Bow Road tube station

Bow Road station was part of an unsuccessful 1883 proposal to connect the sub-surface Metropolitan Railway with the above ground London, Tilbury and Southend Railway (LTSR). In 1897, the proposal was revived, this time with the District Railway (DR) as the sub-surface partner. The Whitechapel and Bow Railway (W&BR) opened on 2 June 1902. During planning for the station, the names "Wellington Road" and then "Bow" were considered. Bow Road station was not ready for the first day of service and opened with temporary buildings on 11 June 1902. The permanent structures were designed by the engineer Cuthbert Arthur Brereton. Fourth-rail electric service replaced steam trains on 20 August 1905.…

The station consists of two side platforms—numbered 1 for westbound and 2 for eastbound—either side of the tracks. The platforms are curved and partly underground, with the western section under Bow Road and the eastern section in cutting. The open-air section has canopies held up by wall brackets and the underground part has jack-arched roofing held up by hexagonal columns, of a design also still seen at Stepney Green. The 1902 Brereton-designed buildings are similar to the other new stations at Mile End and Stepney Green, but deviated from their layouts because of the constrained site. Platforms are 450 ft long, built to accommodate longer LTSR trains. The exterior has brown glazed bricks…