More than 10,000 people have now signed a petition calling for a full Tube service to be restored at the Kensington (Olympia) station .

The Connect Kensington Olympia petition was launched in November last year and has the backing of the owners of the Olympia London exhibition centre and Hammersmith MP Andy Slaughter, who mentioned the petition in Parliament last month.

It is calling on Transport for London (TfL) to restore a full regular District line tube service at the station.

According to the Olympia London website, there is only a District line service from Earl's Court on weekends, and during the week for some major events.

The station is also served by London Overground and Southern Railway.

Is is located next door to the Olympia London exhibition centre, which is owned by Yoo Capital.

Following the petition's launch, John Hitchcox from Yoo Capital said: “We are one of the most important business and public exhibition centres in the UK.

Benefits of a full Tube service at Kensington Olympia station

Connect Kensington Olympia on the benefits a full Tube service would bring:

  • Better underground services for local residents and business: Local residents and businesses opposed the removal of Kensington Olympia’s full tube service. Poor tube connections are limiting prospects and opportunities in the local community
  • Improve air quality and ease congestion: A full tube service would remove 5,700 round trip bus journeys between Earl's Court and Kensington Olympia. It would also lower the demand for taxis and private hire vehicles. This would deliver immediate air quality benefits to the area
  • Meet rising demand: Footfall at Olympia London has risen from 700,000 to 1.6m since 2011 (when the full Tube service was removed), and is likely to increase over the coming years. Only by having a full Tube service can local transport options meet this increasing demand
  • Deliver a fully-accessible station for all: Kensington Olympia station is not fit for modern London. The southbound platform does not have stair-free access from the Olympia London side. This platform can only be accessed stair-free via a lengthy detour along Russell Road and Hammersmith Road
  • Support the local authority: The current limited tube service is holding back this part of Kensington. With many businesses reluctant to settle in the area due to transport concerns, it needs a full Tube service to support growth in the local economy

“It’s an embarrassment that we don’t have a full public underground service to support our vital activities.

“We exhibit over 100,000 small and medium size businesses a year, delivering huge amounts of trade between businesses and the public.

“We have a station, we have tracks, TFL please just turn the trains on.”

Labour MP Mr Slaughter spoke in Parliament on February 27 about the need for a full Tube service at Kensington (Olympia) during a transport debate.

He later told getwestlondon : “We lost the timetabled tube service to Olympia in 2011 when Tory MPs lobbied Mayor Boris Johnson to close it.

"But with visitor numbers at Olympia planned to increase ten-fold, crowding on the Overground and many new residential developments, now is the time to re-instate it.

"Sadiq Khan is committed to improving the signalling on the District Line which will create more capacity.

"I urge all W14 residents to sign the Connect Olympia petition.”

A move to return a full underground service to the station would benefit businesses and people living in the area, according to the petition.

It would also meet rising demand, with footfall increasing from 700,000 to 1.6 million since the full Tube service was removed in 2011.

Kensington (Olympia) station, with the exhibition centre in the background

The current limited Tube service is holding back the area, the petition claims: “With many businesses reluctant to settle in the area due to transport concerns, we need a full tube service to support growth in the local economy.”

A TfL spokesperson said: “We run trains on our network according to demand, and we work closely with Olympia to make sure that there are services to the station at weekends and for special events.

"The Overground also runs through the station, with trains calling at Olympia every day.”

To see the petition click here .

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