Trainspotting:Thameslink from West Hampstead to Blackfriars for Bankside and Tate Modern

Update: 6/6/2012

Being more mobile, I am now allowed to sit down on the London Overground and so made a trip to Richmond using this line from West Hampstead Overground station. 

Going through the ticket gates, turn left for Richmond, Clapham Junction and Willesden Junction.  Turn right for Stratford and for other connections to Barking via Gospel Oak or the West Croydon and East London lines changing at Canonbury. In both cases there are two sets of steps, 14 and 15, to negotiate. 

The thin platforms have tactile markings roughly half the width and there are obstacles such as benches (with passengers’ outstretched legs, though they have always been considerate and pulled them in when I have approached!) and assorted railway platform fittings. 

Stratford bound train approaching West Hampstead Overground - stand back!

There is quite a gap between the platform and the carriages and some nifty cane work is required. 

Platform 2 West Hamsptead Overground station with train - mind the gap!

If unfamiliar with a station you should ask for assistance. This is often offered if you are spotted by the staff and the train conductor will answer any questions. I noticed that they give stations and the running status of the connecting Underground services.  Announcements in train are audible and clear and the platform announcements have been much improved.

*** end of update

Update: 20/5/2012

Some pictures were taken on Sunday 13th May, 2012 which show the stations in West Hampstead.  On that afternoon there was a big football match and the area around West End Lane was relatively quiet.  The pictures were taken of the station areas including some of the platforms on the underground and the layout of the Thameslink station showing recent developments. 

For the sake of railway enthusiasts, I arranged for a picture to be taken of the Thameslink / Midland lines going towards St Pancras with a view of the London Overground crossing the railway bridge.  The new wall with its shade of green tiles can be seen and indeed touched. 

There is also a shot of me handling a touch screen on one of the ticket machines outside West Hampstead Thamseslink station.  On the day in question, the two ticket offices were closed.

*** end of update

My reduced mobility due to my left hip problem has meant that I have had to avoid certain travel routes which I had carefully learned over the years. Visually impaired people often have preferred ways of getting about, not obvious to the sighted community.  We develop favourite crossing points, favourite exits from train stations and usually pay more attention to our surroundings using sound. 

Currently I can manage to climb the odd stair but descending stairs with a crutch and cane is frightening as well as hazardous.  Walking too far also is painful, so when Stephen offered to take me to Tate Modern I thought we would have to pick up a minicab from Southwark Underground station on the Jubilee line.

Stephen and I made arrangements to meet and get to Tate Modern.  On the day of the visit (22^nd March 2012) I learned, through Twitter (@ThamesClippers), that  there had been a problem on the Jubilee Line, so I arranged with Stephen to meet at West Hampstead Underground and we would try out the new West Hampstead Thameslink station and the new exits at Blackfriars Bridge on the South Bank.


West Hampstead has three stations. Going in a northerly direction up West End Lane one comes across West Hampstead Underground which is on the Jubilee line, though trainspotters will know that the Metropolitan Line passes through non-stop.  What is not well known is that the Chiltern Line from Marylebone to Aylesbury and Birmingham also passes through the station.

West Hampstead underground station from footbridge showing Metropolitan and Chiltern lines

©Prof Whitestick

Further up on West End Lane's left side is West Hampstead Overground station.  The Overground has connections to Clapham, Richmond, Watford, Stratford and South London via the East London Line connecting at Canonbury or Highbury & Islington. (I prefer Canonbury)

Entrance to West Hampstead Underground Station

©Prof Whitestick

 

West Hampstead Overground station

©Prof Whitestick

There is now a significant amount of transfer between the 2 stations at West Hampstead.  The pavements (sidewalks) on both sides of the road have clutter though I tend to cross at a controlled pedestrian crossing outside the Overground Station. If it is not working then other passengers usually assist.  Staying on the left side of West End Lane it is possible to cross over Iverson Road at a Costa Coffee placed on the corner and the new West Hampstead Thameslink station can be noted.

 
 

West Hampstead Thameslink Iverson Rd tiled wall -green shades
©Prof Whitestick

 

The new wall on Iverson Road in NW6 from West End Lane to the station is made of ceramic tiles placed at corners to prevent fly posting.  The shade of green ranges from the shades and tones which we had described to us at the Royal Academy and in the Corot Landscape at the National Gallery.  The station was opened recently and I had already had a preview of the new facilities. 
 

