Now, I’m well aware that when navigating some of the city’s busiest train stations, the majority of Londoners tend to opt for the ‘keep your head down and just hope for the best’ approach. And whilst there’s no denying that it’s a tried and tested method; over the coming weeks, we’d highly recommend you momentarily averting your eyes from the floor, and feasting your eyes on the shiny new piece of ticking treasure that’s recently been unveiled at London Bridge station.
Network Rail has just revealed its brand new clock design, which happens to be Britain’s first new railway clock design in over 50 years. The first station in the country to receive the exciting new timepiece was none other than London Bridge, and it’s now displayed proudly in the heart of the capital city. Network Rail decided to launch the new clock design at the busy south London transport hub as the world’s second-ever electrically-controlled railway clock was installed at London Bridge back in 1852, and this seemed like the perfect opportunity to pay homage to that.
The new ‘Rail Clock’
In order to decide on the new clock-face of Network Rail, a competition was run in partnership with the Royal Institute of British Architects. Over 100 designs were entered into the competition. And the new Rail Clock comes courtesy of Design Bridge and Partners, whose design was selected due to its dual functionality as both a physical and digital clock, its reflection of the railway’s history, and – of course – how easy it is to read (especially amongst the chaos of a jam-packed London train station).
Design Bridge and Partners’ clock was created with advice from accessibility experts. It features numbers in an easy-to-read font and a simple (but oh-so effective) design. The railway’s double arrow motif can be seen travelling around the edge of the clock face in opposite directions, with the arrows meeting every thirty seconds.
The 1.8 metre-wide clock was unveiled at London Bridge station this week, and other London stations are set to receive theirs this week, too. The digital design will also start appearing on departure boards across the network soon.
The British Railway clock played a pivotal role in the creation of unified time across the UK. The last national clock design for the UK’s railway network was created in 1974. The new Rail Clock marks 200 years since the very first passenger service, and serves as the perfect reminder of how far British rail has come since then.
Rail Minister, Lord Peter Hendy, said: “British ingenuity and passion are the foundations of the railway, from the very first passenger service 200 years ago to the millions of rail journeys now taken every day. This clock represents a bridge between the historic past and a new future for our railways.
“As part of our Plan for Change, this Government will create an integrated railway network that’s more reliable, consistent, efficient and accountable, thus delivering growth, jobs and homes. Good design, like this brilliant, clever timepiece, is a fundamental part of achieving this.”