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John B · April 4th 06, 12:37 PM posted to uk.transport.london

wrote:
The interesting thing to consider is how the MHE branch can be made more
useful in the long term. One idea I put on my website is to have it as a
branch of Crossrail Line 2, and extend it to Watford Junction via MHB,
Edgware and Stanmore. This would mean that nobody in North London would
have to detour to Euston to catch a train to The North, and more
passengers would be attracted to the outer ends of lines, where there's
plenty of spare capacity. Does anyone else have any other ideas for it?

I'm sure I remember reading at some point a vague plan to run the East
London Line from Highbury & Islington to Finsbury Park, then take over
the old Parkland Walk to Stroud Green, Crouch End, Highgate, East
Finchley, Finchley Central and Mill Hill East. This was ages ago,
though, and I can't remember where I read it.

....and then on from Mill Hill East to Edgware.

Reviving the Northern Heights plan has been floating around London
officials and geeks alike for years. It would be more sensible for the
Northern Line than serving Mill Hill in the current way, which causes
delays and provides a fairly crap service (and was only built to serve
the barracks at Mill Hill during WWII...)

However, it runs into problems:
* capacity from (east of) Highbury to Finsbury Park
* accessing the old Parkland trackbed from Finsbury Park
* re-instating the trackbed (well-heeled Crouch End-ites will be rather
more resistant to the idea of a new railway outside their back gardens
than people between Dalston and Brick Lane)

I'd like to see it happen. I can't imagine it ever happening, though...

--
John Band
john at johnband dot org
www.johnband.org