This week, new external signs were installed on Brent Cross West station, a visible signal that London’s newest mainline station will soon be operating. 

The bold lettering above Brent Cross West’s eastern and western entrances marks an important step in the journey towards the project’s completion, with the Thameslink station set to open to the public in the autumn.

Part of the Midland Main Line and sitting between Cricklewood and Hendon, trains will connect passengers from central London to Brent Cross in as little as 12 minutes, with up to eight Thameslink services an hour at peak times.

Led by Barnet Council, built by VolkerFitzpatrick, and project managed by Mace with Network Rail a key programme partner, works have been continuing behind the scenes across the 7,000 square metre site.

The station is essential to the regeneration of the area. As part of the ambitious Brent Cross Cricklewood Regeneration Programme, it will be the gateway to north London’s new park town, Brent Cross Town, which alone will deliver 6,700 new homes and create 25,000 jobs.

Councillor Barry Rawlings, Leader of Barnet Council, said: “The new Brent Cross West station is fundamental to our plans to transform the local area, creating thousands of new jobs and much-needed new housing. It’s great to see the new signage signalling the progress of this ambitious project.”

A central ambition of the wider programme has been to offer new opportunities to local people from a range of backgrounds and through a range of routes. To date, as part of the Brent Cross West works, 102 Barnet residents have been employed on the project, and 20% of the workforce from Barnet and neighbouring Brent and Camden boroughs.

This has included five young people through the Kickstart Scheme, involvement through apprenticeships – read Himnish’s story – and encouraging more women to get involved in construction, including through work placements – hear from Natalia and Leila. We’ve also involved local businesses, including Emma, who owned and ran a food van on Brent Terrace Industrial Estate for 17 years and who now runs the staff canteen at the station.

The station is also an integral part of Barnet’s commitment to tackling the climate emergency. This includes provisions for bike storage and good bus and cycle links to the surrounding area. A new transport interchange is also under construction with three bus routes proposed to stop directly outside the station.

Councillor Alan Schneiderman, Cabinet Member for Environment and Climate Change, and Cricklewood Ward Member, said: “We are on a journey with local people, communities and businesses to become a net zero borough. The new station at Brent Cross West is important in helping to achieve this by improving public transport options and offering an environmentally friendly way to connect across the borough and the capital.”

 

Mike Evans, Operations Director for VolkerFitzpatrick, also commented: “This is an exciting moment for us to step back and reflect on this substantial and structurally complex build. I want to thank everyone who has been involved with the building of this station – they’ve worked incredibly hard to bring it to this point. It’s a real achievement and has taken great planning, close collaboration, and robust processes to safely coordinate around the existing railway infrastructure.”

An official opening date for Brent Cross West station will be announced this Summer.

Keep up to date on the project by following us on Twitter @transformingbx or on our Brent Cross West web pages.

Find out more about opportunities across the Brent Cross Cricklewood regeneration programme.

For image usage requests and media enquiries, please contact transformingbx@barnet.gov.uk