Old Street station

Old Street station stands in the London Borough of Islington, beneath the busy Old Street Roundabout. It is an interchange where the Northern line of the London Underground meets the Northern City Line of the National Rail network. The station lies between Angel and Moorgate on the Underground, and between Moorgate and Essex Road on the National Rail line. No grand building marks the entrance; instead, ramps and stairs lead down to a modern entrance beside a small shopping parade called St Agnes Well. The area around the roundabout mixes light industry with new offices, reflecting the changing face of inner London. The station opened in 1901 as part of the City and South London Railway, London’s first deep-level tube line. In 1925 the architect Stanley Heaps redesigned the entrance with help from Charles Holden, giving it a uniform look. The station was rebuilt again in 1968, moving all facilities below ground. By 2014 it had become one of London’s busiest, with over twenty million people passing through each year. The rise of Old Street as a hub for British information technology has kept footfall high and drawn more services to the area. Inside, the station has four deep-level platforms. Two serve the Northern line, running frequent trains to Morden, Edgware and High Barnet. The other two handle National Rail services to Moorgate, Stevenage and Welwyn Garden City. Above ground, the roundabout carries heavy traffic while nearby streets host pop-up shops and street art. A short walk leads to City Road, where a disused station once served the same line. The contrast between the station’s modern entrance and its century-old history makes it a quietly striking place in the heart of the capital.