Escalating Difficulties

Many Londoners and visitors to London often express their horror and disbelief that it can take London Underground more than three years to repair an escalator and that escalators are so often out of order at stations such as Notting Hill Gate, Brixton and Bank-Monument.

In fact, the reasons for these long interruptions are believed to be similar to the reason unused Tube stations are mothballed - so that the government can use them secretly.

For instance, the third escalator at Brixton has been out of commission for years simply to provide a discreet ministerial “fast lane” for government officials visiting the Fridge nightclub. And the semi-permanent malfunctions of the escalators at Bank-Monument are actually part of a clandestine government initiative to keep the Square Mile’s office workers in peak physical condition in the event of a national emergency.