Visually impaired person using touch screen

©Prof Whitestick

This offers a new footbridge with lift (elevator) access to the platforms.  The new footbridge is covered though open to the elements.  Although the walk surface is of the cheese grater non slip type, being exposed it could be prone to icing. The lifts have waist height controls and with only two options are easy to use. (I had a guided and escorted tour on request.)

 

Midland Railway northbound and showing new West Hampstead Thameslink footbridge and station

©Prof Whitestick

Midland Railway towards St Pancras

©Prof Whitestick

  

We got on a southbound train at Platform 1 and got off at Blackfriars. Blackfriars station is really a bridge over the Thames and platforms have been extended to provide a new exit and station on the South Bank convenient for Bankside.  If you continue along the platform there is a lift to take you down to the walkway level on the South Bank. 

There is a lot of construction work.  Turning to the left and walking along the River Thames brings you to Bankside and the two entrances to Tate Modern. Either down a ramp into the Turbine Hall or directly into the gallery areas on level 2. 

On the return we noted that the lift only gave access to the southbound tracks. An elevator is under construction/repair on the northbound side. On going northbound we had to climb the stairs.

Some of the Thameslink train formations are only 4 coaches and many of the trains approach the 2 tracks through Central London with short notice time changes.  If you are travelling with a sighted passenger, ask them to notice how many coaches are mentioned for your destination.  As we were returning to West Hampstead a fellow passenger told us that the next stopping train for West Hampstead had only four coaches and that we would have to walk along the platform. 

From experience I would get on any train and change at City Thameslink where there is a staffed information point on the platform. If  you are on your own the staff are helpful, though if you are with a sighted friend it may be an idea to listen for information about coach formation.

West Hampstead is served with Buses numbers C11, 139 and 328. There was a grand plan to realign all the rail tracks and build a single station with even a Heathrow Airport link.  West Hampstead is served with links to Gatwick and Luton Airports from the Thameslink station.

Boat trip to Greenwich, Yeoman tour of Old Royal Naval College & Skittle Alley

During the second day of our summer heat wave, I decided to go to Greenwich by boat.  I got to Embankment on the Underground and via the escalator system surfaced at the ticket hall.  Turning right one faces the embankment and there is a crossing which is staggered just to the left of the exit.  This will take you near the ticket offices for the boat services on the river. 

I got the Thames Clipper from Embankment to Greenwich Pier and on this occasion had a seat mid-ship as I had previously sailed up and down the river on either port or starboard side.  ‘Visibility’ was quite good and I could make out some of the landmarks on either side of the river.  The outline of Tower Bridge was discernible and passing under the bridges always gives a sense of location, though I missed out on the curvature of the River Thames itself as it meanders through London. 

This is a commuter service, though quite a few tourists got on and off at Bankside and there is a Harry Potter attraction as well.  Canary Wharf seemed to be a busy spot for the suit brigade but I didn’t pick up any financial tips.  However, there are plenty of staff on embarkation and getting off again.  One of the staff told me about a museum at Canary Wharf itself, and recommended that I try it sometime.  

At Greenwich, I wandered through the Royal Naval College complex which was originally built as Greenwich Hospital with the architects Christopher Wren and Nicholas Hawksmoor designing some of the buildings.   (http://www.oldroyalnavalcollege.org/) I found the Painted Hall, where one of the staff took me round to the Nelson Room and told me about a tour which lasted 90 minutes and started from the Discover Greenwich Visitor Centre (http://www.oldroyalnavalcollege.org/discover-greenwich/) .  I was booked on the tour there and then and escorted to the visitor centre where I met Albert and Margaret, the other visitors, and our guide Wendy. 

On my last trip to Greenwich, I had been to the Greenwich Fair which is held in the grounds of the Old Royal Naval College.  We wandered round the Charles II building and could hear the music coming from Greenwich University’s Trinity College of Music (now called Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance - http://www.trinitylaban.ac.uk/about-us.aspx ). 

