Author seeking research help

1. Not sure. Hopefully assistance will arrive soon.

2. Assuming it is not rush hour and the starter signal is clear, about thirty seconds from stop to start. Busy platforms may require longer. At peak times your hero is unlikely to find a seat.

3. The doors have interlocks which prevent them being opened by more than about four inches. But if your villain has super strength he could overcome the interlocks and force his way out, perhaps even dislodging the door from the runners.

a. No. Or maybe yes. It depends. If any door opens by even a very small amount, all of the motors will cut out and the driver will lose the "doors closed visual" indicator (colloquially called the "pilot light"). The train would still coast. He/she would manually apply the brake (normal or emergency) if this situation is more than momentary. Somebody would probably pull the alarm handle, which automatically applies maximum normal braking, but with part of the train still in the platform the driver would slam the handle to emergency. Northern Line trains are fitted with in-cab CCTV showing a split exterior view from the platform cameras. The driver would apply the emergency brake if he/she saw anyone leap from the train.

b. Hopefully someone with experience of dealing with serious incidents will answer this one in more detail. In reality, if the train is damaged or considered to be a crime scene, it would be taken out of service. Also, since it is blocking the line, the whole Northern Line City Branch (also known as the Bank Branch) would be suspended northbound until it could be moved.

Remember it is a story. Don't let inconvenient and little known facts get in the way of telling it. I hereby grant you sufficient artistic license. ;D

1.
There's no "mind the gap" on this platform. Outside of rush hour there would be no announcement - all you would get is the train information board saying "Stand back - train approaching". The roar of the train in the tunnel and the reflection of its lights on the platform tunnel ceiling would be the first physical indication of its arrival.

In rush hour there'd be the usual barrage of (non-automated) "stand behind the yellow line" and "let passengers OFF the train first" announcements.

2.
Bear in mind that just before the doors start to close there's a high-pitched bleeping noise for about 5 seconds. In rush hour the platform is packed and the chance of getting a seat is zero!

3.
If we're talking about the last coach in the train, bear in mind there isn't a door at the very end. The end of the train is taken up by the driver's cab. Double-leaf doors are about 1/3 of thr way back. On other coaches, the doors at the ends are single-leaf.

Hope this helps and good luck!

About 15 to 20 seconds is the norm - the aim is for a station stop to average 30 seconds from wheel stop to wheel start. I know it doesn't seem like a long time when you read it, but try timing it just by looking at a watch or clock wherever you are right now.....it's actually longer than you may realise!

To get the doors open enough to be able to exit the train would take some doing. Each line's stock varies (by design), but I don't believe it's likely in reality on any of LU's stocks.

On the point of interlocks - these do not form part of the door mechanism in a mechanical sense........they are electrical contacts which are part of the system detecting whether a door is open or closed.

As previously mentioned though, artistic licence is a wonderful tool

As already answered, no brakes apply but the motors will drop out causing the train to 'coast'.

As we've already established, the train wouldn't be stopped. That said, if the driver looses his/her 'pilot light' (indication doors are closed) for a prolonged period, then it's quite possible they will stop the train and investigate. If your villain has got out quickly, then the doors will likely spring back closed behind them - so the driver will get the pilot light back quickly; will assume the interlocks are playing up and can simply carry on. If there really was a door open and/or someone had left the train, you'd most likely have a passenger operate the emergency alarm........now that will apply an emergency brake

It all depends on the circumstances. A report of someone leaving the train between stations would definitely lead to a track inspection - that could be done with the power off and staff walking the track, or the next train may go through the area slowly......like I say, circumstances dictate. I would imagine that in your scenario, the staff walking the track option is most likely.

The passengers may well get asked a few questions by the driver or station staff, but it wouldn't be anything too deep or meaningful.........if the situation were that serious, it's the Police's job to formally interrogate!

I'm no stock expert (Solidbond would happily confirm that), and my knowledge is really limited to what I drive (C & D stocks) - but essentially you are pushing the door against a spring that is strong enough to keep it closed. I would imagine other stocks are similar though I don't really know much about the externally hung doors on the 92, 95 & 96 stocks.

As your story is on the Northern line, you are on 95 stock..........unless of course it's set in some other period, then you might have an older type of train......

Look at it this way, if it were that easy to open a door simply by pushing/pulling them, do you not think that would be considered a serious safety issue?

So yes, in a nutshell, some special magic/power is likely to be needed.

You are all fabulous. I still don't have an answer to my question about what investigation would be done (if any), but this helps a lot. Thanks so much!

solidbond, thanks for your response. There's really nothing more spoilerish to say about the incident -- just a scuffle with my hero at the back of the (not too crowded) carriage, then the villain breaking free, escaping down the train and forcing the doors open so he can leap out onto the platform at the last second and escape.

I've already established in this scene that the other passengers don't notice the fight (because they're under a spell when it happens). So the only criminal activity they or the train driver would be aware of is the villain jumping out the door, and that's the part I'm talking about when I'm asking if there'd be an investigation.

What I'm getting after all this discussion is that if my slim, fast-moving, inhumanly strong villain could force the doors open in such a way that the doors would automatically spring back after he leaped, the train might stop temporarily while the driver tried to figure out what had happened. But once it was clear that the doors he'd opened were closed now, and that my villain had made the jump safely and vanished in the crowd, the train would probably just continue on its way. Is that right?

At least I'm hoping that's the case, as it will make my life much easier.

Sounds good to me, Dmitri! Thanks for your help.