Bayswater tube station

Bayswater station stands in the City of Westminster on the Circle and District lines. It sits on Queensway, a busy tourist street, just metres from Bayswater Road. The station is less than 100 metres from Queensway station on the Central line. Nearby are Portobello Market, Westbourne Grove, Queens ice rink and bowling centre, Kensington Gardens and St Sophia’s Greek Orthodox Cathedral. The former Whiteleys shopping centre lies further north along Queensway. The station opened in 1868 as part of the Metropolitan Railway’s southern extension to South Kensington. Its platforms were built in a deep trench using the cut-and-cover method, with a glazed roof except for a short unroofed section to let out steam. In 1905 the line was electrified, improving conditions and increasing service frequency. The station was renamed several times before settling as Bayswater in 1949. It was refurbished in 2006. Visitors find a busy station with Circle and District line services running every ten minutes in each direction. The platforms show signs of the station’s past names, including Queen’s Road. A painting by Walter Sickert from 1916 shows the platform sign reading ‘Queen’s Road (Bayswater)’ beside an advertisement for Whiteley’s. The area around the station offers shops, markets and green spaces within a short walk.