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The Acton–Northolt line (ANL), otherwise known as the New North Main Line (NNML), is a railway line in West London, England. Built between 1903 and 1906, it runs from the
Great Western Main Line The Great Western Main Line (GWML) is a main line railway in England that runs between London Paddington and . It connects to other main lines such as those from Reading to Penzance and Swindon to Swansea. The GWML is presently a part of t ...
at Old Oak Common TMD to the
Chiltern Main Line The Chiltern Main Line is a railway line which links London () and Birmingham (Birmingham Moor Street railway station, Moor Street and Birmingham Snow Hill railway station, Snow Hill) on a route via High Wycombe, Bicester, Banbury, Leamington ...
at
South Ruislip South Ruislip is an area of North West London in the London Borough of Hillingdon. A 2017 estimation put the population of South Ruislip ward as 13,150 residents. Education Schools in South Ruislip include Bourne Primary, Deanesfield, Field E ...
, alongside the West Ruislip branch of the
London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or as the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent home counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England. The Undergro ...
Central line, for a distance of around .


History

Historically known as the New North Main Line, it opened in 1903 as part of a joint project by the
Great Central Railway The Great Central Railway in England was formed when the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway changed its name in 1897, anticipating the opening in 1899 of its Great Central Main Line, London Extension. On 1 January 1923, the company ...
(GCR) and the
Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a History of rail transport in Great Britain, British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, ...
(GWR) to improve access to their termini from London to the Midlands and North of England, especially relative to the
London and North Western Railway The London and North Western Railway (LNWR, L&NWR) was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. In the late 19th century, the LNWR was the largest joint stock company in the world. Dubbed the "Premier Line", the LNWR's main line connec ...
(LNWR). It begins at Old Oak Junction on the
Great Western Main Line The Great Western Main Line (GWML) is a main line railway in England that runs between London Paddington and . It connects to other main lines such as those from Reading to Penzance and Swindon to Swansea. The GWML is presently a part of t ...
(GWML) from
Paddington Paddington is an area in the City of Westminster, in central London, England. A medieval parish then a metropolitan borough of the County of London, it was integrated with Westminster and Greater London in 1965. Paddington station, designed b ...
and runs via Greenford to join what is now the
Chiltern Main Line The Chiltern Main Line is a railway line which links London () and Birmingham (Birmingham Moor Street railway station, Moor Street and Birmingham Snow Hill railway station, Snow Hill) on a route via High Wycombe, Bicester, Banbury, Leamington ...
at Northolt Junction, southeast of
South Ruislip South Ruislip is an area of North West London in the London Borough of Hillingdon. A 2017 estimation put the population of South Ruislip ward as 13,150 residents. Education Schools in South Ruislip include Bourne Primary, Deanesfield, Field E ...
. The line joined the
Great Western and Great Central Joint Railway The Great Western and Great Central Joint Railway was a railway built and operated jointly by the Great Western Railway (GWR) and Great Central Railway (GCR) between Northolt (in north west London) and Ashendon Junction (west of Aylesbury). It was ...
between West Ruislip and Denham station in 1906. Its original name was "Denham – Junction for Uxbridge" as it was planned to be a stop on the shuttle service between
Gerrards Cross Gerrards Cross is a town and civil parish in Buckinghamshire, England. It lies immediately south of Chalfont St Peter and a short distance west of the London Borough of Hillingdon, from which it is separated by the parish of Denham, Buckinghams ...
and Uxbridge High Street. The latter was closed in 1964 and later demolished. Since 1948 the West Ruislip branch of the
London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or as the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent home counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England. The Undergro ...
Central line has run alongside it. In the past, it carried many trains to the northwest, and it was heavily used in the 1960s when electrification work restricted capacity on the
West Coast Main Line The West Coast Main Line (WCML) is one of the most important railway corridors in the United Kingdom, connecting the major cities of London and Glasgow with branches to Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool and Edinburgh. It is one of the busiest ...
(WCML); but when that project was completed, express services from London to Birmingham on the GWR/GCR route were discontinued as part of the
Beeching cuts The Beeching cuts, also colloquially referred to as the Beeching Axe, were a major series of route closures and service changes made as part of the restructuring of the nationalised railway system in Great Britain in the 1960s. They are named ...
. All local trains on the route were diverted to
Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also ) is an area in London, England, and is located in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. Oxford Street forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropo ...
via Sudbury in 1963, and Greenford station on the New North Main Line was closed. In the early 1990s the New North route was reduced to a single-track layout between Old Oak Common and Park Royal and between Greenford and South Ruislip. No improvement work has been carried out on the line since then. Plans at this date to close Greenford East signal box and its semaphore signals, with upgraded signalling controlled by
Slough Slough () is a town in Berkshire, England, in the Thames Valley, west of central London and north-east of Reading, at the intersection of the M4, M40 and M25 motorways. It is part of the historic county of Buckinghamshire. In 2021, the ...
and Marylebone signalling centres, were postponed indefinitely as decline of rail traffic controlled by
Greenford Greenford () is a large town in the London Borough of Ealing in West London, Greater London, London, England, lying west from Charing Cross. It has a population of 46,787 inhabitants. Greenford is served by Greenford station, Greenford Stati ...
East did not justify the cost. In 2018 the section between Park Royal Sidings and Old Oak Common was closed for construction of HS2 and the connection with the GWML at Old Oak Common was severed.