It was a very hot and sunny day and I could make out the lines of the buildings, including the William, Mary and Anne buildings which form a landscaped line as far as the Queen’s House, National Maritime Museum and the Greenwich Observatory.  I couldn’t make these out, though the buildings within the Royal Naval College stood out quite clearly.

Wendy took us to the Tudor undercroft.  There are stairs down to this, but it is well worth a visit as there are some carvings which can be touched, thus giving an idea of the sculpture involved in the decoration of the whole complex which spanned the reigns of from Charles II to Queen Anne. 

We then went to the College Chapel, which has many carvings, pillars and a beautiful geometric marble floor and my cane was able to follow some of the patterns.  “In 1779 the Chapel was gutted in a disastrous fire … It was redesigned and rebuilt under the Surveyorship of James ‘Athenian’ Stuart, in the ‘Greek revival’ style for which he was famous, though the detailing was done by his Clerk of Works, William Newton, and it reopened in 1789.” (http://www.oldroyalnavalcollege.org/the-chapel/)  

Wendy was able to take us behind some locked doors here and there and we went into the undercroft, which connects the buildings underground and emerged into a skittle alley, which I think is somewhere below the Painted Hall.  During its days under the Ministry of Defence, the complex was used and abused and it has gradually been restored.  The skittle alley was in working order and Wendy went to the other end of the alley and kept talking so that I could take aim with some of the very heavy wooden balls trying to knock down some of the skittles.  I’m not sure if there were 9 pins or 10 pins, but I think Albert did rather better than I did as I’m sure one of mine fell into a gulley on the way.

We then went to the Painted Hall and Wendy was able to describe the history of the painting of the hall and the symbology of the motifs depicted.  (http://www.oldroyalnavalcollege.org/the-painted-hall/)  The ceiling was painted by James Thornhill and took him 19 years to complete.  As these were done at the time of the Hanoverian succession, there is some political significance coming so soon after the Jacobite uprising of 1715. 

Wendy then returned me to the Visitor Centre, where Edward showed me round some of the exhibits.  As Greenwich had been a Tudor palace, there has been some archaeology and historical reconstruction of what the palace would have looked like.  There are videos and objects which can be touched, such as a helmet, and a gauntlet.  There is even a listen and smell section where on ‘opening a window’ you can hear the choir singing a piece by Thomas Tallis and get a whiff of incense!  On walking around the centre, I detected a fluorescent blue wavy line on the floor.  This is a representation of the meanders of the River Thames and my peripheral vision was attracted by it. 

This has been a well thought out exhibition with something for everyone.  Edward helped me pick some postcards and took me to the Tourist Information Centre.  I had wanted to check out the best way to get back as Greenwich can be a rather daunting construction site with the Olympics, Cutty Sark and other construction projects around.  Ales, from the Tourist Office, took me to Saint Alfege Church and I knew the way from there to Greenwich Railway Station.  Ales took me via the gates of the Maritime Museum complex, so that will be a visit for another day!     

Transport:  Greenwich has good links with the Docklands Light Railway and Southeastern, in addition to the Thames Clipper service.  There are also bus routes.H

Date of visit: 29/9/11

Umbrellas, down the River Thames, Greenwich Fair (GDIF)

The National Gallery featured The Umbrellas by Pierre-Auguste Renoir (about 1881-6, oil on canvas).  This painting is quite famous, but I hadn’t been aware that it spends 6 years in London, then 6 years in Dublin as part of a legacy settlement.  The National Gallery holds its “Arts Through Words” talks for the visually impaired on the last Saturday of the month.  There were about 30 people there with a speaker and two helpers from the gallery.  There are a lot of different shades of blue in this painting and some yellow and red, so I was able to make out some of the detail and also the perspective lines in the painting.  A really nice touch by the National Gallery was a clump of brightly coloured umbrellas which I picked up on my peripheral vision.  Some people had travelled quite far to be there and I remember some from last month.  We were all able to chat with the gallery staff and each other and compare notes about what we could make out.  I think we decided that the lady’s basket or hat case was empty!  There was also the mystery of an extra shoe or foot in the painting and I couldn’t resist telling the story of the origin of “it will cost you an arm and a leg” – said to have been employed by portrait painters when painting their subjects: arms and hands were extra, as it involves a lot of skill and time!  (I heard this story at the Georgian House in Edinburgh.)

