Works in Waterloo: an improvement or just a cash making scheme?

The Evening standard continues with their objective questionable journalistic, er, standards and regurgitates yet another press pack, this time from Network Rail for a change:
Waterloo station turns trendy as Carluccio's, Corney and Barrow, and Thomas Pink open up on new concourse - Transport - News - Evening Standard

Just to put things in perspective:
1. On congestion, Network Rail have made it worse by making the underground concourses longer and shut outside of peak hours

2. The Eurostar platform has been mothballed for the last 5 year... with four EMPTY platforms -quite a disgrace.

3. Finally, are they going to pull down that hideous screen/wall between the concourse and the plaforms? There's no reason Waterloo can't be as beautiful as the Gare du Nord in Paris.

To me it seems the only goal of this revamp is to provide more retail space, in other words it's a cash generating scheme that adds no benefits to the commuters.


Previous posts on Water-loo station: 

• Waterloo plans mean no end of misery for commuters
• Waterloo: more Boris Bikes but still no sign of life for the Eurostar old platforms
• Waterloo plans mean no end of misery for commuters
• Londonist: What Next For Waterloo? 
• The Boris bike vs. the French vélib -unfair comparison?
• What if those who govern us had a long term view about strategic infrastructures?
• When will TfL realise they need more BorisBikes at Waterloo?

BBC - Mind The Gap: Why do south London trains suffer most in the snow?

BBC - Mind The Gap: Why do south London trains suffer most in the snow?

Another proof that our transport system is antiquated and no longuer fit for purpose:

In south London the companies like Southern Railway, Southeastern and South West Trains have to operate using the "third rail system".That is, the electricity is transmitted to the train using an electrified third rail that the train picks up through a bit of metal called a shoe. So, while Network Rail have been running "ghost trains" (empty trains) and de-icing trains through the night there comes a point when it doesn't help.
When the snow and ice hits, if the conductor third rail is cold as soon as snow hits it, it freezes.

uk, trains, transportation, rail, railways, london, southwesttrains, southernrailways, southeastern, richmondtransits.blog

Londonist: What Next For Waterloo?

The short sighted running of the Capital's transport network can't be better epithomised by the fact plans are not finalised for the Waterlooo Eurostar terminal:
Londonist: What Next For Waterloo?

In the meantime, the station lies empty, with the decomissioning estimated at £100,000. Trains won't alight on the former EuroStation before December 2008 (that's in 13 months!) and "Options for the medium to long-term use of all five platforms are being assessed as part of a wider strategy for the upgrade of the station" according to Junior transport minister Tom Harris.

I'm sure the commuters will appreciate, especially since platform shortages are one of the main causes for delays on the Waterloo-bound lines...


Tags: Waterloo, trains, transportation, london, southwesttrains, richmondtransits.blog

Mayor's evening flop

Tried to go and see the fireworks tonight:
Lord Mayor's Show: The Lord Mayor’s Fireworks

Arrived at North Sheen Station to see the trains were not running today. Why would they after all? Took the car till Vauxhall and finally arrived on the embankment, along with quite a crowd. The show lasted a mere 10 minutes. TEN MINUTES!!! Thankfully, the kids liked Wagamama...


Tags: transportation, london, trains, southwesttrains, richmondtransits.blog