Redbridge is a

London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent ceremonial counties of England, counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and He ...

station on Eastern Avenue in the Redbridge district of Ilford in North East

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, on the

Hainault Loop The Hainault Loop was originally opened as the Fairlop Loop, a branch line of the Great Eastern Railway (GER). It once connected Woodford on the Ongar (now Epping) branch to Ilford on the Main Line, with an eastward connection for goods, ...

of the Central line, in Zone 4. The station was opened on 14 December 1947. Construction had begun in the 1930s, but was delayed by the onset of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. During the war, the completed train tunnels at Redbridge were used by the

Plessey The Plessey Company plc was a British electronics, defence and telecommunications company. It originated in 1917, growing and diversifying into electronics. It expanded after World War II by acquisition of companies and formed overseas compani ...

company as an

aircraft An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines ...

parts factory. The station building was designed by renowned Tube architect,

Charles Holden Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning was " ...

, who also designed the other two below ground stations on the branch. Originally, the station was to have been named "West Ilford", then this changed to "Red House", before the final decision was made on "Redbridge" (also given in the plans as "Red Bridge").

History and Location

Plessey opened its wartime munitions factory in the (at the time) incomplete tube tunnels between Gants Hill and Wanstead in 1942, and production lasted until 1945. Since the station was built, a large roundabout has been constructed next to it, being a junction between the A406 (originally the terminal section of the M11), and the A12. Redbridge is often described as the shallowest deep level (as opposed to

cut-and-cover A tunnel is an underground passageway, dug through surrounding soil, earth or rock, and enclosed except for the entrance and exit, commonly at each end. A pipeline is not a tunnel, though some recent tunnels have used immersed tube constr ...

) station on the network, as it is only beneath the surface. However, this is misleading as the station tunnel was constructed by the cut-and-cover method, with the running lines descending into genuine tube tunnels at either end of the platforms – similar to the Central line platforms at

Mile End Mile End is a district of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the East End of London, England, east-northeast of Charing Cross. Situated on the London-to-Colchester road, it was one of the earliest suburbs of London. It became part of the m ...

. In July 2011 it was granted Grade II listed building status by English Heritage. It was also mentioned in the Department S episode ''The Last Train To Redbridge'', although the actual station does not appear in it.

Connections

London Buses London Buses is the subsidiary of Transport for London (TfL) that manages most bus services in London, England. It was formed following the Greater London Authority Act 1999 that transferred control of London Regional Transport (LRT) bus se ...

routes 66, 145 and 366 and night route N8 serve the station.

Inside the station

Image:Redbridge station westbound look east.JPG, Westbound platform looking east Image:Redbridge station eastbound look west.JPG, Eastbound platform looking west Image:Redbridge_station_entrance north.JPG, Image:Redbridge_station ticket_hall ceiling.JPG,

References

External links

Redbridge station at CharlesHolden.com

RedRag (Redbridge Roundabout Action Group) achieves bus rerouting at the station
{{central line navbox Central line (London Underground) stations London Underground Night Tube stations Tube stations in the London Borough of Redbridge Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1947 London Underground stations located underground Charles Holden railway stations Art Deco architecture in London 1947 establishments in England Grade II listed buildings in the London Borough of Redbridge Grade II listed railway stations