please empty your brain below
"North London line" sounds like a perfectly sensible name, or perhaps "Richmond line" and "Clapham Junction Line" if we need to differentiate the strands, but clearly running together between Willesden Junction and Stratford (we manage to understand this when the District and Circle lines run together so I don't see why we can't hear).

Perhaps a slightly more useful approach however, and one which could be used on the other parts of the network, would be to take a lesson from the Paris RER, on which each line has a letter, and each branch has a number. We could still use each line's memorable name, but with trains designated with the shorthand version to identify their route. For example:

A train from Richmond to Stratford or vice versa might be N1 whilst a train from Stratford to Clapham Junction might be N2, differentiating it from a, perhaps, E1 between Highbury and Islington and Clapham Junction on the East London line.

Robert | Homepage | 06.11.17 - 7:02 a.m. | #

I have known the North London Line to be confused with the Northern Line, so would suggest something else. As it follows the aproximate line of the regents canal, how about the Regency Line

timbo | 06.11.17 - 7:54 a.m. | #

North London Link

| 06.11.17 - 8:22 a.m. | #

Oh, I like the letter idea. Er, let's see - N, W, B, H, E and U.

Andrew | 06.11.17 - 8:24 a.m. | #

What about Nellie.

Still anon | 06.11.17 - 8:25 a.m. | #

In reality, it's been known as the North London Line for decades, and used to be labelled as such on tube maps, even in BR days. So any other name would be perverse. However, it does feature in Zadie Smith's novel, "White Teeth" in which it is referred to as the Free Train. However since TfL took it over it is both much less free and also less scary. So in her honour, how about the Zadie Smith Line?

Dominic H | 06.11.17 - 8:48 a.m. | #

I think I read once the the line was saved from the Beeching axe by the erstwhile MP for Finchley. Funny nobody's suggested naming it after her.

martin | 06.11.17 - 8:59 a.m. | #

OL3

IsarSteve | 06.11.17 - 9:03 a.m. | #

Of course the North London trains used to be the B2 and B4. Confusingly the B1 never went anywhere near B and wasn't really a North London train, it just used the same stock. There were posters saying "Identification of trains by headcodes". So let's bring back the B's even though the station no longer exists!

ap | Homepage | 06.11.17 - 10:08 a.m. | #

@ap

"B" stood for a stopping service, and was nothing to do with Broad Street. You would occasionally see a "C" (for an empty-to/from-depot service)

B9 was the Croxley Green branch - the other numbers were various short workings.

tlmbo | 06.11.17 - 10:36 a.m. | #

I'm with Timbo: Regency Line (there's also Regent's Park, though it does a big skirt around that area to serve Hampstead - though Camden Town isn't far away). I'm not wedded to that specific name and if a better one comes up then go for that, but the principles at play are good ones.

Yes, Dominic's point about the years being called 'North London Line' is very valid, but - on top of being boring - does have that confusion issue with the Northern.

Si | 06.11.17 - 11:27 a.m. | #

@Timbo. Thanks for that. Isn't it funny, you see / remember something and always think that ( Broad Street ) must have been the reason when it wasn't!

ap | 06.11.17 - 11:51 a.m. | #

I think most people still know it as the North London Line, so it seems to make sense to run with that.

Alternatively, given it passes through two Host Boroughs and affords passengers of excellent views of the Olympic Park, Olympic Line might be a fitting tribute to the games and the role the line played in getting people there.

Patrick | 06.11.17 - 12:06 p.m. | #

I'd definitely go with North London Line, it's classic and pretty much clear.

I'd also say, judging by passenger discussion, that if you're going to retain the term Overground for one of the lines, this would be the one to do it for.

the orange one | 06.11.17 - 12:34 p.m. | #











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