Today really was the day...

It's felt like ages in coming, but the Kensal Rise to Hampstead Heath section of the Overground North London Line was re-opened this morning.

I made this little video clip to show that the line is running again - hurrah!

Of course one of the issues is lots of people this morning (well the 8-10 people I spoke to were expecting new trains and new service - they hadn't appreciated that this was work on the track not on the service or the rolling stock - that, along with station refurbishments is coming down the track (as it were!) - but of that more to follow...

It was really interesting how many people were using the line and if you had forgotten just how effective a service it was, then boy was the journey for me a zip along - just 7 mins!

Here are a couple of pics that reflect the volume of passengers - the first at West Hampstead and the second on Hampstead Heath station.

If you're interested and use the Overground North London Line and would be interested in helping with a User Group please do drop me an email on ed.fordham@hampsteadandkilburn.org.uk

Overground North London Line - welcome back!

The Pryors of Hampstead

Today this - the Pryors - is one of the premium residential areas in Hampstead.

In the 1740's this was a single house on the heath just east of the Wells estate.

The name, 'The Pryors' is thought to come from Thomas Pryor (d. 1821), son-in-law of Samuel Hoare (d. 1825, of Heath House, Jack Straw's Castle) .
http://474towin.blogspot.com/2008/02/blue-plaque-for-george-crabbe-in.html

These impressive Edwardian mansion blocks on Hampstead Heath date back to 1904, 1906 and 1910 and retain many of their original features internally and externally.

Landscape painter Walter Field lived here. Taught by John Rogers Herbert and John Pye, he exhibited at the Royal Academy and the Royal Society of Painters in Water Colours, of which he became an associate in 1880, between 1856-1899. He died in Hampstead, London, on December 23rd 1901.

John Mortimer, author, barrister, was born at No 7 The Pryors, East Heath Road, Hampstead, and subsequently lived at 35 Downshire Hill.

The case for looking at our bus routes again

The closure of the North London line has been accepted by users and residents as part of the essential work needed to make the line better and crucially make it more able to carry freight - something I'm hugely in favour of.

But the costs, efforts and communications of the closure have been a bit more tricky.

Overground and Lorol are all pretty new creations but the management of this scheme has been laden with decent folk and good intentions but somehow it falls short of the mark.

The cordons closing stations have been pretty lame. The signage (as shown here at Hampstead Heath station) are well below the standard promised or expected. The staffing is a series of people desperately trying to provide information in a context where there is little.

The provision of a replacement bus however, has provided a fascinating insight. Two elements with the bus, the first is how it is much busier at certain times than you would expect - I caught it late the other night and there were a host people - families, shift workers and visitors. And the second, is how interesting the route is - not as an experience, but in demonstrating the need for more horizontal bus routes. One of the major transport hiccups in london is the way everything flows in and out of the centre and with the exception round here of the C11 and the North London line there is little across north London.

I wonder if there is now a case for approaching TfL and asking that they take a medium to long term look at their bus routes with a view to more and more variation on these routes - there is clearly a demand...

The lanes of Hampstead

Okay, okay - they are not lanes but one of the most charming features of Hampstead are the number of lanes - often small old, even medieval.

I've taken to capturing them on camera cos their charm and historical insight.

Spring Path indeed refers to the old and ancient spring - one of the tributaries of the Fleet river that runs from the Heath and Shepherd's Walk was one of the paths that was used for driving sheep onto and from the Heath.

In fact I have a postcard from about 1896/98 of sheep grazing on the heath...

And then there is this small lane off of Heath Street - about half way up on the left - if I recall correctly it leads up and onto Holly Bush Steps and thence the Holly Bush Pub.

There are so many sdo of which refer to the name of the old trading company that was there - Stanford Close, some refer to the residents - Golden Yard - and others are less clear - Bird In Hand Yard (presumably an old pub?).

I'm sure there is a really good sunday walk about the unknown lanes and alleys of Hampstead - one for me to ponder on over the weekend as the trickiest bit is putting otgether the map - it's one of those occasions where your knowledge is in your head but drafting the map would be pesky and I'm not a cartographer.

