Parts of Northern line to be closed for four months

A 17-week closure will affect various stations connecting to central London between Moorgate and Kennington stations from January 15 until mid-May next year.

Bank itself will be shut, while London Bridge, Borough and Elephant & Castle will have no access to the Northern line.

The closure is around six months later than intended due to the lockdown delaying TfL’s major projects last year

Before the 17-week closure, there will be a series of weekend closures in the coming months between Moorgate and Kennington, including July 31, August 1 and September 4 to 5.

The disruptions are likely to affect people looking forward to their post-Covid restriction plans and anyone needing to commute to work in central London.

Bank itself was among one of the busiest interchanges pre-pandemic, and many rely on the station to travel to and from London.

There will however be more trains at Charing Cross from next January, and a new bus route will also run between Oval and the City.

Vernon Everitt , TfL managing director for customers, communication and technology, said: “While there is never a right time to do anything like this, the prize at the end of the day of a new ‘crown jewel’ that we will have in the centre of the city to attract people back to London... we believe is worth the disruption of a 17-week blockade.”

Once completed, the project will increase capacity at the station by 40 per cent and reduce the time it takes to change between lines.

Two new lifts, 12 escalators and two moving walkways will also be implemented at the station.

Stuart Harvey, director of major projects for TfL, said: “The changes to the station will transform the experience of every customer that uses Bank and will help the City as it continues to recover and people return to the area.

“I look forward to that work being complete next year, but I am sorry that this vital and complex work will cause disruption early next year.”