Old Street tube station
Northern line · Zone 1 · Islington Hackney
About Old Street station
Nothing marks Old Street at street level: there is no station building, and the entrance lies below the Old Street Roundabout on the London Inner Ring Road, beside a sub-surface shopping parade called St Agnes Well. The City and South London Railway opened the station on 17 November 1901 on its extension from Moorgate to Angel, and the Great Northern & City Railway added its platforms on 14 February 1904 in 16-foot tunnels, big enough for main-line trains. Until Moorgate gained escalators between platforms in 1938, Old Street was the main interchange between the two routes.
After the narrow C&SLR tunnels were enlarged between 1922 and 1924, the surface building was rebuilt in 1925, when escalators replaced the lift shaft, with a frontage by Stanley Heaps and consultant architect Charles Holden. The station served as a bomb shelter during the Second World War. In 1968 the building gave way to the present sub-surface complex in the middle of the roundabout, with a second escalator shaft. Pop-up retail units were added around the entrance in 2014, as the surrounding area developed as a centre for information technology. On the Northern line it is part of the Bank branch, while for National Rail tickets the Northern City Line platforms count as a central London terminus.
First and last trains from Old Street
| Line and direction | Mon–Thu first – last | Friday first – last | Saturday first – last | Sunday first – last |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northern towards Morden | 05:55 – 00:35 | 05:55 – 00:35 | 05:55 – 00:35 | 07:28 – 23:44 |
| Northern towards Edgware, High Barnet or Mill Hill East | 05:49 – 00:37 to High Barnet | 05:49 – 00:37 to High Barnet | 05:49 – 00:37 to High Barnet | 07:30 to High Barnet – 23:43 to High Barnet |
Times are TfL’s published timetable departures from this station; on Saturday the list follows TfL’s “Saturdays and public holidays” timetable.
At the busiest hour on a weekday there are up to 25 Northern trains an hour per direction from Old Street, counting both directions separately.
Connections
- National Rail: Great Northern.
Station facilities
What is near Old Street station
The station straddles the Islington–Hackney boundary, and within about 300 m lies a cluster of burial places and memorials. Bunhill Fields Burial Ground is about 240 m away, as are the Museum of Methodism and the William Blake memorial; memorials to Thomas Bayes and Susannah Wesley lie at about 250 m, John Wesley at 260 m and John Bunyan at 280 m. Moorfields Eye Hospital’s City Road campus is around 230 m off and the Honourable Artillery Company Museum about 320 m. Charles Square and Aske Gardens provide green space at 260 m and 370 m.
| Place | Walk from the station |
|---|---|
| Moorfields Eye Hospital (City Road campus) | 230 m |
| Honourable Artillery Company Museum | 320 m |
| Quaker Court | 330 m |
| The Courtyard | 380 m |
| Museum of Methodism | 240 m |
| William Blake (memorial) | 240 m |
| Bunhill Fields Burial Ground | 240 m |
| Susannah Wesley Memorial | 250 m |
Frequently asked questions
The 1925 surface building was replaced in 1968 by a sub-surface structure in the centre of the Old Street Roundabout. Passengers now reach the platforms by ramps and stairs leading to a modern entrance beside the St Agnes Well shopping parade.
The Great Northern & City Railway, which opened its platforms here in 1904, built 16-foot (4.9 m) tunnels so they could carry main-line trains between Finsbury Park and Moorgate. That connection to Finsbury Park finally opened in November 1976, when the line became a British Rail route.