London King's Cross station

A pressing need for expansion

The original design of the station was compromised by a rapid increase in traffic and lack of space to expand.

King’s Cross was quickly developing local passenger services to north London suburbs and Hertfordshire by the 1860s.

Trains from the Metropolitan Railway, goods trains, cross-London trains, and suburban services from north London all had to squeeze through King’s Cross tunnels.

Daily departures from the station (mostly suburban) grew from 19 in 1855, to 89 in 1873.

By 1881, the number of ticketholders was approaching 15,000. Additional tunnels were added just outside the station, and extra platforms were installed.

However, pressure continued until the 1930s, when extensions to the Piccadilly and Northern line on the London Underground helped spread commuter traffic.

King’s Cross held the image of the ‘great departure point for the North’, but in reality, it offered poor service to passengers.

Diesel trains replaced steam at King’s Cross in the 1960s, but little change was made to the station.

It was extended with a modern single-storey travel centre in 1974, but passengers still had to queue in lines that snaked around the small platform.

Redevelopment improves capacity and passenger experience

In 1987, a dropped cigarette on the Piccadilly line escalators of the underground station at King’s Cross resulted in a fire that led to the death of 31 people. This tragedy sparked change.

A plan for redevelopment of King’s Cross and St Pancras stations was prepared in the 1990s.

In 2005, Network Rail announced a £500-million restoration plan. It involved restoring and reglazing the original arched trainshed roof and removing the 1970s extension at the front of the station.

Two large subsurface booking halls for London Underground were completed in 2009.

The area between the station and Euston Road was cleared to create a plaza called King’s Cross Square, which features two underground entrances and a Henry Moore sculpture. It also allows travellers to appreciate Cubitt’s original design.

A new semi-circular departures concourse opened in 2012. It’s covered by a single span roof that links the Great Northern Hotel and the station without touching the Victorian buildings.

Finally, a £1.2 billion investment has led to the realignment of the track layout and platforms at the station.

Tracks, signalling and overhead line equipment were replaced, increasing the number of tracks running into the station from four to six.

This work increased capacity on the East Coast Main Line between London, the north of England and Scotland.

King's Cross Remodelling webinar