1. History

2. The station today
    Design  {{anchor|Platform Level Tiling}}Platform level tiling  Access 

3. Proximity to Leicester Square

4. Services and connections

5. Future proposals

6. Folklore

7. Notes and references
    Notes  References  Bibliography 

8. External links

| years1 = 15 December 1906
| years2 = 11 April 1907
| events1 = Line opened
| events2 = Station opened
| original = Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway
| listing_detail =
| listing_grade = II
| listing_start = 20 July 2011
| listing_amended =
| listing_entry = 1401025
| listing_reference =^[1][2]
}}Covent Garden is a London Underground station in Covent Garden, West End of London. It is on the Piccadilly line between Leicester Square and Holborn stations and is in Travelcard Zone 1.^[2] The station is at the corner of Long Acre and James Street and is a Grade II listed building.^[1][3]

History

The station was planned by the Great Northern and Strand Railway (GN&SR), which had received parliamentary approval for a route from Wood Green station (now Alexandra Palace) to Strand in 1899.^[4] After the GN&SR was taken over by the Brompton and Piccadilly Circus Railway (B&PCR) in September 1901, the two companies came under the control of Charles Yerkes' Metropolitan District Electric Traction Company before being transferred to his new holding company, the Underground Electric Railways Company of London (UERL) in June 1902.{{sfn|Badsey-Ellis|2005|p=118}} To connect the two companies' planned routes, the UERL obtained permission for new tunnels between Piccadilly Circus and Holborn. The companies were formally merged as the Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway following parliamentary approval in November 1902.{{sfn|Badsey-Ellis|2005|pp=152–53}}^[5][6] The station was opened by the Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway on 11 April 1907, four months after services on the rest of the line began operating on 15 December 1906.{{sfn|Rose|1999}}

In 1929, Covent Garden was one of the stations suggested for closure in connection with the extension of the Piccadilly line: the elimination of less-busy stations in the central area would improve both reliability and journey times for long-distance commuters{{sfn|Connor|2006|p=31}}{{#tag:ref|The other stations considered for closure were York Road (closed 1932), Brompton Road (closed 1934), Regent's Park, Mornington Crescent, Hyde Park Corner, Gillespie Road (now Arsenal), Gloucester Road and Down Street (closed 1934).{{sfn|Connor|2006|p=31}} }} but this did not happen.

The station today

Design

Like the rest of the original GNP&BR stations, the street level station building and platform tiling were designed by Leslie Green. The station building is a classic red 'Oxblood' building which has two elevations fronting onto the end of James Street and Long Acre. The platform wall was tiled with two shades of yellow and white tiling which formed geometric shapes along with three blank spaces to incorporate the station name. As part of Transport for London's investment programme, the ageing tiling dating back from the station's opening was replaced in 2010 in a like-for-like basis, retaining the look and feel of the platforms.

{{anchor|Platform Level Tiling}}Platform level tiling

The stations along the central part of the Piccadilly line, as well as some sections of the Northern line, were financed by Charles Yerkes,^[7] and are famous for the Leslie Green designed red station buildings and distinctive platform tiling. Each station had its own unique tile pattern and colours.

Access

Covent Garden station is one of the few stations in Central London for which platform access is only by lift or stairs^[8] and often becomes congested because of the Covent Garden area's popularity with tourists. To control congestion on Saturday afternoons, when the surrounding shopping areas are at their busiest, the station was previously exit-only to avoid the risk of dangerous overcrowding of the platforms, but following replacement of the lifts, this restriction was lifted. There are four lifts that give access to street level, although a final flight of stairs from the lifts to the platforms means that the station is wheelchair-inaccessible. Alternatively, there is an emergency spiral staircase of 193 steps.^[8]

Proximity to Leicester Square

The journey between Leicester Square station and Covent Garden takes only about 20 seconds, and measures only {{convert|260|m|yd}}, the shortest distance between two adjacent stations on the Underground network.^[9][10] The stations are so close that a pedestrian standing halfway between them on Long Acre can see both tube stations by turning around 180°. The proximity means that London Underground's standard £4.80 single cash fare for the journey between these two stations^[11] equates to £29.81 a mile, making the fare for this particular journey more expensive per mile than the Venice Simplon Orient Express.^[12] Posters at the station give details of the alternative methods of getting to and from Covent Garden using surrounding stations.

Services and connections

Train frequencies vary throughout the day, but generally operate every 3–7 minutes between 06:03 and 00:31 in both directions.^[13][14]

Future proposals

Transport for London has made a commitment to ease the congestion at the station, which may involve the creation of a new exit^[15] further north along Long Acre (i.e. away from Covent Garden Piazza and nearer the eclectic shopping area that surrounds Neal's Yard), and the provision of escalator access.{{Citation needed|date=August 2011}}

Folklore

It is said that the ghost of actor William Terriss haunts the station. It is claimed that he used to visit a bakery demolished when the station was built.^[16] The last reported sighting of Terriss was in 1972.^[17]

Notes and references

Notes

References

Bibliography

• {{cite book |last=Badsey-Ellis |first=Antony |title=London's Lost Tube Schemes |year=2005 |publisher=Capital Transport |chapter= |pages= |isbn=185414-293-3 |ref=harv}}
• {{cite book |last=Connor |first=J.E. |title=London's Disused Underground Stations |origyear=1999 |year=2006 |edition=2nd |publisher=Capital Transport |isbn=1-85414-250-X |ref=harv}}
• {{cite book | last=Rose | first=Douglas | title=The London Underground, A Diagrammatic History | year=1999 | publisher=Douglas Rose/Capital Transport | isbn=1-85414-219-4 | ref=harv }}

External links

• [https://www.ltmuseum.co.uk/collections/collections-online/photographs London Transport Museum Photographic Archive]
  • {{ltmcollection|ia/i00009ia.jpg|Passengers boarding a train at Covent Garden, 1921}}
  • {{ltmcollection|i9/i00009i9.jpg|Looking down station platform, 1921}}
  • {{ltmcollection|pr/i00001pr.jpg|Piccadilly line train at station platform, 1923}}
  • {{ltmcollection|25/9887525.jpg|Station facade, 1925}}
  • {{ltmcollection|34/9864334.jpg|Booking hall, 1928}}
  • {{ltmcollection|31/9864331.jpg|Another view of booking hall, 1928}}
  • {{ltmcollection|zz/i0000czz.jpg|Lift with ticket inspector, 1936}}
  • {{ltmcollection|49/9859649.jpg|Station facade, 1937}}

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