Whether you are travelling from Brighton to Basingstoke, Mortlake to Milton Keynes, or from Hove to Harrow, Clapham Junction Station is your friend. With around 2000 trains a day going through, it is the busiest station in Europe. It is also the busiest in the UK as an interchange with close to half a million people changing trains here per day during the week.
It is not particularly pretty, nor is it as architecturally interesting as some of the other main stations in London, but it is efficient. There are 17 platforms and there is an underpass or overhead concourse to travel between them. Personally, I like the tunnel, old and busy with shops and food vendors, as the means of movement, but it does get crowded at peak times and there are no escalators or lifts, so stairs are the only way down. The raised pathway has lifts and it is more modern. It is also brighter and it feels less claustrophobic at peak times.
Surprisingly, Clapham Junction is not connected to the tube, but it is served by many buses and has parking for a couple of hundred bicycles. Should you require step free access, make sure that you are dropped off at the Brighton Yard entrance, rather than the shopping centre side in Grant road.
Time Out Online has Clapham Junction Station listed under “things to do”. I’m not sure that I would go quite that far, however, if you spend any time travelling around in London, you are likely to change trains here. When you do, it is worth taking a moment to think about the number of trains and people going through, and then marvel at the level of competence required to run, what is effectively, one of the biggest train sets in the world.
The London Lark! 