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Aldgate East tube station

Coordinates: 51°30′55″N 0°04′20″W / 51.5152°N 0.0722°W / 51.5152; -0.0722
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Not to be confused with Aldgate tube station.

Aldgate East London Underground
Aldgate East is located in Central London
Aldgate East
Aldgate East
Location of Aldgate East in Central London
LocationWhitechapel
Local authorityLondon Borough of Tower Hamlets
Managed byLondon Underground
OwnerTransport for London
Number of platforms2
Fare zone1
London Underground annual entry and exit
2019Increase 14.15 million[1]
2020Decrease 3.14 million[2]
2021Increase 5.61 million[3]
2022Increase 10.23 million[4]
2023Increase 10.95 million[5]
Key dates
6 October 1884 (6 October 1884)Opened
31 October 1938resited
Other information
External links
Coordinates51°30′55″N 0°04′20″W / 51.5152°N 0.0722°W / 51.5152; -0.0722
London transport portal

Aldgate East is a London Underground station on Whitechapel High Street in Whitechapel, in London, England. It takes is namesake from the nearby City of London ward of Aldgate which is due east of the station. It is on the Hammersmith & City line between Liverpool Street and Whitechapel, and on the District line between Tower Hill and Whitechapel, in Travelcard Zone 1.[6]

History

Original station

The original Aldgate East station.

The name "Commercial Road" had been proposed for the original Aldgate East station, which opened on 6 October 1884 as part of an eastern extension to the District Railway (now the District line),[7] some 500 feet (150 m) to the west of the current station, close to the Metropolitan Railway's Aldgate station. However, when the curve to join the Metropolitan Railway from Liverpool Street was built, the curve had to be particularly sharp owing to the location of Aldgate East station, at which the track needed to be straight.

Resited station

The resited Aldgate East station, showing its modernist, simple appearance.

As part of the London Passenger Transport Board's 1935–1940 New Works Programme the triangular junction at Aldgate was enlarged, to allow for a much gentler curve and to ensure trains that were held on any leg of the triangle did not foul any signals or points elsewhere.[8] The new Aldgate East platforms were sited almost immediately to the east of their predecessors, with one exit facing west toward the original location, and another at the east end of the new platforms.

The new eastern exit was now close enough to the next station along the line, St Mary's (Whitechapel Road), that this station could also be closed,[note 1] reducing operational overhead and journey times, because the new Aldgate East had effectively replaced two earlier stations.

The new station, which opened on 31 October 1938[7] (the earlier station closing permanently the previous night[9][10]), was designed to be completely subterranean, providing a much-needed pedestrian underpass for the road above.

The reconstruction of Aldgate East station in progress. To lower the track level, the trackbed has been excavated with an interim support of timber trestles. Then, with the tracks attached to chains from the ceiling, the trestle was dismantled and the tracks lowered down to the new lower track level.

However, in order to accommodate the space needed for this, and the platforms below, the existing track required lowering by more than seven feet (2 m). To achieve this task whilst still keeping the track open during the day, the bed underneath the track was excavated, and the track held up by a timber trestle work. Then, once excavation was complete and the new station constructed around the site, an army of over 900 workmen lowered the whole track simultaneously in one night, using overhead hooks to suspend the track when necessary.[11] The hooks still remain.

A second view of reconstruction under the tracks, showing them ready to be lowered down to their new level.

Past proposals

A campaign was launched by a local councillor in a bid to change the name of the station to Brick Lane tube station by 2012,[12] but this had no official support and was not successful. The same councillor has also campaigned to have Shoreditch High Street railway station renamed "Banglatown".[13]

The station today

The station has no surface buildings.[14] Ticket barriers control access to all platforms.

District and Hammersmith & City line trains running into Aldgate East along two sides of the triangle (from Liverpool Street and from Tower Hill) pass through the site of the earlier station, most of which has been obliterated by the current junction alignment, although the extensive width and height and irregular shape of the tunnel can be observed.

Since the station was built completely under a widened road, and was built after concrete had started to be used as a construction material, the platforms have a particularly high headroom. This—combined with the late-1930s style of tiling, typical of the stations of the then London Passenger Transport Board—gives the platform area of the station a particularly airy and welcoming appearance, unusual on the Underground at the time of construction. The tiling contains relief tiles, showing devices pertinent to London Transport and the area it served; these were designed by Harold Stabler and made by the Poole Pottery.

