Entrance will be open until further notice after City North developer ‘not in a position proceed’

A much-maligned scheme to close a busy Tube station entrance for two years will not go ahead as planned.

The decision to shut the Wells Terrace gates to Finsbury Park Station forever this spring had sparked outrage and fears of travel chaos among residents.

But the work was part of the giant £220million City North development and this week Transport for London (TfL) said the company behind it aren’t ready to start work - so the gates will remain open “until further notice”.

David Hughes, London Underground’s director for major programme sponsorship, said: “Our upgrade of Finsbury Park Tube station is being co-ordinated with a project by City North Ltd which is adjacent to the station.

“City North has informed us that they are now not in a position to proceed with their work at this time.

“This temporarily impacts on our planned work at the Wells Terrace station entrance and means that this station entrance will remain open until further notice to minimise disruption to our customers.

“We remain absolutely committed to delivering improvements, including step-free access, at Finsbury Park Underground station.”

The timescale of the whole project now remains shrouded in mystery.

Robert Jenkins, project director for City North said: “The closure of Wells Terrace entrance to Finsbury Park tube station is part of a co-ordinated approach between City North and TfL to relocate the tube station entrance to within the City North scheme.

“We are still in contract discussions with our preferred contractor and are in negotiations to agree the finer detail of the construction programme.

“We therefore felt, in the best interest of the public, to inform London Underground that we would not yet require the tunnel for our development to ensure that any potential disruption was kept to the absolute minimum. We are working towards a satisfactory outcome and hope to make an announcement in the near future.

This temporarily impacts on the planned work at the Wells Terrace station entrance and means that the station entrance at Wells Terrace will remain open for the foreseeable future”.