Southgate tube station
Piccadilly line · Zone 4 · Enfield
About Southgate station
Seen from the street, the flat concrete roof of Southgate’s raised centre appears to float on nothing but a band of windows. In fact it is held up, umbrella-like, by a single column inside the circular ticket hall. Charles Holden’s Art Deco design in brick, reinforced concrete and glass, crowned by an illuminated feature resembling a Tesla coil, as if lifted from Frankenstein’s laboratory. Listed at Grade II* since a 2009 regrading, it keeps its column lighting on the escalators and bronze panelling throughout; when the escalators were replaced in the late 1980s, the balustrades were made in bronze rather than aluminium to keep the 1930s look. Period dramas are often filmed here.
The station opened on 13 March 1933, together with Oakwood, on the second phase of the Piccadilly line extension to Cockfosters; “Chase Side” and “Southgate Central” had been suggested as names, and local residents received a free return ticket to Piccadilly Circus. Because it sits on a hill, its platforms lie in a short tunnel, and the portals are visible when looking north, a unique sight at a deep-level station. It is the network’s northernmost station in tunnels. A 2008 renovation won the London Regional award at that year’s National Railway Heritage Awards.
First and last trains from Southgate
| Line and direction | Mon–Thu first – last | Friday first – last | Saturday first – last | Sunday first – last |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Piccadilly towards Heathrow Terminal 5, Heathrow Terminal 4 or Rayners Lane | 05:14 – 23:59 to Heathrow Terminals 2 & 3 | 05:14 – all night | 24 hours | all night – 23:05 to Heathrow Terminals 2 & 3 |
| Piccadilly towards Cockfosters or Oakwood | 06:22 – 01:07 | 06:22 – all night | 24 hours | all night – 00:49 |
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 19 Piccadilly trains an hour per direction from Southgate, counting both directions separately.
Next stations from Southgate
Running times between Southgate and the adjoining stations, from TfL’s timetable.
| Line | Next station | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Piccadilly | Arnos Grove | 3.5 min |
| Piccadilly | Oakwood | 3.6 min |
Connections
Southgate is served by the Piccadilly line only; there is no interchange with other rail lines here.
Station facilities
What is near Southgate station
Planned from the start as a bus and Tube interchange, the main building stands on an island between Southgate Circus and Station Parade, where a row of bus stops wraps round it, with a curved secondary building of shops on the other side of the parade. Two small green spaces, Southgate Pocket Park and a rain garden, are about 60 m away, Southgate Library is roughly 220 m off, and the Southgate Centre of Barnet & Southgate College lies at about 270 m.
| Place | Walk from the station |
|---|---|
| Southgate Pocket Park | 60 m |
| Rain Garden | 60 m |
| Southgate Public Library | 220 m |
| Southgate Library | 220 m |
| Barnet & Southgate College (Southgate Centre) | 270 m |