Modern use

As described, the Central line has largely replaced its business. Until December 2018 it was used for goods trains carrying refuse from London and was a diversionary route when the normal lines to Marylebone or Paddington were closed.
Chiltern Railways Chiltern Railways (legal name The Chiltern Railway Company Limited) is a British train operating company that has operated the Chiltern Railways franchise since July 1996. Since 2009, it has been a subsidiary of Arriva UK Trains. Chiltern Rail ...
operated a token service to and from
Paddington Paddington is an area in the City of Westminster, in central London, England. A medieval parish then a metropolitan borough of the County of London, it was integrated with Westminster and Greater London in 1965. Paddington station, designed b ...
on weekdays; the 10:57 from South Ruislip and 11:35 return which continued forward from South Ruislip, terminating at
High Wycombe High Wycombe, often referred to as Wycombe ( ), is a market town in Buckinghamshire, England. Lying in the valley of the River Wye, Buckinghamshire, River Wye surrounded by the Chiltern Hills, it is west-northwest of Charing Cross in London, ...
. It was replaced by service to
West Ealing West Ealing is a district in the London Borough of Ealing, in West London. The district is about west of Ealing, Ealing Broadway. Although there is a long history of settlement in the area, West Ealing in its present form is less than one hundre ...
via the Greenford line. The line from Greenford to Park Royal is still used for goods trains carrying refuse from London. For operational reasons such as balancing wheel wear, trains including those of
Heathrow Express Heathrow Express is a high-frequency airport rail link operating between London Heathrow Airport and . Opened in 1998, trains run non-stop, with a journey time of 15 minutes. The service is operated jointly by Great Western Railway (train operat ...
which were affected by tight track at Heathrow Junction have been turned using the London end of the NNML, its triangular junction with the Greenford Branch Line and the GWML through Ealing. At weekends between 2008 and 2011 when major engineering works were taking place on the
West Coast Main Line The West Coast Main Line (WCML) is one of the most important railway corridors in the United Kingdom, connecting the major cities of London and Glasgow with branches to Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool and Edinburgh. It is one of the busiest ...
, it was also used by
Virgin Trains Virgin Trains (VT) (legal name West Coast Trains Limited) was a train operating company in the United Kingdom owned by Virgin Rail Group, a joint venture between Virgin Group and Stagecoach Group, Stagecoach, which operated the InterCity West C ...
' London Euston to Birmingham International ''Blockade Buster'' service, which ran via Willesden, Acton Main Line,
Ealing Broadway Ealing () is a district in west London (sub-region), west London, England, west of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Ealing. It is the administrative centre of the borough and is identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Pl ...
, Greenford, High Wycombe,
Banbury Banbury is an historic market town and civil parish on the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire, South East England. The parish had a population of 54,335 at the 2021 Census. Banbury is a significant commercial and retail centre for the surrounding ...
and
Coventry Coventry ( or rarely ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands county, in England, on the River Sherbourne. Coventry had been a large settlement for centurie ...
using Super Voyager sets up to 15 carriages long. At other times it was used by Chiltern Main Line services when the route to
Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also ) is an area in London, England, and is located in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. Oxford Street forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropo ...
was blocked; or by GWML services (via Banbury and
Didcot Didcot ( ) is a railway town and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in South Oxfordshire, England, located south of Oxford, east of Wantage and north west of Reading, Berkshire, Reading. Historically part of Berkshire, the town is noted ...
) if the line through is blocked. The route is also used for testing out new trains and for the training of new drivers. The line is now officially known as the Acton to Northolt Line, and carries the Engineer's Line Reference code of ANL.


