For all we joke about the maze that is Bank station, it’s actually pretty damn useful for commuters. So, when a large chunk of the Northern line branch shut on January 14, it plunged many a London worker’s routes to work into disarray.
For the best part of four months (17 weeks, to be precise), the line. running between Kennington to Moorgate, has been shut, promising to reopen with a shiny new makeover in the summer of 2022. Since the sunny season technically begins in June, they’ve done one better, and announced its grand return to London this week (May 16)!
The works were completed to provide a more spacious platform, a new Northern line tunnel, plus a new concourse and step free access to the Northern line for users. During the period of closure, works were also carried out on London Bridge, Borough, and Elephant and Castle stations, all of which were affected by the lines shutting. Though the branch reopens next week, some works will still be carried out on the station while it’s in use. A new step-free access station is also due to come to Cannon Street later in the year.
Since January, fewer trains ran on the bank branch to the stations that remained open (including King’s Cross St Pancras), but from next week normal service will resume.
Londoners can travel on the Bank branch once again from Monday, May 16.