How Bank-Monument works

Since I made my maps of Green Park and King's Cross St. Pancras I knew it was only a matter of time before I had a crack at Bank-Monument. And here's what I've come up with:

[ Update: Diagram of the current closures ]

There are several other maps available, but I wanted to do something a bit more detailed and geographically accurate that could be reconciled with the actual experience of traipsing through the tunnels.

Notes, disclaimers and things learnt during this exercise:

• This was made entirely by visual observation on a handful of short visits, with no accurate charts used save an aerial photo to get the general shape right. It's entirely possible it's hilariously wrong.
• The DLR really is slightly offset from the Northern Line and not quite parallel to it as shown. It's not me making my drawing easier.
• From shallowest to deepest the levels are: Ticket halls, District/Circle Line, Waterloo & City Line, upper interchange level, Central Line, lower interchange level, Northern Line and DLR.
• The route from end to end via the DLR rather than the Northern Line isn't actually much longer, it just involves a stupidly high number of bends and transitions.
• The Waterloo & City Line platforms have a tiny newsagent hidden in a cross passage. Is it the only deep[-ish] level station so blessed?
• The complex is so vast it has a whole other tube station within its thrall (Cannon Street).
• The lift access from street to the DLR requires using three separate lifts, two of which are in the peak hours only ticket hall.
• I have no idea what shape the Bank ticket hall really is.
• For extra anorak points I've included the platform numbers and escalator numbers - I've heard the guy on the tannoy (it appears the same one works there 24/7) use the latter to refer to the escalators under repair.

This long easter weekend, why not use the diagram to try to work out what on earth today's rambling TfL press release about escalator closures is trying to say.

Waterloo & City Line at Bank to get new entrance

TfL have announced plans to build a new entrance to the Waterloo & City Line platforms at Bank station:

The new street level entrance in Walbrook Square will provide step-free access with lifts, as well as escalators and stairs to the Waterloo & City Line platforms.

Legal & General is redeveloping Bucklersbury House [...] As part of the construction programme a new station box will be constructed in the basement of the building for London Underground.

The new entrance will open in 2013. Walbrook Square, which is a redevelopment of several buildings on the south side of Queen Victoria Street, a little to the west of Bank station.

Tube upgrade schedule

There's a new brochure (well I think new, it's undated) on TfL's website that gives an overview of what the "Transforming the Tube" programme amounts to. There's a whole chunk of information hidden in the timeline that I thought I'd repeat here.

Completion of line upgrades (new signalling and trains):

• Mid 2007: Waterloo & City Line
• Mid 2009: Jubilee Line
• Late 2011: Victoria Line
• End 2011: Northern Line
• Mid-2014: Piccadilly Line
• Early2014: Circle Line
• Early 2015: Metropolitan Line
• Mid 2016: Hammersmith & City Line
• Mid 2018: District Line
• End 2020: Bakerloo Line

Absent is the Central Line, which is considered already upgraded.

Power & cooling works completion (don't know what this is exactly):

• Mid 2007: Waterloo & City Line
• Mid 2009: Jubilee Line
• Mid 2010: Central Line
• Late 2010: Northern Line
• Late 2011: Victoria Line
• End 2011: Hammersmith & City Line
• Early 2012: Metropolitan Line
• Mid 2014: Circle Line
• Mid 2014: Piccadilly Line
• Mid 2018: District Line
The Bakerloo Line isn't mentioned.

Major station upgrades (rebuilds and/or step-free access):

• Early 2007: North Greenwich (extra escalators)
• End 2007: Covent Garden
• Early 2009: White City (mainly Shepherd's Bush Central Line)
• Mid 2009: King's Cross St. Pancras
• Late 2010: West Ham
• Mid 2011: Paddington
• Late 2011: Vauxhall
• End 2011: Green Park
• Mid 2012: Highbury & Islington
• Late 2012: Finsbury Park
• Early 2014: Bond Street
• Late 2014: Victoria
• Late 2015: Tottenham Court Road
• 2020: Bank

Several of these are otherwise unannounced. I'll see what I can dig up.

Step free access totals:

• End 2006: 45 stations
• End 2007: 51 stations
• End 2008: 62 stations
• End 2009: 73 stations
• End 2010: 84 stations
• End 2011: 92 stations
• End 2012: 94 stations

Stations refurbishment totals:

• Early 2007: 71 complete
• Early 2008: 117 complete
• Early 2009: 149 complete
• Early 2010: 179 complete
• Early 2011: 225 complete
• Early 2011: 241 complete
• Early 2013: 247 complete

There are 268 since the East London Line closed, of which London Underground manage 248 by my reckoning (or 259 including the recently transferred Silverlink stations).

The timeline also covers Heathrow T5 (empty running starts this month, opens in March), the upgrade of the ex-Silverlink stations (completed end 2011), and some depot upgrades.