Ruislip Waste Transfer

A siding was built in 1980 to serve the then-new waste transfer station at Victoria Road, South Ruislip.Brown, Joe, ''London Railway Atlas (Second Edition)'' (Ian Allan Publishing, 2009).


Future developments

Old Oak Common station is proposed for the combined part of the route with the GWML, for connections to and from the
Elizabeth line The Elizabeth line is a railway line that runs across Greater London and nearby towns, operating similarly to the Réseau Express Régional, RER in Paris and the S-Bahn systems of German-speaking countries. It runs services on dedicated infras ...
. Additional tunnelling under the New North Main Line will keep the line free for other potential passenger services, as in the April 2013 published decision by
High Speed 2 High Speed 2 (HS2) is a high-speed railway which has been under construction in England since 2019. The line's planned route is between Handsacre – in southern Staffordshire – and London, with a Spur line, branch to Birmingham. HS2 is to ...
and the
Department for Transport The Department for Transport (DfT) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport ...
to recommend further bore tunnelling under the of the '
Northolt Northolt is a town in North West London, England, spread across both sides of the A40 trunk road. It is west-northwest of Charing Cross and is one of the seven major towns that make up the London Borough of Ealing and a smaller part in th ...
Corridor' within the
London Borough of Ealing The London Borough of Ealing () is a London boroughs, London borough in London, England. It comprises the districts of Acton, London, Acton, Ealing, Greenford, Hanwell, Northolt, Perivale and Southall. With a population of 367,100 inhabitants, i ...
. The tunnel will minimise traffic and noise blight which a surface route would otherwise have caused. The further bore tunnelling will link up the tunnels already planned beneath
South Ruislip South Ruislip is an area of North West London in the London Borough of Hillingdon. A 2017 estimation put the population of South Ruislip ward as 13,150 residents. Education Schools in South Ruislip include Bourne Primary, Deanesfield, Field E ...
and Ruislip Gardens and
Old Oak Common Old Oak Common is a semi-industrial area of London, between Harlesden and Acton, London, Acton. The area is traditionally known for its railway traction maintenance depot, depots, particularly Old Oak Common TMD which was decommissioned in 2021. ...
to North Acton. HS2 Ltd found in a study it had undertaken that bore tunnelling this stretch of the HS2 route would take 15 months less than constructing a surface HS2 route through this area and be at least cost-neutral. Cost neutrality flows from avoiding 20 bridge replacements, particularly years to replace road over rail bridges at the Hanger Lane Gyratory System, amenity disruption, the construction of intermediate tunnel portals and the likelihood of substantial compensation payments. The tunnelling will mean the New North Main Line is severed twice. It has not been decided whether the line will be restored once construction is complete. However, as of mid-2024, the line is still in situ as a complete route from Old Oak Common to South Ruislip, however it is not used as such. A think tank with lobby group support has suggested that the line be used as part of services linking
High Speed 1 High Speed 1 (HS1), officially the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL), is a high-speed railway linking London with the Channel Tunnel. It is part of the line carrying international passenger traffic between the United Kingdom and mainland Euro ...
to
Heathrow Airport Heathrow Airport , also colloquially known as London Heathrow Airport and named ''London Airport'' until 1966, is the primary and largest international airport serving London, the capital and most populous city of England and the United Kingdo ...
. The London Mayor has responded to a proposal that the line becomes an additional branch of
Crossrail Crossrail is a completed railway project centred on London. It provides a high-frequency hybrid commuter rail and rapid transit system, akin to the Réseau Express Régional, RER in Paris and the S-Bahn systems of German-speaking countries, kn ...
. In a summary report by Network Rail which was released in 2017 proposed that by 2043 that there should be a new terminal at
Old Oak Common Old Oak Common is a semi-industrial area of London, between Harlesden and Acton, London, Acton. The area is traditionally known for its railway traction maintenance depot, depots, particularly Old Oak Common TMD which was decommissioned in 2021. ...
. This would mean an upgrade of the line to allow regular trains to once again run to the GWML replacing the current parliamentary service which runs from High Wycombe to West Ealing. Up to 4 trains per hour could run to Old Oak Common by 2043. The proposed upgrade would see redoubling of the line to a two-track railway with the possibility of line-speed improvements into the one or more platforms that could be provided at 'Old Oak Common' for the Chiltern Main Line. The number of platforms would depend on the number of services.


