Farringdon — Local services in London

A great station with lots of connections.

Farringdon is a London Underground and connected main line National Rail station in Clerkenwell, London, England , in the London Borough of Islington, just outside the boundary of the City of London. Opened in 1863 as the terminus of the Metropolitan Railway, the world's first underground passenger railway, Farringdon is one of the oldest surviving underground railway stations in the world.

The station was opened on 10 January 1863 as the terminus of the original Metropolitan Railway, the world's first underground metro line. The station , initially named Farringdon Street, was originally a short distance from the present station building. The line ran from the Farringdon area to Paddington, a distance of 4 mi (6 km).

The station was relocated on 23 December 1865 when the Metropolitan Railway opened an extension to Moorgate. It was renamed Farringdon & High Holborn on 26 January 1922 when the new building by the architect Charles Walter Clark[10] facing Cowcross Street was opened, and its present name was adopted on 21 April 1936.[11] It was built in conjunction with a freight station to take livestock to a slaughterhouse to its south-east to supply Smithfield Market; remains of cattle ramps on a street outside the market, West Smithfield. Smithfield was redesignated as a wholesale 'deadmeat' market in the 19th century and the freight station was last used in the 1920s.

The station frontage carrying the name Farringdon & High Holborn, 1989. The lines from Farringdon towards King's Cross St. Pancras run alongside the Fleet ditch, culverted since 1734.[12] The station building is unusually well-preserved early 20th-century London Underground architecture. It retains indications of the Metropolitan Railway's main-line style operation such as a sign for a parcel office on the outer wall and some original signage, with the 1922–1936 name on the facade.

After the bay platforms at Blackfriars closed on 21 March 2009, Southeastern services that previously terminated at Blackfriars were extended to Kentish Town, St. Albans, Luton or Bedford, calling at this station.[13] Thameslink trains to Moorgate ceased at the same time.

Recent and current developments edit

Farringdon has recently received significant upgrades to allow it to meet the needs of a series of major rail upgrade projects: The Thameslink Programme was a major upgrade to the existing north-south Thameslink route, enabling longer and more frequent trains, completed in 2018; and the Four Lines Modernisation involves the wholesale resignalling of the London Underground's sub- surface lines bringing a major boost in capacity to Circle, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan line services calling at Farringdon.[14] In addition the station has been significantly expanded to serve as a stop on the new east-west Elizabeth line providing interchange between Thameslink. and the Elizabeth line.

Once all these projects have been completed, Farringdon will be one of the country's busiest stations with approximately 200 tph, an average of one departure every 20 seconds.[15] A new building, housing a dedicated ticket hall, has been constructed to serve these extra passengers. The new building is to the immediate south of the original station, which itself has been upgraded as part of the programme.

An additional entrance has also been built at the north end of the original station, onto...

Who would have thought that an area known for Fabric and London’s premier meat market (no pun intended) would become such a desirable location for city types, wedged as it is between St Paul’s, the Barbican and the wilds of North London beyond. Farringdon is one of those places that just became trendy; clubs, bars and restaurants moved in and even the ancient site of Smithfield with its unglamorous history of gruesome executions and livestock and meat trading has acquired an air of 'raw' cool. Its Victorian market buildings preside over the locality and, as the day dawns, buyers and sellers mingle with the 4am traffic of weary clubbers wending their way home. Being in range of some of the freshest meat and produce in London, the area has attracted a number of gastronomic types, who have turned the market's environs, especially around Charterhouse Street, into a hub for yummy nosh-ups. Try leather-and-brickwork warehouse restaurant Smiths of Smithfield for a morning fry-up or a juicy steak. There are plenty of hotels nearby to be within walking distance of Farringdon's...

Elizabeth Line is Open! And wow! What a station this is, new pristine platforms and a brilliant long train that is very hard to get overcrowded! It is amazing!

The Thameslink platforms can be a bit narrow especially towards the back end of the station, which does knock it off the rankings by a bit but the easy quick access to the London Underground is remarkable and not only that but also the easy access to the Elizabeth Line! 1 lift straight down.

The London Underground is basically the same and the platforms aren't as narrow as Thameslink's are in some areas.

The Elizabeth line is completely new and has a similar style station to Tottenham Court Road, #PURPLETRAIN WOO!, We are loving this line! And it makes travel from stations like this so much more efficient. The platforms are super long and there is an entrance and exit at barbican that includes an incline lift which are super cool and a lot less scary then a normal lift!

Overall, This station is wonderful and is very safe and easy to access and I would highly recommend using it, if you are thinking of...