London's 'mass of orange spaghetti' overground rail map given colours
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London Overground rail lines will be given individual names and colours to make the network easier to navigate.
The six names will be Lioness, Mildmay, Windrush, Weaver, Suffragette and Liberty, London Mayor Sadiq Khan has announced.
They were chosen to honour and celebrate "different parts of London’s unique local history and culture," he said. The overhaul will require one of the biggest changes in the history of the capital’s Tube map.
London Overground lines have all been coloured orange on the map since the network was created in 2007 when Transport for London (TfL) took control of services on four suburban rail lines.
The network has expanded significantly since then, creating what has been described as a "mass of orange spaghetti" on maps, making it difficult for some passengers to work out what train they need.
"We’ve now got six different lines and 113 stations. Finding your way around the London Overground is a nightmare," Khan said during a visit to Highbury & Islington station on Thursday
Each route will now be represented on Tube maps as parallel lines in different colours.
The names and colours for London Overground lines will be:
– The Lioness line between Euston and Watford Junction (yellow). This honours the England women’s football team winning Euro 2022 at Wembley, which is on the line.
– The Mildmay line between Stratford and Richmond/Clapham Junction (blue). The Mildmay Mission Hospital in Shoreditch specialises in treating patients with HIV-related illnesses.
– The Windrush line between Highbury & Islington and Clapham Junction/New Cross/Crystal Palace/West Croydon (red). The name honours the Windrush generation, who came to the UK from the Caribbean to fill labour shortages after World War II. The line runs through areas with communities linked to the Caribbean.
– The Weaver line between Liverpool Street and Cheshunt/Enfield Town/Chingford (maroon). The line runs through areas known for the textile trade.
– The Suffragette line between Gospel Oak and Barking Riverside (green). This is in tribute to the movement that fought for votes for women. Barking was home to suffragette Annie Huggett, who lived to 103.
– The Liberty line between Romford and Upminster (grey). This celebrates how Havering, which the line runs through, historically had more self-governance through being a royal liberty.
