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Location Profile: COVENT GARDEN |
Covent Garden is the first stop south of Holborn on the Piccadilly Line and serves the popular former flower/fruit market area including the Royal Opera House and the London Transport Museum.
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Passengers alighting here can marvel at the lifts that creak
alarmingly or be amused by the endless announcements about the 193 steps up the staircase
(Don't try it if you have a weak heart - take my word for it). It still retains much of its original tiling and many other period features, including it is rumoured a ghost of a man in a Victorian outfit and top hat..... |
| Covent Garden is another one of the lovely characteristic Lesley Green designed stations with the distinctive red terracotta building positioned on the corner of James Street and Long Acre. |  |
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At one time before the closure of the old fruit and vegetable market, it was one of the quietest central London stations on the system, a fact reflected in its small cramped station facilities. Indeed closure was even considered at one point. Since redevelopment of the adjacent area into what is now a major tourist trap, overcrowding and emergency closures now frequently occur, requiring intending passengers to board and alight at either Holborn or Leicester Square, both only a short walk away. |
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Two views of the famous Piazza area which was the former fruit and vegetable market. This corner is also where the London Transport Museum resides (which features in Holborn) but I can't show it to you as much like the rest of the Underground, it also has the builders in at the moment!!