All about the Ghost Stations in London

London is a land that is filled with certain ghost stations which have earlier catered to a travelling public.

London is a land of beautiful attractions and the Underground rail is indeed a major part of it. It is open to all visitors in London and one way of experiencing the best here is to understand that there were some stations earlier which are not there now which make way for some good “ghost” experience in London.

The London Underground

The London Underground gives a fair share of the best kind of underground experience one could have. Most of the Tube stations have closed down today but have been turned into beautiful storage depots. Some were never opened in the first place. However some of them are identifiable with their blood red or glazed tiles which are still present on the outer surface of all these building.

The London Underground offers more than its fair share of such places. Over the years many old Tube stations have closed down, turned into storage depots or simply never opened in the first place. Most are easily identified by the blood-red or green-glazed tiles still present on the surface buildings. This is why they are called “ghost stations’. They give the sense of a déjà vu which gives them the name. You can also take a guide that will tell you How to travel on the London Underground.

The Aldwych Station

The Aldwych Station also called the Strand is found on the corner of the Strand and the Surrey Street. The station formed a short portion of the Piccadilly Line and used to take passengers to the theatre district. However in the year 1994 it closed down as it was not being used much. The facility today is available in a different way. Today the place is used for filming and is more famous for this purpose. It is usually opened as a centre of attraction for tourists. Stay in one of the cheap London hotels and enjoy the experience of being in a ghost station in one of the tours here.

More about Ghost Stations

There are some more abandoned stations and these include the Down Street which is again on the Piccadilly line found near Green Park. It shut down in the year 1932 and was used by Churchill and others. It was majorly a WWII shelter in fact. There was another one on the Tottenham Court Road and it was a part of the Central line and was closed in the year 1933. Museum treasures were stored here during WWII. One has to keep a watch for the remnants of any platforms here when one is taking a tour underground.

The Hyde Park Corner Station

‘This again was a major place of attraction for many and with many other ghost stations found here, the pleasures are indeed memorable and magnificent. One loves to eat here on the restaurant and enjoy the old feel. For stay you must choose shaftesbury premier london hyde park

More about the Ghost stations

These stations are a part of the city of London and there are a whole list of them that never opened to the public. They were deep level shelters and usually followed the route of the Northern Line. They were actually intended to be an alternative to this route here. The stations were all dug out during the time of the Second World War. The main purpose was to protect the population from any kind of bombardment of the enemy.

History of the Ghost Stations

The money that was needed to maintain these stations was not available. And the buildings had to be adapted for the private storage arrangements. Thus the drum shaped buildings were all constructed for facilitating storage. The most prominent among such buildings were Tottenham Court Road structures where the Eisenhower Centre is indeed famous. This is on Chenies Street and here one can see the entrance painted with a lot of local heroes on the murals. There are others found in Belsize Park, Clapham and Camden. Most of the stations were built on the lines of creating a great structure and that is the reason they are standing till today though unused.

The Beauty of Aldwych

This is a disused railway siding and is seen right in the middle of London. There is also Down Street which is again wonderful way of endorsing the experience here. Then of course there are cabinet meetings which are held here when the rooms for the Cabinet War Rooms are not available. The Brompton Road for instance is till today recognized as a World War 2 anti-aircraft Ack command centre. There are maps here which are still found on the walls and all evidence of these stations perfectly resemble a great combination of constructional elegance and magnificent standing.

The Technique Used in Underground Railways

Earlier the technique used was predominantly the cut and cover kind. There was a lot of deep cutting that was used along the path of a road. The main railway was laid in the form of a trench and one only can marvel at the manner in which the road has been re-laid in the best form. The underground railways are all extensions of some of the best outlying railways and one marvel at the locomotives which are a part of the experiments here. The steam is safely vented and one loves to go back in time while here.

The Tower Subway

The Tower Subway is a part of the first underground tube railway. This was constructed using the Greathead Shield method and was invented by James Henry Greathead. It was then used in all the other Tubes. The train is operated by cable and was a mode of shuttle between two banks of the River Thames. Unfortunately the railway was open only from the month of August 1870 to November and was not patronized well.

The pleasures of London stations are varied and interesting and when they are ghost stations they are all the more memorable and charming in tours to this part of the world in the city of London.