accessibility across the TfL network. The station is set to accommodate nearly 140,000 Elizabeth line passenger journeys daily. This will more than double the number of people currently using Bond Street station to visit the area – providing a welcome boost to businesses and easing congestion at nearby stations. The station will also increase the connectivity of the Elizabeth line with the Central and Jubilee lines through new interchanges.
To support the line, two new ticket halls have been built which have an abundance of natural light to lead passengers to the Elizabeth line platforms at the new station. Both entrances feature columns, which blur the line between interior and exterior spaces and help the station fit into its surroundings which is complemented by the choice of materials: red sandstone at Davies Street, and pale Portland stone at Hanover Square.
The escalator at the Hanover Square entrance is the longest escalator on the Elizabeth line at 60 metres long, and the second longest on the TfL network, just 1 metre behind the escalators at Angel Underground station.
In Quotes
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said:
‘I’m delighted to be here today as the spectacular new Elizabeth line station at Bond Street opens to passengers for the first time. The spacious, stylish and step-free station at Bond Street is a huge boost for our retail and hospitality businesses and will radically improve travel across London and the South East by providing a new link to one of the busiest shopping districts in Europe ahead of the festive period. I can’t wait for Londoners and visitors to our capital to experience this beautiful new station for themselves.
‘The opening of the Elizabeth line by Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II at Paddington in May was a landmark moment, not just for London but for the entire country. It is playing a crucial role in our recovery from the pandemic and delivering a £42 billion boost to the UK economy, supporting hundreds of thousands of new homes and jobs.
The Elizabeth line is helping to build a better London – a fairer, greener and more prosperous city for all. I’m so proud of this new line.’
Transport Minister, Katherine Fletcher, said:
‘Just five months after officially opening, the Elizabeth line has shown itself to be a beacon of British success, delivering more than 54 million journeys and creating 55,000 jobs.
‘The opening of Bond Street station is only set to build on this success, servicing over 140,000 people a day and better connecting Londoners to the UK’s biggest shopping areas and the heart of the legendary West End. I’m delighted to be here today and immensely proud of the role the Government has played in making this a reality through our £9 billion investment.’
Andy Byford, London’s Transport Commissioner, said:
‘This new station is the jewel in the crown of the West End’s transport provision. It is truly spectacular. I promised that Bond Street would open in autumn, and we have delivered on that promise. It is now set to serve as a significant new link to one of the most popular shopping districts in Europe, just in time for the busy festive period this year.
‘When I came to TfL I set two clear priorities, one of which was to get the Elizabeth line open without further delay. Today’s opening, after years of hard work, marks the completion of the central section of the Elizabeth line, which now includes 10 world-class new stations. I am also pleased that through journeys from the east and west into central London are now less than two weeks away.
‘It has been a huge privilege to have served as the Transport Commissioner for this incredible city. I am proud to have worked alongside a great team to get this station open and complete the railway. I encourage everyone to visit and use it as our capital continues to chart a bright future.’
The final parts start to fall into place
With connectivity on the Elizabeth Line, passengers will find a quicker connection to hubs such as Liverpool Street and Canary Wharf in 8 minutes and 15 minutes respectively.
However, whilst important as this is, the big changes are coming on the 6th of November when the three parts of the Elizabeth Line merge into one railway. Customers from Reading and Heathrow will be able to travel east to Abbey Wood without changing at Paddington and customers from Shenfield will be able to travel to Paddington without changing at Liverpool Street. Journeys to onward destinations, including to Heathrow Airport or stations to Reading, can be made by changing trains on the same platform at Whitechapel station
Although considering there is a National Rail strike, that could put a dampener on opening day.
From here, the final big thing to happen will be the new timetable, which is set for May 2023. This will include end-to-end journeys, including from Shenfield to Heathrow, and up to 24 trains per hour during the peak between Paddington and Whitechapel.
There’s a lot happening still on this brand-new part of the railway.
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Looks very nice, but I’m disappointed they didn’t take the opportunity to work “Bond, James Bond” into the signage somewhere.
Give it a new Bond movie release and I’m sure they’ll come up with appropriate branding to go with it.
Bond Street as a tube station has been there for years. No one has done anything to it yet.
If you want your films, head to Alydwich (used as film set) or Canary Wharf (used in Rouge One).