On leaving the Trafalgar Square area, I headed for the Embankment and got on one of Thames Clippers to Greenwich Pier.  This time I sat on the right - I suppose I ought to say starboard - side of the boat and had another view of the right bank.  I could make out the London Eye, the South Bank Centre, a huge skyscraper known as The Shard (I noticed this from travelling by train from Charing Cross)and Tate Modern.  Bridges are familiar as the boat follows the Thames down river.  After Tower Bridge, the boat speeds up and it wasn’t long before I was at Greenwich Pier.  Thames Clippers staff were all very helpful and though the boat was quite busy, there is no need to feel intimidated by other passengers, as it is quite orderly. 

On disembarking at Greenwich (the tide was out, so it seemed quite steep going up the ramp), I took a left turn by a massive building site and found myself in the Greenwich Docklands International Festival (GDIF) or Greenwich Fair as it was known.  There was something for everyone here and it started at one of the security stewards who briefly went through: what was going on; what might be of interest, did I like music, theatre, acrobats etc. 

There was quite a large crowd gathered at what turned out to be a high-wire act called Heartland presented by Candoco Dance Company in collaboration with Scarabeus and Nicky Singer.  (This information has been taken from the programme.)  A pleasant surprise was one of the stewards explaining to me what was going on.  Dance is one of the least accessible performing arts for the blind and it was encouraging that another person could explain what was going on.  The lighting was quite good, a bit of blue sky, the Royal Naval College, the King Charles Lawn and a line of trees.  I could just about make out the domed frame and the movement of the performers, which obviously defied my sense of gravity. 

Timing at these events is fairly critical and a performance by Nutkhut of Bespoke was about to take place.  I wandered onto another lawn and a few minutes later the stage manager of Nutkhut came up to me and warned me that I was heading into their drama if I wasn’t careful.  We chatted briefly about their show, which I thoroughly enjoyed.  It’s very slick, a lot of movement, and didn’t appear to be amplified, which says a lot about their voice projection as I could make out all the jokes, even though the odd plane went overhead and other street theatre was quite audible.  A very nice 20 minutes or so and when I took my programme and asked about Bespoke giving the time, the name of the company popped up and I was able to tweet them my comments.  They’re going to be appearing in Stockton before going to Edinburgh and they’ve asked if they ought to include a podcast on their website.  I think this is very encouraging.  (http://www.nutkhut.co.uk/ and @nutkhutuk on Twitter)

The Greenwich Fair was a really fun mid-afternoon visit and a big thank you to all the above and as usual to the DLR and London Underground for getting me home.

Trainspotting and a boat trip on the River Thames

I couldn’t resist the heading as I am a fan of the books of Irvine Welsh.  His Edinburgh as some of the grit found in the earlier Ian Rankin novels, Iain Banks, James Robertson, AL Kennedy and less of the contrived Alexander McCall Smith.  Needless to say, all these authors are available on RNIB talking books.  My fascination with St Pancras is partly historic, though it is handy for a visit to Camden Town Hall, British Library and RNIB and a lot more comfortable than the construction site that used to be Kings Cross. 

The weather in London has been quite warm and, for me at least, with two ‘good vision’ days on Tuesday and Wednesday.  (We had a terrific downpour on Thursday and I got well and truly soaked.)  On my way back from a routine eye clinic I forgot to count the stations and realised I had gone past my ‘home’ station.  It was probably a case of too much information, as the announcements were clear enough but I was not paying attention.

I found myself at Willesden Junction, which has connections to London Overground and the Bakerloo line, and decided to go to Clapham Junction.  This was my first solo trip.  I used to use this station quite a lot from the 1970s, but have only used it in the company of others since I lost my sight.  I found myself on the revamped overhead walkway and when I got to the gates, asked the staff how to get to Waterloo.  I was told that the smartened-up walkway had lifts to the platforms and then taken to one.  On the way down, I was shown where the emergency button was - the one you’re not supposed to hit – and then put on the next Waterloo train.  Very helpful staff!

Waterloo Station is one I was familiar with, but again had never been here on my own for the last 10 years.  The staff at the gate indicated the next available ‘relay point’.  I got to the information kiosk and then the Travel Centre.  The purpose of all this was to get hard copies of the new timetables.  I know they are available on the web, but sometimes it’s nice to have a current timetable that you can hand someone to check, in case you’re fed up with a poor website or are bored with your screen reader. 

