Euston railway station

File:Euston logo.gif London Euston
Location	Euston Square
Local authority	London Borough of Camden
Managed by	Network Rail
Number of platforms	18
Other information
London transport portal

File:Euston logo.gif Euston station, also known as London Euston, is a major railway station to the north of central London in the London Borough of Camden. It is one of 17 British railway stations managed by Network Rail, and is the southern terminus of the West Coast Main Line. Euston is the main rail gateway from London to the West Midlands, the North West and southern Scotland.

It is connected to Euston tube station and near Euston Square tube station of the London Underground. These stations are in Travelcard Zone 1.

Services

Three train companies operate from Euston:

Virgin Trains: Inter-city services on the West Coast Main Line. Principal towns and cities served include Birmingham, Rugby, Crewe, Chester, Manchester, Liverpool, Preston, Carlisle and Glasgow.

Silverlink has two divisions:

Silverlink Metro: Local commuter services to and from local stations in north west London using the slow tracks of the West Coast Main Line or the adjacent Watford DC Line.

Silverlink County: Longer distance commuter services on the West Coast Main line serving Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire and Northamptonshire. Main towns served include Watford, Tring, Hemel Hempstead, Milton Keynes and Northampton. It also has an unusual joint stopping service with Central Trains to Liverpool via Tamworth.

First Scotrail: Sleeper services to and from Scotland, terminating at either Glasgow, Aberdeen (via Edinburgh), Fort William or Inverness.

History

Although the present station building is in the International Modern style, Euston was the first inter-city railway station to be built in London.

Old building

An early print of Euston showing the wrought iron roof of 1837. Note the open carriages.

The former Great Hall of Euston Station.

The original station was opened on July 20, 1837, as the terminus of the London and Birmingham Railway constructed by Robert Stephenson. It was designed by a well-known classically trained architect, Philip Hardwick, with a 200-ft (61 m) long engine shed by structural engineer Charles Fox. Initially it had only two platforms, one for departures and one for arrivals. A 72-ft (22 m) high Doric propylaeum - designed by Hardwick - was erected at the station's entrance to serve as a portico; this became renowned as the Euston Arch. Interestingly, Stephenson's original plan was to route the railway through north London so that it terminated where King's Cross station currently stands, but after encountering severe opposition from landowners, he was forced to build the railway through Tring, Watford and Harrow, and terminating at its present site at Euston.

Until 1844, trains had to be pulled up the hill to Camden Town by cables as they did not have enough power to get there under their own steam.

The station grew rapidly over the following years as traffic increased. It was greatly expanded in the 1840s, with the opening in 1849 of the spectacular Great Hall (designed by Hardwick's son, Philip Charles Hardwick), built in classical style. It was 125 ft long, 61 ft wide and 62 ft high (38.1 m by 18.6 m by 18.9 m), with a coffered ceiling and a sweeping double flight of stairs leading to offices at the northern end of the hall. The station was further from Euston Road than the front of the modern complex; it was on Drummond Street, which now terminates at the side of the station, but then ran all the way across the front it. A short road called Euston Road ran from Euston Square towards the arch. Two hotels, the Euston Hotel and the Victoria Hotel, flanked the northern half of this approach.

The station and the railway that it served experienced several changes in management, being owned in turn by the London and North Western Railway (1846–1922), the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (1923–1947), British Rail (1947–1994), Railtrack (1994–2001) and Network Rail (2001–)

New building

"Euston Arch:" the original entrance to Euston Station, as enlarged, ca 1851

In the early 1960s it was decided that the old building was no longer adequate and needed replacing. Amid much public outcry the old station building (including the famous Euston Arch) was demolished in 1962 and replaced by a new building, which opened in 1968. Its opening coincided with the electrification of the West Coast Main Line, and the new structure was deliberately intended to symbolise the coming of the "electric age".

The loss of the original station helped galvanize the environmental conservation movement in Britain, which had previously been focused on preserving aristocratic houses, picturesque vernacular architecture and unspoilt landscapes. The loss of the original New York Penn Station in the United States has been referenced as comparable.

The modern station is very much a piece of 1960s architecture. It is a long, low structure with a frontage of some 647 ft. Part of the station building includes two office towers that look out onto adjacent Melton Street and Eversholt Street, and are home to Network Rail. All of these buildings are in a functional style and the main facing material is polished dark stone, which is complemented with white tiles, exposed concrete and plain glazing. The station has a single large concourse populated with the usual assortment of shops and eateries, and is separate from the train shed. A couple of small remnants of the older station were kept, two Portland stone entrance lodges and a war memorial on Euston Road, but were hardly an effective sop to those offended by the loss of the former building. The frontage of the station building is hidden behind office buildings and a bus station.