Tranquil and idyllic thanks to the Northern Line

Hidden away in Hampstead Heath is the magical Hill Garden. It offers a complete contrast to the wild decadence of the pergola.

It is famously quiet and serene and a great place to sit, contemplate, write or paint. It's not unusual to find a painter, sketcher or photographer here enjoying the view and atmosphere.

There is an ornamental fish pond at the heart of the garden and at the far end there is a little alcove with a bench which gives a stunning view of the heath with London as the backdrop.

The pergola itself is the creation of Lord Leverhulme who owned the nearby house, The Hill. Working with architect Thomas Mawson he went on to build this long Pergola. Started in 1904 it came to fruition in 1905 before being extended in 1911 as more land was available. It was built using vast tonnage of earth that had come out of the Hampstead Heath tunnel for the Northern Line!

The pergola itself is a photgraphic dream - more of that to come - but the view over the Hill Garden is beautiful and tranquil. If you don't know it, then it's time for a sunday walk...

Our railways have great tradition - it's a shame TfL fails it so often...

This is the wooden edging at Hampstead Heath Overground station (North London Line) and it's a charming reminder of the quality of work and the strength of the London railway tradition in quality.

The effect of the railway upon Britain was dramatic and still the lines they cut across our landscape are deep and significant.

And literally hundreds of us use them every day.

Within that useage are a series of 'givens': we know where to stand on the platform in order to get off at the other end, we know our colour of line (orange, purple, yellow etc), we often see the same pople every day in the same place and equally often don't talk to them over the weeks, months and weeks. Further, we know the weakesses (crime, poor lighting etc)...

So for all of these bits of knowledge what is it about the Transport for London arrangements that makes them so resistant to having and supporting a user group?

The frequency with which staff leave, don't respond or don't have a cultural tradition of working with users is scary. So from 1st September (just before schools come back) they are closing the North London Line Gospel Oak to Willesden Junction and the bus replacement arrangements are... currently undefined! And the refurbishment of Brondesbury station? No consultation plans.

To my mind it's shambolic and an insult to the railway tradition. Several of us have tried to help but frankly I'm at a bit of a loss and think that on this occasion the responsibility lies with Transport for London to show some committment and lead the debate in a way that is inclusive and sincere. It's a high bar and they have failed todate but this a chance to turn a new leaf over...

http://www.urban75.org/photos/london/index.html

http://www.architecture.com/HowWeBuiltBritain/HistoricalPeriods/Victorian/RailwayArchitecture/Introduction.aspx

Save the florists!

We've run a few bits and pieces on here about plaques - but not much on the historic blue plaques (though I sense a theme for the summer there!).
http://474towin.blogspot.com/2008/05/at-home-with-george-orwell.html

http://474towin.blogspot.com/2008/02/blue-plaque-for-george-crabbe-in.html

But there are also a number of what you might call 'genuine residents' plaques' - raised by friends, admirers and local people who appreciate the work, dedication of their fellow residents.

This one on Willoughby Road is just one example and is very charming, but of late it has assumed a greater significance...

Clearly Maggie Richardson died in 1974, but until last year there was still a florist on this corner (Willoughby Road meets Hampstead High Street). Now gone.

Until 2006 there was a florist outside Hampstead Heath Railway Overground Station. Now gone.

But for how much longer is the florist in South End Green, outside Marks and Spencers and the Royal Free Hopsital going to survive? There is an ongoing and documented spat between the officials and planners and highways crew and the florist himself.

So these three things all left me wondering if we were seeing a decline or collapse of on street florists? Is there a specific issue here, are supermarket chains overtaking the industry, is it home delivery flowers and interflora (and brand variants) winning the battle?

I for one much prefer street traders, I think they add character, act as eyes and ears of the community, they provide opportunity for what I regard as the 'little man' and are great features on the street - noise, colour, charm...

Let's not lose things that are good about the area we live in and this is one small part worth standing up for. So when did you last buy from your local florist?

Ed Fordham

The 13th train line colour for London

When does a bench mean more than just the bench itself...?

Well here at Hampstead Heath Station (now in zone 2 - hurrah!) the benches have been repainted this orange (ish) colour for the new Overground livery colours.