The line's former stations and sidings


Ruislip Gardens tube station

The tracks through the station were laid by the
Great Western and Great Central Joint Railway The Great Western and Great Central Joint Railway was a railway built and operated jointly by the Great Western Railway (GWR) and Great Central Railway (GCR) between Northolt (in north west London) and Ashendon Junction (west of Aylesbury). It was ...
with services starting on 2 April 1906, although there was no station at Ruislip Gardens at that time. The station opened on 9 July 1934. As part of the 1935–40 New Works Programme, Central line services were projected westwards from a new junction, west of North Acton on the line to
Ealing Broadway Ealing () is a district in west London (sub-region), west London, England, west of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Ealing. It is the administrative centre of the borough and is identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Pl ...
. The original intention was to extend the service as far as Denham, but work was delayed by
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
and the terminus of the extension was cut back to West Ruislip, with services starting on 21 November 1948. Mainline services calling at Ruislip Gardens ceased in 1958 and the mainline station closed, the Central line station remaining open. Until recently the entrance to a passenger stairwell was visible on the London-bound side of the Network Rail tracks.


Northolt facilities


Northolt goods yard and carriage sidings

These served several local businesses and were also used to store spare British Rail and London Underground stock on occasion. They were abandoned in the early 1990s.


Northolt Halt and station

Northolt Halt, located on the opposite side of the road bridge from the current Northolt tube station, was opened by the GWR in 1907. It was later renamed "Northolt (for West End) Halt", before gaining station status under its original shorter name. It was closed in 1948 following the extension of the Central line to West Ruislip, the current tube station opening on 21 November 1948.


Greenford facilities


British Bath Company siding

This siding served the British Bath Company factory beside the Paddington Branch of the Grand Union Canal. It was lifted when the factory closed in the late 1970s, and the area is now occupied by Fairway Industrial Estate.


Kelvin Construction siding

This siding served the Kelvin Construction factory, next to that of the British Bath Company. The area is now occupied by Kelvin Industrial Estate.


Aladdin Industries siding

This siding served the Aladdin lamp factory, a short distance south of the British Bath Company and Kelvin factories. It was lifted when the factory closed in the early 1980s (although the main factory building is still extant), and the area is now occupied by a
business park A business park or office park is a designated area of land in which many office buildings are grouped together. These types of developments are often located in suburban areas where land and building costs are more affordable, and are typically ...
. A
Rugby Cement Rugby Cement was the common name for a company based principally in Rugby, Warwickshire, which produced portland cement. With its origins in the early 19th century, the company was founded in 1862 as the Rugby Lias Lime & Cement Company Ltd befo ...
Terminal was immediately to the west of the former Greenford station up platform. This closed in about 1990.


Greenford station

The original Greenford station was opened by the
Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a History of rail transport in Great Britain, British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, ...
on 1 October 1904. The present station, adjacent to the original, was built as part of the Central line extension of the 1935–40 New Works Programme of the
London Passenger Transport Board The London Passenger Transport Board was the organisation responsible for local public transport in London and its environs from 1933 to 1948. In common with all London transport authorities from 1933 to 2000, the public name and brand was Londo ...
. It opened on 30 June 1947 after delay due to
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. Service at the original station was gradually reduced and it was closed in 1963.


Greenford freight sidings

These served several local businesses, but were closed in the 1990s.


Perivale facilities


Perivale GPO sidings

These originally served the local
Royal Mail Royal Mail Group Limited, trading as Royal Mail, is a British postal service and courier company. It is owned by International Distribution Services. It operates the brands Royal Mail (letters and parcels) and Parcelforce Worldwide (parcels) ...
distribution centre and sorting office, but were disused for this purpose for decades until eventual closure in the early 2000s.


