Upminster Bridge tube station

Upminster Bridge tube station is a London Underground station on Upminster Road in the Upminster Bridge neighbourhood of the London Borough of Havering in northeast London, England. The station is on the District line and is the penultimate station on the eastern extremity of that line. The station was opened on 17 December 1934 by the London, Midland and Scottish Railway on the local electrified tracks between Upminster and Barking that were constructed in 1932. The main station building is of a distinctive polygonal design. It has low usage for a suburban station with 0.93 million entries and exits during 2008.

History
The London, Tilbury and Southend Railway from Fenchurch Street and Barking was constructed through the Upminster Bridge area in 1885, with stations at Hornchurch and Upminster. The Whitechapel and Bow Railway opened in 1902 and allowed through services of the Metropolitan District Railway to operate to Upminster. The Metropolitan District converted to electric trains in 1905 and services were cut back to East Ham. Delayed by World War I, electrified tracks were extended by the London, Midland and Scottish Railway to Upminster and through services resumed in 1932. The Metropolitan District Railway was incorporated into London Transport in 1933, and became known as the District line. The new tracks built by the London, Midland and Scottish Railway allowed additional intermediate stations to be constructed on the local lines between 1932 and 1935. Increased local demand was caused by the expansion of the built up area of suburban London during the interwar period. The station at Upminster Bridge opened with platforms on the local electric lines on 17 December 1934. The station was operated by the London, Midland and Scottish Railway but was only served by District line trains. After nationalisation of the railways in 1948 management of the station passed to British Railways and in 1969 ownership transferred to the London Underground.

Design
The station consists of a central island platform between the tracks that are elevated on a railway embankment. There are four tracks through the site. The platforms are located on the northern pair of tracks with another pair to the south used by c2c outer suburban services. The full length of the platform is covered by a single station canopy with a central waiting room. The Art Deco red brick ticket office is located below platform level to which it is connected by a subway and stairway. Although similar to the other single-storey station buildings on this part of the route, it is notable for its high atrium roof and polygonal shape. The floor is tiled with a reversed swastika pattern, a popular decorative design at the time the station was constructed.

As part of the public–private partnership arrangement for maintenance of the London Underground, the station was refurbished by Metronet during 2005 and 2006. Works included provision of tactile strips and colour contrasted handrails for the visually impaired, installation of closed-circuit television cameras, passenger help points, new electronic departure information displays on the platforms, a new public address system, and improved lighting. The station does not have step free access from the platforms to the street.

Location
The station is named after a nearby crossing of the River Ingrebourne. The river was the boundary between the ancient parishes of Hornchurch and Upminster and the station is located on the western Hornchurch side. The station is situated on Upminster Road in the London Borough of Havering and is flanked by a parade of shops. It is situated in a primarily residential area and is near to Havering Sixth Form College and Hornchurch Stadium. London bus routes 248 and 370 serve the site of the station, providing connections to Hornchurch, Lakeside, Romford and Upminster. The London Loop key walking route passes outside the station, and it forms the end point of section 22 from Harold Wood and the starting point of section 23 to Rainham. The station is located on the eastern extremity of the District line and is the penultimate station before the terminus at Upminster. Upminster station is 1.24 km to the east of the station and Hornchurch is 1.26 km to the west.

Services
The station is in London fare zone 6. The typical off-peak service from the station is twelve District line trains per hour to Upminster and twelve to Earl's Court, of which six continue to Wimbledon and six continue to Richmond. At peak periods the number of trains per hour increases to fifteen. Services towards central London operate from approximately 05:00 to 23:30 and services to Upminster operate from approximately 06:00 to 01:30. The journey time to Upminster is two minutes; to Barking is approximately 20 minutes, and to Victoria is approximately 56 minutes. Since 2006, the station has been one of the first on the network to operate without a staffed ticket office. During 2008 there were 0.93 million passenger entries and exits at the station, higher than the annual usage over the preceding five years, but lower than neighbouring stations on the route.