It got me thinking about the other colours of the map and a bit of research (not tricky research you understand) yielded that the London Underground map has twleve colour coded lines and this makes a 13th on the famous TfL map of London:

• Bakerloo Line (Brown)
• Central Line (Red)
• Circle Line (Yellow)
• District Line (Green)
• East London Line* (Orange)
• Hammersmith & City Line (Pink)
• Jubilee Line (Silver)
• Metropolitan Line (Purple)
• Northern Line (Black)
• Piccadilly Line (Dark Blue)
• Victoria Line (Light Blue)
• Waterloo & City Line (Pale Blue)

Harry Beck famously takes the credit for the first meaningful diagramtic map of the transport system in 1933. There are all sorts of little features that might go un-noticed at first glance. For example the Thames is either a straight line or at 45 degrees. There is a direct differentiation between stops and interchanges. The map itself at concept was very controversial and within London Transport management structures quite political and laden with personal relationships.

The reality however is the impressive map we have today and one of the results is that the benches at Hampstead Heath station have been repainted as part of the livery coding that started with Harry Beck working in his spare time to design a better map...

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/corporate/projectsandschemes/communityandeducation/2443.aspx

http://www.design-technology.info/alevelsubsite/page5.htm

http://www.harrybeck.co.uk/

Open space in urban London... in pictures

It's been a slow Easter weekend - lots of food, walking, cafes and of course, living in North West London - the visit to Kenwood House.

It's all part of the heath but of course managed separately - but the vast space and sense of openess is truly magnifcent for this part of urban england.

I have just bought a copy of 'Hampstead Heath, by Deborah Wolton and David McDowell, photographs by Sandra Lousada' and whilst I can't match their pictures - taking pictures of what you see and being able to enjoy them at home is astonishingly satisfying.

So this is just a small photographic reflection of the trees and colour - it's truly awe inspiring in the best possible way and so good and so easy to just sit back and see the natural environment for what it is.

The list of tributes for those who saved and enhanced the Heath is itself interesting:

• The 3rd Earl of Mansfield


• Octavia Hill


• Thomas Barratt


• Henrietta Barnett


• Arthur Crosfield, Robert Waley-Cohen and Henry Goodison

(more to follow I think!)

But this fails to recognise the work done by the men and women who work every day and every week on the heath and at Kenwood House.

Since I have served on the management committee, I have come to understand the nuture of the flora, fauna and trees - issues such as pollarding seemed harsh but are in fact necessary: http://www.passionfortrees.co.uk/html/pollard.html. But also to respect and appreciate the tenderness, the care and the love felt by those who work and volunteer on the heath and in its environs.

It also makes for great photography and dramatic shadow on the sky-line...

To see more of these pics you can click on them and they should open up larger if you want.

A blue plaque for George Crabbe in Hampstead?

Heath House is one of the most amazing houses in North West London. Great location, perspective, proportions, gating, settings - all over wow.

I have walked past and around on numerous occasions and thought how great it was and reflected on the shame that was the closed boarded up current state.

Now there is a planning application proposal progressing that will see the house restored to residential occupancy - which can only be good (assuming that all the plans respect the great architecture and listing features).

Some of us had dreamt that the house might have eneded up as the headquarters of the Hampstead Heath Managers (City of London Corporation), but it looks not to be the case now...

However, a new twist for me was the discovery that this was occupied by the Hoare family (Samuel and his daughter Sarah at least) who were cery close family friends , even confidentes, of George Crabb. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Crabbe

Crabbe is a serious player in the canon of romantic poetry and, it emerges, he stayed on a frequent basis at Heath House with the Hoare family writing his poetry and gathering inspiration from the heath and surroundings. I want to return to this but i think the stay here was significant and saw the writing of his very greatest works...

In the context of the links with Keats and Bloomfield I think there's a wider restoration of the poetic significance of Hampstead in the period 1800-1820.

A blue/Hampstead plaque for Crabbe on Heath House?

Why Overground need to listen to a Users Group for the North London Line

The North London Line (I assume it is still called the North London Line even though it's part of Overground) is being gradually tidied up - or at least new signs are going up and handrails are being painted.

