The Victoria Line and Overground hub is among 17 tube stations shortlisted for step-free access by TfL, reports Marco Marcelline
Blackhorse Road Station is on track to eventually becoming step-free, Transport for London (TfL) has announced.
The Victoria Line and Overground hub is among 17 tube stations shortlisted for step-free access by TfL.
These stations will now undergo detailed feasibility studies before construction can begin.
The studies will look at factors that could impact the delivery of step-free access such as the number of required new lifts, sufficient space for work to be carried out, and the depth of each tube station.
While TfL will fund these additional studies, the subsequent development and delivery of step-free access will be dependent on TfL’s future funding position, with deliverable schemes prioritised where there is significant third-party funding available.
Other stations included on the shortlist are Snaresbrook in Redbridge, and Plaistow and Upton Park in Newham.
Blackhorse Road has been blighted by inaccessibility issues despite being used by over nine million people each year. TfL shut the down escalator service to the Victoria Line platforms for six months this year while it replaced old components in the machinery, meaning that people with mobility issues were unable to use the station.
Announcing the shortlist, Alex Williams, TfL’s chief customer and strategy officer, said: “Making more tube stations step-free is a major part of our work to make the transport network more accessible. More than a third of Underground stations feature step-free access and we’re working towards the Mayor of London’s ambitious target for 50% of the tube network to be step-free by 2030.
“We are already progressing work to make 10 more tube stations step-free and are conducting feasibility studies into introducing step-free access at eight more stations across the capital. We have now confirmed that 17 additional tube stations will also be assessed, starting later this year.”
In a social media post, Walthamstow MP Stella Creasy celebrated the news, saying: “The dream of an actually accessible station in Walthamstow just took a big leap forward.”
Meanwhile Waltham Forest Council leader Grace Williams said: “Brilliant news that the Mayor and TfL have shortlisted Blackhorse Road Station for step-free access… after years of campaigning by Labour councillors. Securing step-free would mean easier journeys for all and wider access to everything Blackhorse Road has to offer.”
The announcement comes as work continues to make Leyton Station step-free, with construction set for completion in spring 2027.
Upgrade plans, which consist of two lifts, a new ticket hall and a footbridge, were first announced by TfL in 2021, but were in limbo until the government committed £14million from its Levelling Up fund in January 2023.
Work had been projected to begin in summer 2024 and to last until 2026, but delays to awarding the construction contract meant work was pushed back.
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