New London Train Line Names

[ScoldsBridal]

Just announced. Definitely a Feminist vibe to them. Love that the line that goes through Wembley has been named the Lioness Line. There’s also:
The Suffragette Line
The Windrush Line
The Liberty Line
The Weaver Line
The Mildmay Line

I laughed as Twitter are making out the Weaver Line is named after Jackie Weaver 😂 It’s actually honouring the textile industries it passes through in areas like Spitalfields and Hackney.

Windrush is fantastic too. Serving areas with people that have strong connections to the Caribbean. Symbolically powerful.

The Mildmay Line - is such a lovely word and honouring a small, charitable hospital that was at the forefront of AIDS/HIV treatment. Also had a tradition for treating Jewish immigrants in the East End.

The Liberty Line - again just a great name - it goes to Havering which was historically a ‘Liberty’ town.

And finally The Suffragette Line which goes to Barking were Annie Huggett lived - the longest surviving Suffragette who lived to 103. And also the spirit of the East End working classes who fought for Women’s Rights.

I know people will moan about it being ‘woke’ (yawn) but I think they’ve balanced out honouring London’s varied communities with some strong branding. I like how they haven’t chosen named people - but have emphasised social history, achievement and recognition of real contribution to the Metropolis of London.

I’m sure there will be some imaginative re-naming by passengers - suffering on the Suffragette line - Stuck in the ‘rush’ hour on the Windrush etc…

But I like them.

£6m wouldn't even go part of the way towards paying for those things.

You can plan all
you want but when the service is not running then
no pretty names will help.

also, the orange is not a tangle. It’s clear that it follows an orbital route.

@Chersfrozenface
"Liney Line" 😂
I like that.

Sorry to distract, but whenever I read, or hear the word Goblin, I think of the tinned suet puddings of my childhood.

@ChardonnaysBeastlyCat it's not orbital because you can't get from Crystal Palace to Clapham Junction by Overground.
If that section of track (currently used by Southern) was taken over by Overground then it would technically be orbital.

Given the amount of disruption from engineering work/ power failure/ signal failure/ driver shortage and sadly suicide, and given how hard it is to decipher quickly which section of the line is affected, this is a good idea. I like the names. But I'd have done the job for TFL for considerably less than 6M and absolutely agree that their priority needs to be safety.

TFL are responsible for 408 stations (according to my quick google check).

£6m is a little under £15k per station.

That might pay for the installation of a single extra light per station.

So the point is that because it's too expensive to sort out it's much easier to change a train line name instead?

I love these names. They have instant romance and local historical significance. We could give them numbers, sure, but names are great for tourism. Who wouldn't want to ride on the Liberty Line? Or the Lioness Line.

Ok, it roughly follows an orbital route.

😂
Or just...Raaaar! (as furious passengers hear about delays)

It is incompetent naming anyway:

• L
• L
• M
• S
• W
• W

They had six lines, and somehow managed two lines starting with L and two starting with W.

They needed better diversity with the names, "Liberty" and "Lioness" are the same length and look similar on public signage, not great with people with poor eyesight (or looking at a distance). And they talk about experts consulted over the colours, well the red and purple intersect and look too similar!

Just surprised Khan didn't call one line "Far-right" as he seems to call everything and everyone that.

It's not one line going round in an almost orbital though. Its loads of lines which intersect. You've got Barking, Stratford and Dalston Junction as end points for three lines in the East. So it's a confusing mess.

The Mildmay line may get called the Mildy line, pronounced Mile-dy.

Or if it has a reputation for unreliability, the Mouldy line.

I like the ‘Liney Line’ but it could also be the ‘Nessy Line’ too?

I lived in London for 15 years and I think the lines having names is genuinely useful.

Chersfrozenface · Today 13:25

Or if it has a reputation for unreliability, the Mouldy line.

Mildew probably rolls off the tongue better!

Spending £6m on this is a small one-off outlay.
TFL should do a lot more to make public transport safer and more woman-friendly. Having said that, this naming of lines is not an anti-women or anti anyone else action. It has a practical point - unlike the Pride pillar or progress flag crossings. Neither is it a pro-women measure. It's just a fun way of helping Londoners and visitors navigate one particular part of the transport system. Good on them (for once), I say.

The jokes and corruptions of the names of the lines will be part of the culture. Like London Underground itself is called the Tube. It's good.

Hurray! All good things, in my book.

The new names are great too, and it will be handy having the lines marked out in different colours on the map.

It’ll always be the GOBLIN line around here!

"I know it's my train, because it's got my name on it."

names are great for tourism

This is how it feels to me, though, that these names are for tourists. Like the city's now always being themed for visitors rather than being a living city for us.

I like the ‘Liney Line’ but it could also be the ‘Nessy Line’ too?

People do love reduplication, though. See Boaty McBoatface.

Mildew probably rolls off the tongue better!

They are also very fond indeed of diminutives ending in -y.

The principle is fine and in the grand scheme of things £6m is not a huge sum of money. But I’m not over keen on the name choices, in particular the lioness line and Mildmay line sound a bit clunky.

No. They're not mutually exclusive.