Perivale Halt railway station

The
Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a History of rail transport in Great Britain, British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, ...
opened " Perivale Halt" on 2 May 1904. It closed on 15 June 1947, after the extension of the Central line to
Ruislip Ruislip ( ) is a suburb in the London Borough of Hillingdon in northwest London. Prior to 1965 it was in Middlesex. Ruislip lies west-north-west of Charing Cross, London. The manor of Ruislip appears in the Domesday Book, and some of the ear ...
. It had long wooden platforms and pagoda shelters, on an embankment reached by sloping paths west of Horsenden Lane South. The steam "push-and-pull" passenger service ran to
Paddington Paddington is an area in the City of Westminster, in central London, England. A medieval parish then a metropolitan borough of the County of London, it was integrated with Westminster and Greater London in 1965. Paddington station, designed b ...
; the line (the last main line to be built before High Speed 1) was shared with freight and with express trains to
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
(2 hours non-stop). Until the late 1920s, Perivale was entirely rural, despite its proximity to
Ealing Ealing () is a district in west London (sub-region), west London, England, west of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Ealing. It is the administrative centre of the borough and is identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Pl ...
. A Lens of Sutton photograph of the station is on page 77 of ''The forgotten Stations of Greater London'' by J.E. Connor and B.L. Halford (Connor and Butler) (). There was a similar halt at
South Greenford South Greenford railway station is in the London Borough of Ealing in west London, and is on the Greenford branch line, Greenford branch in Travelcard Zone 4. It is down the line from and measured from . All trains serving South Greenford ar ...
before it was modernised by
Network SouthEast Network SouthEast (NSE) was one of the three passenger sectors of British Rail created in 1982. NSE mainly operated commuter rail trains within Greater London and inter-urban services in densely populated South East England, although the networ ...
. The current
London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or as the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent home counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England. The Undergro ...
station was opened on 30 June 1947.


Sanderson & Sons sidings

These sidings served the Perivale factory of
wallpaper Wallpaper is used in interior decoration to cover the interior walls of domestic and public buildings. It is usually sold in rolls and is applied onto a wall using wallpaper paste. Wallpapers can come plain as "lining paper" to help cover uneve ...
firm Arthur Sanderson & Sons. They were lifted following the closure of the factory in the early 1970s.


Hanger Lane facilities


Twyford Abbey Halt and Brentham station

Twyford Abbey Halt, located just to the east of the current Hanger Lane tube station, was opened by the GWR on 1 May 1904. It was closed on 1 May 1911 and replaced by Brentham station, located to the west. This station, later renamed "Brentham (for North Ealing)", was closed between 1915 and 1920 due to
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
economies, and closed altogether in 1947 when the Central line was extended to West Ruislip. The current tube station, which opened on 30 June 1947, was called Hanger Lane as it was near that road.


Hanger Lane sidings

These few sidings were used by both London Underground and local businesses. They have now been mostly removed and the remaining one was heavily overgrown as of 2008.


Park Royal facilities


Brentham for North Ealing and Greystoke Park

Brentham for North Ealing and Greystoke Park was a railway station in the Park Royal district of London, on the New North Main Line. It opened as on 1 May 1911 as a replacement for Twyford Abbey Halt, but closed on 15 June 1947 in advance of the opening of the extension of the Central Line from North Acton to
Greenford Greenford () is a large town in the London Borough of Ealing in West London, Greater London, London, England, lying west from Charing Cross. It has a population of 46,787 inhabitants. Greenford is served by Greenford station, Greenford Stati ...
on 30 June 1947 and its subsequent replacement by
Hanger Lane Hanger Lane is a major road in Ealing, London, England. The majority of the road forms the westernmost part of the A406 North Circular Road, running north from the A4020 Uxbridge Road at Ealing Common to the A40 road in London, A40 Western Avenu ...
.


Park Royal West Halt

This halt was open between 1932 and 1947. It was located just to the east of the bridge carrying the London Underground
Piccadilly line The Piccadilly line is a Deep level underground, deep-level London Underground line running between the west and the north of London. It has two western branches which split at Acton Town tube station, Acton Town and serves 53 stations. The li ...
.


