Life Under The Dome – Kings Cross Station’s New Western Concourse

Next week an architectural marvel to rival the neighbouring St Pancras International Station opens across the street – the new semi-circular dome of the Western Concourse at Kings Cross Station.

Designed to accommodate and ease the flow of the anticipated increase in passenger numbers expected during the Olympics and beyond, the new building is supported by a huge central column and 16 smaller ‘trees’. It’s a dramatic contrast to the old western range with its honey-coloured bricks just next door, but here looks can be deceiving. While most of the original building dates from 1852, a section of it was destroyed by a bomb during the war and was never rebuilt – in fact over the years this section has become colloquially known to rail staff as the ‘bomb gap’. When construction of the new concourse was being planned it was decided to carry out a sympathetic restoration, so while the entire building looks like it dates from the 1800s, slightly lighter coloured brick indicates a 21st century addition built to exactly the same proportions. When you next wander through the station the new section is easy to spot if you know where to look…

The western range’s ticket hall has also been reopened, so rather than purchasing tickets in the 1970s monstrosity at the front of the station, passengers will be using the original Victorian facilities again, with its rather ornate raised walkway above the ticket counter. Under the dome there are also a lot more places to eat, several new entrances to the London Underground and an elevated walkway that sweeps around the perimeter and which leads to a brand new footbridge serving all of the platforms inside the train shed.

In a nod to recent cinema history you’ll also find that Platform 9 3/4 is now accessible on the ground floor next to the suburban rail platforms, and for the benefit of the adults Kings Cross Station now sports a new pub. Again they’ve made the best use of the old station facilities by siting the bar inside the atrium of the postal sorting office, which hasn’t seen a parcel or any other activity for that matter for many, many years.

As far as the future is concerned, over the next year or so the 1970s jumble at the front of the station will slowly be removed, to be replaced by a large public square that will expose the frontage of the station for the first time since about 1870 or so – surprisingly Kings Cross wasn’t built with sufficient facilities to cope with the number of passengers even at the start of its operation, so there have always been free-standing buildings out on the Euston Rd.

If you use Kings Cross Station frequently you might also want to note the change in passenger flow that is being introduced when the new Western Concourse opens in a week’s time. All passengers will enter through the dome and exit through the older facilities onto the Euston Road, at least until demolition commences. I understand that there will be plenty of staff on hand during the first few weeks to help you out if you get confused by the new layout, and if you want to prepare yourself in advance there’s also a useful map on the East Coast website to download and print.

If you have any questions or comments please do pop a note in the box below – I did the full tour last week so have lots of additional information on hand!

About Pete Stean

Pete Stean is a London-based writer and photographer. He can also be found on Twitter and on Google Plus.

Comments

  1. Great pictures Pete – did you attend the opening?

    • The Londoneer says:

      Hi Henry, no I went early last week on a secret bloggers' tour, but was under an embargo for a week – that was a strange experience :)

  2. The new entrance to Kings Cross station opened to the public today, and it looks suitably impressive. With St Pancras and the University of the Arts building it makes a cluster of Victorian buildings that have been readapted for the 21st Century. Lewis Cubitt, the original Kings Cross architect should be proud of himself – a station thats built to last but flexible enough to be readapted its everything good architecture should be. If you are interested in the history and architecture of the area, Footprints of London are visiting the area on Sunday in our walk All Change at Kings Cross – see http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/event/2697519353 for details.

    • The Londoneer says:

      Thanks for the info Rob – I was lucky enough to get in there two weeks ago, well before the general public. It's a truly impressive space, and I particularly appreciate the fact that it provides several new ways to get into and out of the tube station.

Trackbacks

  1. [...] ‘Supported by a huge central column and 16 smaller ‘trees’’, the design overhaul at the hands of architects John McAslan & Partners, will make journeying through the station a far more enjoyable exercise: ‘The western range’s ticket hall has also been reopened, so rather than purchasing tickets in the 1970s monstrosity at the front of the station, passengers will be using the original Victorian facilities again, with its rather ornate raised walkway above the ticket counter.’ [...]

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