But frankly I'm looking for a bigger shift than just the paint colour. Now we do have the security guards, but there's a bit of work needed on some of the customer service based on my experience - and I'm using about 4-5 different stations a week - and some fixture repairs are going on.

My picture here is of a dumping area at Kensal Rise that needs cleaning up - it's pretty grim, use an area used for putting full bin bags and is generally being used as a storage space for rubbish and becoming an eyesore. it's not the only one - it is just one example I saw when i had the camera.

But there is a still a further catalogue of repairs and enhancements that are needed:

- the graffiti at Brondesbury

- the awful awful wire security fence at Finchley Road and Frognal

- the bike rack in the wrong place at Hampstead Heath

- the lack of screens in the various ticket halls which mean you have to swipe your oyster card to go in and find out if a train is due (yes, I know there is a printed timetable, but trains on this line are frequently late and the screen is the only way of finding out actually likely departure times).

Oh, and when the trains are cancelled I hope that there is a better system in future than this one I caught on a recent sunday...

Yes, the piece of flip chart paper says "NO TRAINS FROM THIS STATION 12.30 TODAY

02/12/07 Sunday"

And the even more amusing piece of tape over the Oyster swipe card point says "NO TRAINS TODAY."

To be fair these were put up by a member of staff who 'happened to be there' and who was trying to be helpful - but it didn't feel very professional and did nothing to assist the people who had bought tickets cos the machine is separate from the swipe point or the stairs to the platforms...

For these reasons and more I'm very keen to accelerate setting up a Users Group for the 6 affected stations - please do get in touch. I'm hoping to get a meeting sorted in the next week or so and will let everyone know.

ed.fordham@hampsteadandkilburn.org.uk

A Users Group for the North London Line?

For too long the North London Line has sat neglected and tatty. It is without a doubt one of the most useful lines of transport in London - for starters it goes across London (east west) rather than the perennial north south, second it stops in places people live in rather than just shopping centres (such as Brondesbury Park) and third it goes to really useful places (connecting at Willesden Junction, down to both Stratford and Kew).

However, for a long time now it has felt low grade - unstaffed at night, poorly lit, subject to a lot of graffiti - a general air of neglect.

The North London Line is now being transformed in reputation as part of Overground - there are staff (albeit a bit security led - there's some need for some customer service training in places) and ticket barriers and with these elements the re-paint jobs.

The effect is to restore some confidence and tackle the back-log of works.

With that end in mind there has been an ongoing conversation with the regional station manager about setting up a users group for the 6 stattions along the bit of the line that runs from Kensal Rise to Hampstead Heath (Kensal Rise, Brondesbury Park, Brondesbury, West Hampstead, Finchley Road & Frognal, Hampstead Heath). If you're intersted and up for this then please do drop me a line ed.fordham@hampsteadandkilburn.org.uk - it's hoped to have a a meeting in the next few weeks to get a group going - it's not rocket science, we don't want to to make it too onerous, but just a chance to be the eyes and ears on the line, making things better, giving suggestions and where useful working with TfL and Overground to push forward enhancements.

Please do get in touch.

Overground improvements needed and quickly

The North London Line (now Overground) is for me one of the most impressive bits of London transport links - it goes across London (everything else runs up and down, in and out of the City), it stops in useful places (residential as well as shopping and commercial), it's pretty quick and efficient and for me [sentimental] it feels like a good old fashioned railway line. (Pic of Brondesbury Park station to right)

This is not to say that it is without problems - tatty, neglected, poorly staffed, vulnerable to graffiti and slightly shambolic. But it needs investment and attention and we 'users' need it to work better.

I'm especially keen that the anomaly that is Hampstead Heath in zone 3 should be removed and placed back into zone 2 - Mayor Ken Livingstone has promised it but is now enforcing zone 3 fares (another broken promise?)...

Most of all I think we users need a sustained dialogue with Overground (used to be Silverlink) and so if anyone wants to help with that then drop me a line at ed.fordham@hampsteadandkilburn.org.uk or start the debate below in the coments section.