Yesterday, Thursday, 13th October, three new escalators were brought into service at Bank Tube station to provide a new interchange route between the Northern line concourse and the DLR concourse and platforms.

Transport for London (TfL) estimates that around 40 per cent of those customers using Bank Underground station are changing between lines. The new interchange route makes moving around the station quicker and easier and will reduce journey times by up to nine minutes.

Once the Bank station upgrade is complete there will be a 40 per cent increase in capacity, Improvements still to come include:

• two new 95-metre moving walkways and three new escalators to provide a new interchange route between the Northern and Central Lines;
• a new station entrance on Cannon Street;
• two new lifts to provide step-free access to the Northern line;
• improved step-free access to the DLR.

Work undertaken since the Bank station upgrade began in 2016 includes:

• Constructing over 1,000 metres of new tunnels and three new escalator barrels to provide the new direct interchange between Northern line and DLR platforms;
• Excavating over 200,000 tonnes of material from under the City of London without disrupting any of the 31 surrounding listed buildings;
• Constructing a new, wider southbound Northern line platform and customer concourse;
• Constructing a new station entrance on Cannon Street; fit-out work is continuing at pace;
• Constructing a two new lift shafts to provide direct, step-free access from street level to the Northern line platforms; fit-out of the new lifts is nearing completion;
• Constructing a new station entrance on Walbrook, that with two lifts, four escalators and its own ticket hall, provides easier access to the Waterloo & City line.

Deputy Mayor for Transport, Seb Dance, said “From today, commuters changing between the Northern line and DLR at Bank station will have an incredible nine minutes shaved off their journey times as the next phase of vital upgrades to the station are completed.

“There are still more upgrades to come and once complete the transformed station will have 40 per cent more capacity supporting the recovery, growth and success of the City of London, addressing long-standing capacity issues and making journeys through Bank quicker, easier, and more comfortable.

“The Mayor and I are continuing to build a better, safer and more prosperous London for everyone and these improvements mark another step towards a modern, accessible station in the heart of the city.”

Stuart Harvey, Chief Capital Officer at Transport for London, said: “Anyone familiar with the previous layout at Bank station will know that it was confusing and constrained, leading to frequent congestion and long interchange times. From today, the journeys of customers interchanging between the Northern line and DLR will be hugely improved, with three new escalators whisking them between these lines and shaving up to nine minutes off their journeys. The countdown continues for the completion of this complex upgrade which is on track to transform Bank station into a modern, flagship gateway to London’s financial centre.”