Tube station to get revamp (From Harrow Times)

Tube station to get revamp

4:18pm Wednesday 26th January 2005

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NORTHWICK Park underground station is set for a revamp in the next few months after being chosen as one of the first stations to benefit from a large-scale investment programme by Metronet Rail.

The improvements, to be completed by the summer, include new passenger help points, electronic information boards and public address system, digital CCTV and a revised ticket office layout. There will also be repairs and redecoration to the station front, booking hall, public toilets, staircase and platforms.

Metronet project manager Anna Hladkyj said: "We had originally planned to do this work last year but rescheduled it to coincide with the weekend closures of the station for the Wembley Park station works in order to keep the public disruption to a minimum."

Northwick Park is one of the 150 stations to be upgraded by Metronet, who are responsible for nine of the twelve underground lines. They are pledged to spend £17 billion during their 30-year contract, including £7 billion in the first seven and a half years.

Air-conditioned trains are planned for the Metropolitan line by 2009.

Brent Mayor Councillor Ahmad Shahzad said: "This will be welcomed by everybody in the area and in the Town Hall because all we want is improvements to the service and that is exactly what we are getting."

L Metropolitan Line tube stations are to play classical music in ticket halls in an effort to tackle youth disorder. The move follows the success of a trial in the east end of the District Line which found that it reduced physical and verbal abuse by 33 per cent. Starting in April, tube company Metronet now plan to pipe the classics into 35 other stations on the District, East London, Metropolitan and Hammersmith and City lines.

The trial over the last eighteen months has shown that CD wired in to public announcement speakers reduces the number of youngsters hanging around stations. Psychologists say that classical music helps deter yobs because it is both "unfamiliar" and "uncool".

Metronet's Nicky Spiers said: "It will not just be ticket halls that get the music as before but also waiting rooms where youths congregate and may cause trouble. We won't be linking this to platform speakers though that's a captive audience and not everyone likes classical music!"

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