My train journeys were going quite well so I decided to see if I could make it to Greenwich.  I have done this before and for my first post you might recall some conflicting pointing from the railway police!  I got to Greenwich, found the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) platform and went one stop to Cutty Sark.  I managed to find the Greenwich Peer, which is a massive building site, and the ticket booth where I bought a ticket for Thames Clippers from Greenwich to Embankment (£2.80 with a Freedom Pass). 

Now here is a pleasant surprise: at the ticket booth I was given instructions on how to get to the peer for the Clipper.  Later I was commenting to one of the staff how good the instructions had been by the lady at the ticket counter, only to be told “I sold you the ticket!”  So well done Jessica (0174)!! (A sighted friend read out the details on the till receipt!) 

The Thames Clipper is well worth a trip.  Again, I have used it before with friends and was doing this one on my own for the first time.  It’s hard to describe what one actually sees, but I was aware of the changing silhouettes on my peripheral vision and going under the bridges, especially the stop near Tower Bridge.  At the Embankment, London Underground staff took me down to the platform and I knew my way back once on the Bakerloo line.

The next day I thought I would be more daring and tried out a totally new line on my own.  The old East London line extension recreates the North London Line link from Dalston Junction to Broad Street, but diverts at Shoreditch to South London.  This might sound very trainspotterish but I confess to being fascinated by railway architecture: bridges, especially the Forth Railway Bridge; stations, such as St Pancras; and junctions such as Crianlarich Junction.    (In the old days I had made very long train journeys in the USA, west Europe, the old Eastern block, southeast Asia and bits of Africa.)

I managed to negotiate Highbury & Islington on my own and changed at Sydenham and West Croydon to arrive at Sutton, where I had lunch and then came back on the Thameslink via St Pancras. 

You may well ask what is the point of all this.  I think this proves that with some attention by the transport providers in London, and the right amount of information and goodwill from staff and fellow commuters, a blind person can get around independently – or at least arrange to go somewhere on a whim without having to rely on others taking him.  This makes a lot of London accessible, provided you know what you want. 

So, many thanks to all, especially Clapham Junction staff, London Waterloo Information Centre, a fellow passenger at London Bridge, Thames Clippers staff, London Underground Embankment, London Overground – particularly Highbury & Islington – and Sutton railway station. 

Regarding communications, I’ve had problems with a revamped Twitter interface with JAWS 12 update.  This is beginning to be as nightmarish as a Google predictor, though I have just discovered Msgs (it says Alt+3 - note for anyone using JAWS) on mobile twitter. 

Update: (4/6/11)

The following are excerpts of a conversation I was having with @defarrington on the Guardian blog regarding the new hybrid buses that are to be introduced in London in the next few years.  As a blind person, I am concerned that we may not recognise a silen vehicle as a a moving vehicle, especially if we listen for traffic noise in making a judgement about when to cross the road.  I don't have a guide dog so can't speak for those who do, but I've had a couple of near misses with careless drivers who reverse illegally into a road and you just don't hear them.

(http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/davehillblog/2011/jun/03/boris-johnson-new-london-bus-probably-good-stuff?commentpage=last#end-of-comments)

Me:

As a blind person, one has got used to hearing the whine of the current diesel buses. I am concerned that a hybrid bus will go into silent mode at the apparent whim of a GPS signal, thus removing a sound 'signpost' or warning for people like me. We might think that the bus has stopped when in fact it might still be moving. I've had a couple of near misses with hybrid cars, especially when they reverse in silent mode.

@defarrington’s reply :

Prof

They're engineering an exterior noise for the bus when in electric mode. Most electric cars have them and they'll soon become law in the EU and US.

No need to worry.

Me:

@defarrington:

Thanks - but it's still scary. Is this noise rule widely known? I will try and raise this at a transport liaison group. We've had problems with the top market hybrid cars and their drivers! Green doesn't always mean safe - or polite and considerate.

@defarrington’s reply:

Prof

The noise rule isn't yet law, but I believe it's on the way.

I'm currently using a Nissan Leaf battery car which has an exterior noise mode.

Worth bringing up with TfL.