Avoid Victoria Tube in rush hour

London Underground have asked commuters to stay away from Victoria station for evening peak time for the next 12 months. From this Monday 31st January, work will be begin on refurbishing the three escalators on the Victoria, Circle and District Lines, leading to restricted access to the station. People who use the station regularly will know that it's one of London's busiest stations (more than 220,000 people use it each day). It's already often closed due to congestion & overcowding.



Victoria Tube by Adam NFK Smith
Fortunately, all three escalators will not be closed at once, but the closures will be staggered one at a time. However, as more passengers leave the station in the evening rush hour than enter, the remaining two escalators will only carry people up from the platforms to the concourse.

If you want to use the Victoria line you'll have to enter via the District and Circle ticket gates and then go through a series of passages, stairs and smaller escalators - which the Evening Standard say could add more than 15 minutes to your journey.

Just to add to all the extra movement, ticket offices will also be shut from 4pm to 8pm.

Howard Collins, London Underground's chief operating officer, said: "The station is one of our busiest, with 80 million passengers a year expected to reach nearly 100 million a year by 2016. It is crucial we do this escalator work as part of modernising and enlarging the station."


Victoria by stvcr
In leaflets at the station, TfL have advised people use other routes and avoid entering Victoria Tube station at evening peak times. If you want you're being prompted to walk or get the bus to Green Park or Pimlico stations. Circle line and District travellers should look at making journeys from St James's Park or Sloane Square.

Good luck, now you'll know how people trying to change lines at Bank  feel with year long escalator work there, also adding to a convoluted interchange.