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Thursday, July 22nd, 2010
Familiar to Millions
Thursday, July 22nd, 2010 10:54 amI hate London Underground, I really do. I know that when it’s working properly, it’s the fastest way of getting around London, but how often does it work properly?
The press call the Northern Line the “misery line,” but frankly, the five years I lived in Whetstone and the nineteen before that in Clapham, overall it gave me a reasonable service with occasional grand annoyances. In the five weeks I’ve lived in Ilford, the network of Circle, Hammersmith & Fulham and District Lines has made me feel homicidal about eight times a week.
Today it took me forty-five minutes to get from Liverpool Street to Victoria and twenty-five of those were invested in standing like a lemon on the platform at Liverpool Street watching the departure boards change randomly between 1 minute, 3 minutes and ‘delayed’ all the time listening to repeated announcements telling me that a ‘good service’ was operating. Honestly, even Goebbels would have blushed.
I could take the Central Line and change onto the Victoria Line at Oxford Circus, but in this weather and with the air-conditioning turned down by TfL to save money, I’d rather gnaw my own arm off than stand crammed like a sardine with my face buried in a stranger’s aromatically unwashed armpit, while spiky-bagged tourists clamber in and jam themselves in the narrowest parts of the exits with their container-ship backpacks and transcontinental wheelie bags.
Only when I detrained at Victoria did they downgrade the service to 'minor delays'. It is now posted as 'devere delays.'
God knows how frequently they are running now that London Underground have owned up to it.
The press call the Northern Line the “misery line,” but frankly, the five years I lived in Whetstone and the nineteen before that in Clapham, overall it gave me a reasonable service with occasional grand annoyances. In the five weeks I’ve lived in Ilford, the network of Circle, Hammersmith & Fulham and District Lines has made me feel homicidal about eight times a week.
Today it took me forty-five minutes to get from Liverpool Street to Victoria and twenty-five of those were invested in standing like a lemon on the platform at Liverpool Street watching the departure boards change randomly between 1 minute, 3 minutes and ‘delayed’ all the time listening to repeated announcements telling me that a ‘good service’ was operating. Honestly, even Goebbels would have blushed.
I could take the Central Line and change onto the Victoria Line at Oxford Circus, but in this weather and with the air-conditioning turned down by TfL to save money, I’d rather gnaw my own arm off than stand crammed like a sardine with my face buried in a stranger’s aromatically unwashed armpit, while spiky-bagged tourists clamber in and jam themselves in the narrowest parts of the exits with their container-ship backpacks and transcontinental wheelie bags.
Only when I detrained at Victoria did they downgrade the service to 'minor delays'. It is now posted as 'devere delays.'
God knows how frequently they are running now that London Underground have owned up to it.
Familiar to Millions
Thursday, July 22nd, 2010 10:54 amI hate London Underground, I really do. I know that when it’s working properly, it’s the fastest way of getting around London, but how often does it work properly?
The press call the Northern Line the “misery line,” but frankly, the five years I lived in Whetstone and the nineteen before that in Clapham, overall it gave me a reasonable service with occasional grand annoyances. In the five weeks I’ve lived in Ilford, the network of Circle, Hammersmith & Fulham and District Lines has made me feel homicidal about eight times a week.
Today it took me forty-five minutes to get from Liverpool Street to Victoria and twenty-five of those were invested in standing like a lemon on the platform at Liverpool Street watching the departure boards change randomly between 1 minute, 3 minutes and ‘delayed’ all the time listening to repeated announcements telling me that a ‘good service’ was operating. Honestly, even Goebbels would have blushed.
I could take the Central Line and change onto the Victoria Line at Oxford Circus, but in this weather and with the air-conditioning turned down by TfL to save money, I’d rather gnaw my own arm off than stand crammed like a sardine with my face buried in a stranger’s aromatically unwashed armpit, while spiky-bagged tourists clamber in and jam themselves in the narrowest parts of the exits with their container-ship backpacks and transcontinental wheelie bags.
Only when I detrained at Victoria did they downgrade the service to 'minor delays'. It is now posted as 'devere delays.'
God knows how frequently they are running now that London Underground have owned up to it.
The press call the Northern Line the “misery line,” but frankly, the five years I lived in Whetstone and the nineteen before that in Clapham, overall it gave me a reasonable service with occasional grand annoyances. In the five weeks I’ve lived in Ilford, the network of Circle, Hammersmith & Fulham and District Lines has made me feel homicidal about eight times a week.
Today it took me forty-five minutes to get from Liverpool Street to Victoria and twenty-five of those were invested in standing like a lemon on the platform at Liverpool Street watching the departure boards change randomly between 1 minute, 3 minutes and ‘delayed’ all the time listening to repeated announcements telling me that a ‘good service’ was operating. Honestly, even Goebbels would have blushed.
I could take the Central Line and change onto the Victoria Line at Oxford Circus, but in this weather and with the air-conditioning turned down by TfL to save money, I’d rather gnaw my own arm off than stand crammed like a sardine with my face buried in a stranger’s aromatically unwashed armpit, while spiky-bagged tourists clamber in and jam themselves in the narrowest parts of the exits with their container-ship backpacks and transcontinental wheelie bags.
Only when I detrained at Victoria did they downgrade the service to 'minor delays'. It is now posted as 'devere delays.'
God knows how frequently they are running now that London Underground have owned up to it.
Jolly Boding Weather
Thursday, July 22nd, 2010 03:55 pmWell, how disappointing.
Just before lunch the sky went very grey around here, to the point that down in the atrium coffee lounge it went noticeably darker. When I came back up to my bit of the office, it was hammering down outside – what my Nan would have called “raining stair-rods” and even in the office it was feeling much cooler.
By the time I went out at lunchtime the rain had stopped, though the ground was still wet and the air fresh. Sadly, it’s all dried up now and indoors, despite the air-conditioning, it’s beginning g to feel warm again. This does not bode well for the out doors temperature and/or humidity.
Grumble.
Just before lunch the sky went very grey around here, to the point that down in the atrium coffee lounge it went noticeably darker. When I came back up to my bit of the office, it was hammering down outside – what my Nan would have called “raining stair-rods” and even in the office it was feeling much cooler.
By the time I went out at lunchtime the rain had stopped, though the ground was still wet and the air fresh. Sadly, it’s all dried up now and indoors, despite the air-conditioning, it’s beginning g to feel warm again. This does not bode well for the out doors temperature and/or humidity.
Grumble.
Jolly Boding Weather
Thursday, July 22nd, 2010 03:55 pmWell, how disappointing.
Just before lunch the sky went very grey around here, to the point that down in the atrium coffee lounge it went noticeably darker. When I came back up to my bit of the office, it was hammering down outside – what my Nan would have called “raining stair-rods” and even in the office it was feeling much cooler.
By the time I went out at lunchtime the rain had stopped, though the ground was still wet and the air fresh. Sadly, it’s all dried up now and indoors, despite the air-conditioning, it’s beginning g to feel warm again. This does not bode well for the out doors temperature and/or humidity.
Grumble.
Just before lunch the sky went very grey around here, to the point that down in the atrium coffee lounge it went noticeably darker. When I came back up to my bit of the office, it was hammering down outside – what my Nan would have called “raining stair-rods” and even in the office it was feeling much cooler.
By the time I went out at lunchtime the rain had stopped, though the ground was still wet and the air fresh. Sadly, it’s all dried up now and indoors, despite the air-conditioning, it’s beginning g to feel warm again. This does not bode well for the out doors temperature and/or humidity.
Grumble.