Arnos Grove tube station
Piccadilly line · Zone 4 · Enfield
About Arnos Grove station
Charles Holden’s round ticket hall at Arnos Grove is a drum of brick and tall glass panels rising from a low single-storey base and capped with a flat concrete roof. Its inspiration is debated. It is often linked to the Stockholm City Library and Gunnar Asplund, but Holden’s chief assistant Charles Hutton said the idea came from a groundsman’s lodge at Midhurst Sanatorium designed by Holden’s practice in 1904–06. The old passimeter, or ticket office, in the middle of the hall now holds an exhibition about the station and the line. Listed Grade II on 19 February 1971, the building was upgraded to Grade II* in July 2011, and The Guardian picked it as one of 12 great modern buildings in October 2007.
The station opened on 19 September 1932 as the end of the first section of the Piccadilly extension from Finsbury Park, and remained the terminus until trains reached Oakwood on 13 March 1933. Bowes Road, Arnos Park and Southgate were all considered as names. Three tracks run between four platform faces, the centre one used by trains reversing here, and seven sidings lie to the south. Coming from central London, this is the first station in the open air since the tunnel that begins east of Barons Court.
First and last trains from Arnos Grove
| Line and direction | Mon–Thu first – last | Friday first – last | Saturday first – last | Sunday first – last |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Piccadilly towards Northfields, Heathrow Terminal 5 or Heathrow Terminal 4 | 05:19 to Heathrow Terminal 5 – 00:04 to Heathrow Terminals 2 & 3 | 05:19 – all night | 24 hours | all night – 23:10 to Heathrow Terminals 2 & 3 |
| Piccadilly towards Cockfosters or Oakwood | 06:19 – 01:04 | 06:19 – all night | 24 hours | all night – 00:46 |
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 24 Piccadilly trains an hour per direction from Arnos Grove, counting both directions separately.
Next stations from Arnos Grove
Running times between Arnos Grove and the adjoining stations, from TfL’s timetable.
| Line | Next station | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Piccadilly | Bounds Green | 3.1 min |
| Piccadilly | Southgate | 3.5 min |
Connections
Arnos Grove is served by the Piccadilly line only; there is no interchange with other rail lines here.
Station facilities
What is near Arnos Grove station
Arnos Grove stands on Bowes Road and serves a mainly residential district that takes its name, like the station, from the Arnos Grove estate that lay to its north. Bowes Road Clinic is about 170 m away, Arnos Library about 210 m and Arnos Park about 320 m. The station is also the management base for the seven stations from Cockfosters to Turnpike Lane, and a drivers’ depot, Ash House, is linked to it by a lineside passage. New Southgate railway station is around ten minutes away on foot.
| Place | Walk from the station |
|---|---|
| Bowes Road Clinic | 170 m |
| Arnos Library | 210 m |
| Arnos Park | 320 m |
Frequently asked questions
Charles Holden gave it a circular, drum-shaped ticket hall of brick and glass with a flat concrete roof. It is often said to echo the Stockholm City Library, though his assistant Charles Hutton traced the idea to a groundsman’s lodge at Midhurst Sanatorium. The building has been Grade II* listed since July 2011.
The station has three parallel tracks and four platform faces. The central track, reached from platforms 2 and 3, is normally used by trains that terminate and turn back here, and it is the only one with access to both running lines towards Southgate, so it is used when a shuttle runs to Cockfosters.