Station improvements

The station was Metronet's first refurbished (and show-piece) station, refurbished in ‘heritage’ style.[15] Work actually began at platform level earlier in 2007.[15] On 9 March 2007 it was noted that every other platform bullseye and its associated blue enamel “Way Out” plate below had been removed on both platforms, marking the end of the only sub-surface ‘New Works’ station.[15] By 14 March all the roundels had been removed and temporary signs substituted.[15] The north-east entrance was also closed from 10 March 2007 until 2009.[15] As of 23 May 2007, the tiling was removed on the eastbound platform and the walls were rough cemented but the tiles remained on the westbound one, although it only took a few days.[15] The new framework for lighting and cabling had been installed.[15]

Services and connections

District line

This is the general off-peak frequency. During peak times trains also operate to Wimbledon. During off-peak times, 3 trains per hour from Wimbledon terminate at Barking (as of December 2014).

Hammersmith & City line

The typical off-peak service in trains per hour (tph) is:

There is no regular service, however there are two Circle line trains per day that run from Barking to Edgware Road via Victoria before 6 a.m. (as of February 2015).[19]

Buses

London Bus routes 15, 25, 115 and 135, 205 and 254, night routes N15, N25, N205, N253 and N550 serve the station outside on Whitechapel High Street.[20][21]

Nearby tourist attractions

Notes and references

Notes

  1. ^ The station closed on 30 April 1938, six months before the resited Aldgate East station opened.[7]

References

  1. ^ "Station Usage Data" (XLSX). Usage Statistics for London Stations, 2019. Transport for London. 23 September 2020. Archived from the original on 9 November 2020. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  2. ^ "Station Usage Data" (XLSX). Usage Statistics for London Stations, 2020. Transport for London. 16 April 2021. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  3. ^ "Station Usage Data" (XLSX). Usage Statistics for London Stations, 2021. Transport for London. 12 July 2022. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
  4. ^ "Station Usage Data" (XLSX). Usage Statistics for London Stations, 2022. Transport for London. 4 October 2023. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
  5. ^ "Station Usage Data" (XLSX). Usage Statistics for London Stations, 2023. Transport for London. 8 August 2024. Retrieved 16 September 2024.
  6. ^ Standard Tube Map (PDF) (Map). Not to scale. Transport for London. April 2024. Archived (PDF) from the original on 28 May 2024. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
  7. ^ a b c Clive's Underground Line Guides - District line
  8. ^ H.F. Howson, London's Underground, 4th ed. London: Ian Allan, 1967, OCLC 502266970, p. 47.
  9. ^ Chronology of London Railways by H.V.Borley
  10. ^ Forgotten Stations of Greater London by J.E.Connor and B.Halford
  11. ^ Howson, pp. 47–48.
  12. ^ "Bid to name Tube stop Brick Lane". BBC News. bbc.co.uk. 15 December 2006. Archived from the original on 16 January 2007. Retrieved 10 January 2007. Tower Hamlets councillor Abdul Ullah wants the Tube station to be renamed in time for the 2012 summer Olympics. He told BBC London: "I think it will truly reflect the character of the area by renaming Aldgate East... people get it confused with Aldgate." He said the area's tourist trade was being affected because, while people had heard of Brick Lane and its reputation for curry restaurants, they could not find it on a Tube map.
  13. ^ "Calls to rename East End station". BBC News. bbc.co.uk. 20 May 2008. Retrieved 10 June 2008. Tower Hamlets councillor Abdal Ullah said the new station should be called "Banglatown" to reflect the strong Bangladeshi community. But a TfL spokesman said "It is important that a station name takes into account the street or the official name of its area, as recorded on official maps."
  14. ^ Tube Facts - Tube Stations that have no surface buildings
  15. ^ a b c d e f g "Station Refurbishment Summary" (PDF). London Underground Railway Society. July 2007. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
  16. ^ a b Clive's Underground Line Guides - Hammersmith & City line
  17. ^ "Hammersmith & City line timetable: From Aldgate East Underground Station to Whitechapel Underground Station". Transport for London. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
  18. ^ "Hammersmith & City line timetable: From Aldgate East Underground Station to Liverpool Street Underground Station". Transport for London. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
  19. ^ http://www.citymetric.com/transport/london-underground-why-are-circle-line-trains-showing-whitechapel-1544
  20. ^ "Buses from Aldgate and Fenchurch Street" (PDF). Transport for London. September 2014. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
  21. ^ http://content.tfl.gov.uk/tfl-permanent-bus-changes.pdf

Bibliography

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Preceding station   London Underground   Following station
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Preceding station   London Underground   Following station
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(1884-1938)
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Hammersmith branch (1884-1938)
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Hammersmith branch (1938-1990)
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