Euston station concourse

Euston is regarded by some as ugly and unpleasant. The ramps that descend from the concourse down to platform level seem claustrophobic to many and the trainshed is low-ceilinged, making no attempt to match the airy style of London's major 19th-century trainsheds. However, attention was paid to certain practicalities. The positioning of the departure board aids the flow of passengers by encouraging those who are waiting to keep well back from the busy platform entrances. The Undergound station, taxi rank and car park are all directly within the building and a secondary walkway under the main concourse provides passengers leaving suburban trains with a shortcut to the Tube. The positioning of the platforms helps keep the station warm and dry, while the access ramps have room for passengers to queue without obstructing the main concourse. The station has 18 platforms, with 8 - 11 being used exclusively for Silverlink commuter services, and are therefore equipped with automatic ticket gates, and the aforementioned shortcut to the Underground station. Two of the platforms are extra-length in order to accommodate the 12-car Caledonian Sleeper services.

The exterior of the shed is windowless and monotonous dark brick and corrugated metal, more typical of an industrial estate than a major metropolitan building. The concrete-adorned square outside the front entrance is a popular stamping ground for beggars (who also frequent the station concourse itself), and rough sleepers.

Privatisation

Following privatisation of the railways in the 1990s, the station was taken over by Railtrack and was subsequently transferred to Network Rail. In 2005 Network Rail was reported to have long-term aspirations to redevelop the station, removing the 1960s buildings and providing a great deal more commercial space by utilising the "airspace rights" above the platforms, but there are many major office projects in London at a more advanced stage of planning, so this project is unlikely to proceed for many years.

In December 2005 Network Rail announced plans (1) to create a subway link between the station and Euston Square tube station as part of the re-development of Euston station, which would create a direct link between the two Euston stations which at the moment consists of a five minute walk along a Euston Road.

London Underground

Main article: Euston tube station

Main article: Euston Square tube station

Euston station is directely connected to, and above, Euston tube station, which is served by the Victoria Line and Northern Line City Branch of the London Underground.

Euston Square tube station on the Circle Line, Hammersmith & City Line and Metropolitan Line is a short walk from the station along Euston Road.

See also

• Curzon Street Station - The Birmingham counterpart of the original Euston station.

Services

West Coast Main Line All services & branches
Edinburgh Waverley ( St Andrew Sq.) Haymarket Glasgow Central ( St Enoch) Motherwell Carstairs Carstairs South Junction Lockerbie Scotland England Carlisle Penrith Oxenholme Lake District for Windermere Lancaster Preston for Blackpool North Euxton Junction Bolton Wigan North Western Warrington Bank Quay Liverpool Lime Street Liverpool South Parkway Runcorn Weaver Junction Manchester Piccadilly Stockport Holyhead for Dublin Port Wales England Chester Cheadle Hulme Junction Crewe North Junction North Wales Coast Line Crewe Macclesfield Stoke-on-Trent Stone Junction Norton Bridge Junction Stafford Stafford South Junction Colwich Junction ‹See TfM›Wolverhampton Lichfield Trent Valley Cross-City Line Birmingham New Street Tamworth Cross Country Route Birmingham International Nuneaton Coventry Rugby Trent Valley Junction Rugby Hillmorton Junction Northampton Hanslope Junction Milton Keynes Central Watford Junction London Euston
All routes shown. A detailed diagram of the core route can be found at West Coast Main Line diagram.

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Terminus		Virgin Trains West Coast Main Line Intercity services		Watford Junction
Terminus		First ScotRail West Coast Main Line and beyond Lowland Caledonian Sleeper		Watford Junction
Terminus		First ScotRail West Coast Main Line and beyond Highland Caledonian Sleeper		Crewe
Terminus		Silverlink West Coast Main Line London - Northampton commuter services		Harrow & Wealdstone
Terminus		Silverlink Metro Watford DC Line London - Watford commuter services		South Hampstead

External links

• Station information on Euston railway station from Network Rail

• Train times and station information for Euston railway station from National Rail
• Euston Arch (London Destruction)
• 1862 map, showing position of 1849 station
• http://www.shaw-hardwick.co.uk - Website in memory of the Hardwicks.
• http://www.alwaystouchout.com/project/125 - Euston to Euston Square subway link