Park Royal Guinness brewery and sidings

These served the now demolished local
Guinness Guinness () is a stout that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness at Guinness Brewery, St. James's Gate, Dublin, Ireland, in the 18th century. It is now owned by the British-based Multinational corporation, multinational alcoholic bever ...
plant, but were closed by the early 1990s. The sidings are currently used for aggregate trains supplying a Lafarge Tarmac depot. Three possible transport services have been proposed for the area; the West London Orbital, Fastbus and the North and West London Light railway. In 2004, the multinational company
Diageo Diageo plc ( ) is a British Multinational corporation, multinational alcoholic beverage company, with its headquarters in London, England. It is a major distributor of Scotch whisky and other spirits and operates from 132 sites around the world ...
agreed to build extra Central line platforms at Park Royal tube station, as part of its First Central business park, built on the site of the former
Guinness Guinness () is a stout that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness at Guinness Brewery, St. James's Gate, Dublin, Ireland, in the 18th century. It is now owned by the British-based Multinational corporation, multinational alcoholic bever ...
brewery. As of 2010, this had not yet happened.


Park Royal station

Park Royal station opened with the line in 1903, and closed in 1937. It should not be confused with the current station of the same name on the Piccadilly line, which opened in 1931.


British Can Company sidings

These sidings served the Acton factory of the British Can Company (later taken over by Metal Box & Printing Industries), as well as the adjacent Walters' Palm Toffee factory. They were lifted in the mid-1960s, although the bridge that carried them over the Central line is still extant.


The Fiat (England) siding

Long since closed.


Joseph's siding

Long since closed.


The Marcon Topmix stone terminal sidings

They both served the Marcon Topmix stone works, but were mothballed in the late 2000s (decade).


North Acton tube station

The joint New North Main Line (NNML) of the Great Central and Great Western opened in 1903 and its North Acton Halt followed in 1904 however this only remained open until 1913. A new station opened in 1923 concurrent with the Central London Railway station but closed on 30 June 1947 when local services on the line were withdrawn. The Central London Railway (the precursor of the Central line) opened its adjoining North Acton station in 1923 on its 1920 extension to
Ealing Broadway Ealing () is a district in west London (sub-region), west London, England, west of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Ealing. It is the administrative centre of the borough and is identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Pl ...
. As
Transport for London Transport for London (TfL) is a local government body responsible for most of the transport network in London, United Kingdom. TfL is the successor organization of the London Passenger Transport Board, which was established in 1933, and His ...
explains: North of the Central line tracks were two freight lines, removed in the 1960s, running alongside the Central line as far as White City. To the north of those at a slightly higher level were the two tracks of the NNML. The footbridge to the NNML platforms is on the extreme left of this 1933 photograph.North Acton station in 1933
London Transport Museum.
The NNML platforms closed when the Central line was extended on new track from North Acton to Greenford station in 1947. Between South Ruislip station and Old Oak Junction, the GWR line was progressively run down, and in many places reduced to single-track, including the stretch running past the tube station. From May 2008 only freight trains and a token once-daily passenger service provided by Chiltern Railways used this stretch of line until closure in December 2018.


Old Oak Lane Halt railway station

Old Oak Lane Halt railway station was opened by the
Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a History of rail transport in Great Britain, British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, ...
in 1906 within the complex of lines at the south east end of the New North Main Line, a location with low potential for passenger traffic. It closed in 1947 without a replacement when the Central line of
London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or as the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent home counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England. The Undergro ...
was extended from North Acton to West Ruislip alongside the NNML under the 1935–1940
New Works Programme The New Works Programme of 1935–1940 was the major investment programme delivered by the London Passenger Transport Board (LPTB), commonly known as London Transport, which had been created in 1933 to coordinate underground train, tram, trolle ...
delayed by
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
.


References


See also

*
High Speed 2 High Speed 2 (HS2) is a high-speed railway which has been under construction in England since 2019. The line's planned route is between Handsacre – in southern Staffordshire – and London, with a Spur line, branch to Birmingham. HS2 is to ...
* North and West London Light Railway (proposal) *
List of closed railway stations in London List of closed railway stations in London lists closed heavy rail passenger stations within the Greater London area. Stations served only by London Underground or its predecessors, by Tramlink, and by the Docklands Light Railway are not included ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Acton-Northolt line Railway lines in London Railway lines constructed by the Great Western Railway Great Central Railway Disused railway stations in the London Borough of Ealing Standard gauge railways in England