Piccadilly Line Archives

Compared to the vintage charm just one stop down the line in Uxbridge, Hillingdon station is completely different. The original station was opened in December 1923, but nearly 70 years later the widening of the A40 meant that the station was in the way. Hence in 1992 a new Hillingdon station was opened, all paid for out of the roads budget that covers the A40 widening. This means that Hillingdon is the newest station on the Metropolitan Line.

This new station is a glass structure, letting in huge amounts of light, but giving it a bit of a greenhouse feel. On a hot day it can also feel like you’re in a greenhouse temperature-wise too!

There is also a glazed passageway up to the station from the street and whilst waiting for the lift to take us between the platform and the ticket hall you get a cracking view of the A40 and the traffic on it, as well as a view of the trains as they come into the station from the east. As with many buildings of this type of construction, the station is starting to look a bit tired right now, so I do wonder if there are plans to give it a bit of a clean up at any point.

Those of you keeping a keen eye on the photos I include here will notice that the roundel actually refers to Hillingdon (Swakeleys). This isn’t reflected on the tube map though. I’m trying to find out why that isn’t the case. As far as I understood the official station name was Hillingdon (as show by the sign over the entrance) but I don’t know why the roundel has both names on it.

From the research I have done though it seems that Swakeleys was a part off Hillingdon, named after a local mansion, where a large part of the grounds were turned into housing. There’s a Swakeleys Park still in existence which isn’t that far away from Hillingdon station, but also a Swakeleys School which is actually closer to the centre of Hillingdon.

Hillingdon today is certainly not one of those stops that the tourists will flock to, but in July 2011 it did get added to the London Borough of Hillingdon’s locally listed buildings and just a couple of years after it opened it was Underground Station of the Year too!

Tube Stop Baby Facts – Hillingdon

Date of visit: 15 February 2019

Underground Line(s): Metropolitan and Piccadilly

Zone: 6

If you want to know more about our Tube Stop Baby Challenge then pop over here and have a read.

I seem to be working my way through stations that being with the letter “U” at the moment. Hot on the heels of Upminster and Upminster Bridge was our visit to Uxbridge.

Right over the other side of London, Uxbridge is in zone 6, at the end of the Uxbridge branch of both the Piccadilly and Metropolitan Lines and I think it fair to say that it is one of the most splendid stations on the tube network.

Uxbridge station was designed by Charles Holden (who was responsible for designing many Underground stations in the 1920s and 30s, as well as the London Underground Headquarters at 55 Broadway in London) it really is an impressive building. Many people also compare it to the station he designed at Cockfosters, which is at the other end of the Piccadilly Line.

There are so many things to look out for when you visit Uxbridge and it is really worth a trip to the end of the line if you’re a fan of anything tube related. The ticket hall area has some lovely stained glass that catches the light on a sunny day.

You can also spot an old buffet sign in the ticket hall, which leads you to what is now a thoroughly decent cafe that serves a very good all day breakfast and mug of tea.

In addition to old fashioned light up train indicators you should also seek out the preserved old cigarette machines outside what is still a newsagent at the entrance to the ticket hall from the forecourt.

These really are something that you just wouldn’t see today and it’s beautiful to see that they are still there.

After passing through the ticket hall towards the trains, there is a large concrete canopy over the tracks and with the high up windows it gives it almost a cathedral type of feel. It’s no surprise therefore that the station buildings have Grade II listed status.

Tube Stop Baby Facts – Uxbridge