Just been doing a bit of Googling as the petition to change the name back to Gillespie Road has resurfaced, although it only has just over 4000 signatures (One of which was Arsene Wenger!). The bitterness and jealousy seems to be driven by a few Spuds, one of whom put "Red Ken was a closet Gooner, let`s try again with Boris". Another put "as there is not a place called Arsenal and the football club has moved away (!!!!) please change the name back to restore our heritage". The station apparently is hardly used apart from rush hour and match days and was extended in 1932 to cope better with the football crowds. The "tidal flow" system, whereby a small part of the pedestrian tunnel is fenced off for people going against the flow, is unique in the London system. The original Gillespie Road tiling is still present on the platforms. I doubt if any of the people living near the ground were even born when the name was changed. I don`t think this petition needs to be taken seriously as TFL wouldn`t go to the expense of re-naming and it`s been going since 2003 but perhaps it needs keeping an eye on.
Your right snappy they would never incur the expense of renaming the station.Quite a large number of supporters use the station on match days and it is still the nearest `open` station to the Emirates.How busy it is on non match days I`m not sure but I assume local residents use it daily.
[quote]1.8 million users annualy compared to 6.5 million at Holloway Road. Take away the football and that`s not many at all.[/quote]
Hmm not many at all,I suppose it would be in TFL`s interest to close it as there are other stations close by.If they do they could rename Holloway Road `ARSENAL AT THE EMIRATES` which would encourage our sponsors to help pay for the change.
If they are worried about people flow, why dont they get rid of most of the staffed counters and replace with machines (that dont break down often) and get it staffed by only a few people
Actually, a lot of the time on non-match days it is not staffed. As a local resident I use it regularly, and think how much more traffic Finsbury Park Station would get if Arsenal tube weren't there.
Another thing about the station was that it wasn't created for Arsenal, but renamed for us. They are unlikely to get rid of it OR change the name. Especially in credit crunching times like this.. Herbert Chapman was definitely a LEGEND for getting it renamed! Wonder how he managed it
[quote]Another thing about the station was that it wasn't created for Arsenal, but renamed for us.[/quote]
True but it was enlarged and modified after the club moved in. The second pedestrian tunnel was dug and the street level extended. It`s a very shallow station; very few steps but a gradual slope up from the platforms.
[quote]Just been doing a bit of Googling as the petition to change the name back to Gillespie Road has resurfaced, although it only has just over 4000 signatures (One of which was Arsene Wenger!). The bitterness and jealousy seems to be driven by a few Spuds, one of whom put "Red Ken was a closet Gooner, let`s try again with Boris". Another put "as there is not a place called Arsenal and the football club has moved away (!!!!) please change the name back to restore our heritage". The station apparently is hardly used apart from rush hour and match days and was extended in 1932 to cope better with the football crowds. The "tidal flow" system, whereby a small part of the pedestrian tunnel is fenced off for people going against the flow, is unique in the London system. The original Gillespie Road tiling is still present on the platforms. I doubt if any of the people living near the ground were even born when the name was changed. I don`t think this petition needs to be taken seriously as TFL wouldn`t go to the expense of re-naming and it`s been going since 2003 but perhaps it needs keeping an eye on.[/quote]
