Euston Tube stations need urgent upgrade report says

Euston and Euston Square underground stations need to be urgently upgraded or will "both cease to function as reliable stations in peak hours" due to overcrowding, according to a leaked report sent to BBC London.

It went on to say that the gatelines - the rows of ticket turnstiles - at both stations regularly need to close to remain safe.

Not only this "there is no clear direction" to resolve these issues and that Euston Square does not meet fire regulations, the report added.

Transport for London (Tfl) has said it "would never allow a situation where a TfL-run station was unsafe".

The report, Euston London Underground Way Forward, was written in March 2024 by engineers with "a combined experience of over 10 years managing design for London Underground and Crossrail 2 scopes at Euston".

It summarises the problems at both stations and lists Camden Council, Transport for London (TfL) and Network Rail as stakeholders.

The report also reveals the design of the Euston Square station wouldn't comply with current fire regulations and was only allowed to operate as it was an old design covered under what are called "grandfather rights".

It outlines a serious safety concern that "if an incident occurs where... there is a small fire on a train, it will pull into the station to detrain and evacuate passengers on board to enable staff and emergency services to deal with the incident".

It added: "Passengers on the platform should be warned to evacuate before the train arrives. However, the incident may prevent safe egress (exit) for passengers on the 'dead end' side of the incident (either those waiting or those detraining) 'trapping' them in an enclosed space with no safe means of egress.

"This configuration would not be permitted as part of a new build station."

Euston and Euston Square stations were meant to be upgraded and expanded when HS2 rebuilt the mainline station for high-speed services. Work on HS2 Euston was paused by the then Conservative Government in 2023.

At one point a tunnel was proposed between HS2 Euston and Euston Square underground stations.

Go-ahead for the tunnelling between Old Oak Common in northwest London and Euston was confirmed in the Budget, but it’s not clear yet what the new HS2 Euston station design will look like or how it will be funded. It's also not clear how Euston and Euston Square underground stations will be funded.

Recently the Euston mainline rail station was criticised by the watchdog London Travelwatch for overcrowding and being potentially unsafe for passengers.

Procedures have been changed at the station to stop the "Euston rush" including giving passengers more time to get to their trains.

Sir John Armitt chairs the National Infrastructure Commission.

Commenting on the decision to fund the HS2 tunnels to Euston, he told the Rail Industry Association’s annual conference in central London recently: "What was very welcome news was the announcement that they would fund the completion of the tunnels through to Euston.

"That's the relatively straightforward bit.

"The real challenge, as everyone in this room knows of course, is Euston station, which will take longer to do than it will to drive the tunnels.

"So what’s really needed is to find a solution to dealing with Euston station."

Euston London Underground Way Forward report makes it clear both underground stations would need upgrading even without HS2 due to increasing passenger numbers.

The report also said: "Solutions for the capacity upgrade is made chronically challenging by lack of a clear strategy. TfL, HS2 and Network Rail all sit under Department for Transport but their aspirations are misaligned, and there remains no clear approach to business case and funding."

The report also reveals that one proposal not to include Step Free Access "looks to challenge the Disability Discrimination Act 1995".

In conclusion, the report said Tfl needed to recognise there was a "finite" budget and improvements would not bring the stations into full compliance with current safety standards.

It also said Tfl should apply for concessions so it does not have to meet current standards before the carrying out the detailed design.

Tfl has said it did not produce or commission the report.

A TfL spokesperson said: "We are working with Department for Transport, HS2 and other partners to ensure Euston and Euston Square Underground stations can accommodate forecast demand and continue to provide safe, accessible and efficient facilities for everyone."

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