Northfields Mega-Depot

The following comes from Q8.

When I joined LTE in 1966 we had a wonderful old Motorman at Upminster who was an absolute mine of information. Older members may remember him by his initials CC and he had a very famous namesake. Now when this wonderful gentlemen joined it was still the DR and I think he said it was pre 1910. Promotion was very slow in those days but he started as a sort of office-boy-cum-runner-minute-taker at HQ. As part of the job he had to take minutes at various committee and other meetings conferences that involved all aspects of running the outfit. I say minutes but I suppose it was more like note taking as he said nothing was ever signed off at the conclusions of these yakkin sessions. These did not always involve the tube but also the electric tramways and the buses that became part of the combine. Now prior to the setting up of LPTB in 1933 there were lots of interdepartmental conferences and also with the government ministries and the LCC as to what form the new body was to take and what it's aims were. For instance, the combine wanted to have three separate organizations for London's public transport network. These were, all trams and trolleybuses to be under the LCC. All buses under the London General which would have been floated as a separate body. All tubes to be part of the combine within the "Underground" umbrella. All this was mooted as part of a plan to see each mode of transport compete against each other for traffic. A sort of "grouping" for London. Herbert Morrison didn't like that idea at all and would not sanction it.

Then things turned to what the new body was going to do, like line extensions and new infrastructure etc. The Piccadilly Line proposals were nothing like what transpired in the event. In 1931 meetings were held as it was seen that the whole caboodle would change in the next couple of years. It was recognized that the District line was operating close to or even beyond capacity especially west of Earl's Court. So things were discussed about extending the Piccadilly beyond it's then terminus of Hammersmith. Now at that time Hammersmith was two separate stations side-by-side with the Piccadilly station on the north side and dead end platforms. Proposal one was for a covered way west of Hammersmith for the Piccadilly alone up to the end of the Studland Road viaduct [this exists as the eastbound tunnel for the D/P] From Studland Road the Picc was then to run over the former LSWR tracks to Turnham Green the west of TG and dive under the DR and thence to Richmond. This fell through due to objections from the LMS and Southern railways who were not happy about having tube sized rolling stock among the "big trains" This seem s bit of an odd thing on the part of the LMS as tube trains already ran with full size stock to Watford.

The next proposal was for the Metropolitan to take over the LSWR tracks to Richmond for the H & C line. Leaving the Piccadilly terminating at Hammersmith. That fell though as the DR were not happy about that. Then it was proposed that the DR could have the LSWR tracks as "fast" lines to Acton and Northfields. That did not wash either. So what was built is what we have now. As to the proposal about a Mega-depot at Northfields I never heard any mention of that. That does not mean to say that it was not mooted but perhaps the old gentlemen was not at that meeting. However I do remember him saying that there was a suggestion to buy a large tract of land at Rayners Lane to construct a new joint DR/Met depot which languished for a while before expiring. Ealing Common would then have been exclusively for the Piccadilly Line. What would have happened about Northfields I know not.

So there you have some of the memories I have of this wonderful old gentleman and his recollections. I have more if anybody is interested. These include the LMS owned rolling stock that ran on the District. The Tank Stock [F] The rebuilding of Mansion House station, and four tracking in the Aldgate East area.

none of the numerous editions of H.F. Howson's book 'London's Underground' make any mention of it either. The similar, but later book, entitled 'The story of London's Underground', by John R. Day, is similarly bereft of any comment on such proposals.

Looking at what's to the south of Northfields depot today, namely some allotments and a recreation ground, it is quite possible the land was earmarked for a larger depot, but if it was snapped up by a developer, he went bust before he could build on it!