The Lost Art of Cross-Platform Transfers 

With November and December come colder weather (in the northern hemisphere) and a lot more holidays, so we will be releasing some bonus videos over the next two months! This should be more sustainable than the “12 Days of Transit” we did last year and means more spaced out content! Enjoy!

I'm glad to see Lionel-Groulx mentioned here. It's an absolute joy to run across when the trains are perfectly timed (doesn't happen often enough).

I miss these so much from my time in Hong Kong and Taipei. I had one on my commute to work in Taiwan. There's nothing quite like a well-timed cross-platform transfer that makes you think, "yes, this is how things are supposed to work." I'm disappointed to hear that these are becoming less common. I had no idea they were so rare, to be honest.

Melbourne's City Loop has cross platform transfers at their stations. For example, you can go from a Caulfield Loop station on the Cranbourne & Pakenham lines, to a station on the Clifton Hill Loop

Building metro on viaducts is still common in India, but we don't have enough cross-platform transfers. In Delhi NCR, we have at Botanical Garden and Anand Vihar only above-ground and Central Secretariat underground.

Great explanation. But there're also a bunch of scenarios you should AVOID cross-platform transfers: If the connected lines run trains significantly different in size, don't build a cross-platform transfer: Otherwise passengers from longer trains may easily overflow shorter ones. This is especially the case when one line is a conventional high-capacity subway and another is a medium to low capacity light metro like the airtrains. If the connected lines run at different headways, don't build a cross-platform transfer, or don't until the headways are improved at least. This is quite self-explanatory: Otherwise you'll end up with platforms flooded with passengers transferring from the frequent line to the infrequent one. If both connected lines run at very high frequencies, and there're huge loads of transfer in both directions, don't build a cross-platform transfer. When two train berth at the same platform, you'll have crowds of people jamming into each other, which may lead to an incident. I think these are some of the reasons why the art of cross-platform transfers are shelved. It works very well when it's well-desiged and functions properly. But in a real-world transit system, everything could go wrong.

I’m just in the door from a bus in rural where I got soak whilst waiting but I was thinking of you because I notice our buses has more features recently like onboard information screens and maps

I don't know if this was intended, but the loghting in this video is so good!

In Amsterdam, I really appreciate the Amstel Train Station. I live on the metro line and I can take the metro and transfer to the national inter city train service by walking across a platform at the station.

I live near Stratford and it is not a particularly impressive station to use. It is a nightmare at peak hours because usage is vastly over capacity and with many passengers arriving by train it's hard to restrict. It is made much worse by piecemeal changes over the last twenty years that have tacked on or moved lines and platforms here and there without any grand plan. It now even has its own mini-tube map of how to get around which is not helped by some peak hour restriction on passenger flows. The cross platform interchange for the Elizabeth Line hasn't attracted much attention for two reasons. One is that this part of the line isn't integrated with the tunnels yet (that changes at the weekend) and so to all extents and purposes it's just the same old Liverpool Street to Shenfield metro line it's been for decades just under a new branding (even the trains were already in place during the previous TfL Rail branding). The other is that the cross platform interchange dates from the late 1940s when the Central Line was extended here and so it's not a new feature London based video makers are familiar with.

Cities should really invest in having direct subway access from tram/light rail stops! I think having escalators/elevators at the end of the tram platforms that go into the pedway into the subway station would really be good on rainy days. It's also very annoying to have to try to find the subway entrances after crossing the street. This would also boost capacity because you can only have so many people crossing the street and using the sidewalks so only having to walk down the platform and never cross the street to access the subway would be very useful. This would work well at Westlake in Seattle; there could be an escalator at the end of the streetcar route into the Central Link subway . This would be easy since the tram stop is at a plaza and also it would make sense because its a block away from the monorail and the subway itself. Also at Capitol Hill and King Street stations this could happen, but it might be hard to retrofit since the tram stops are in the middle of the street.

in London along the line from liverpool street - paddington, the metropolitan, circle, and hammersmith and city all run along the same platform, so you just walk across the platform and you hop on the train back, or you can just wait on the same platform for another line

The thumbnail feature Singapore aka my home country which is why I clicked this.

This video literally has the word MTR written all over 😂

Did you know RM TRANSIT there are cross platforms in The bangkok sky train at Siam station which serves the 2 lines that are part of the BTS sky train

You need to be introduced to São Sebastião station in the Lisbon Metro (crossing of the blue and red lines) If seamless transitions were embodied in one single station, this would definitely not be it 😅

IMO, the lack of cross platforms in a few recent systems relates to the desire for central businesses to maintain business concentration. Great transit rail systems grow dynamically away from a business/government central point that has the highest population density to begin with.

as a hong konger, I must say cross platform interchanges are extremely useful, especially during rush hours. I especially love the ones at prince Edward, mong kok and lai king. edit: changed hker to hong konger because 3 people think i'm a hiker

My wife (a disabled Canadian citizen PR in the US) and I enjoy your channel immensely. My wife has served on Trimet’s Committee for Accessible Transit for many years and we are both transit enthusiasts.

NYC has tons of these from express to local, but 7th Avenue on the B/D/E lines is unique as the trains come in in opposite directions on stacked platforms (53rd Street is too narrow for side by side platforms), but one platform can serve downtown since both trains turn downtown after that station (on different corridors), while the other platform is “uptown/Queens” since the B/D go up along Central Park West, while the E goes straight across town and across the river into Queens.

Switching between the red and green lines on the Stockholm Metro/T-bana is great! It has cross platform transfers, and and similarly as to in Singapore, you can switch to either line in either direction at two different stations.

In the Swedish metro we almost only have cross-platform. It's great. And the solution you mentioned in Singapore and Hong Kong has been in Stockholm since 1933, between the T-central, Gamla stan and Slussen train stations (between which the tracks of the red and green lines re-arrange themselves multiple times to allow for easy change between multiple lines and directions).

In New York, we have these, but mostly between express and local services. There are also a few true cross platform transfers between entirely different lines (e.g. Lexington Ave/63rd St, Queensboro Plaza). I go through Queensboro Plaza quite a bit, and more often than not, they hold trains in the station so you don't miss your transfer. Quite a few times I've been able to walk off my first train, straight across the platform, and onto the next train. Wayyy easier than the amount of walking you have to do at other stations for a transfer.

Cross platform transfers can be amazing and can save a ton of walking/time. Saving time is everything with a successful metro and should be a major emphasis (including walking time) for designers. Cross platform stations being shorter are also much cheaper to construct. That being said though...cross platform transfers are a bit trickier to develop especially with high frequency lines. They will require either an at-grade crossing for each line (twice) or expensive bridges/tunnels with some hill climbing. Ideally metro lines don't cross each other that often...as it creates complications for signalling/safety/speed/automation. A somewhat related topic you might bring up in another video are better ways of letting passengers cross tracks in single line stations. If my north bound lane has an east exit, but I need to get to the west end of the station, I typically need to walk in a huge circuitous route with most modern stations. Honestly suburban commute lines could actually let passengers use a cross walk at-grade to save a ton of walking time.

Yes the Cross Platform Transfers at Admiralty Station, Prince Edward Station, North Point Station, etc on the Hong Kong MTR are awesome! Thank you for making a video on this!

You Are So Right! ... and you're also right about cross-platform transfers somehow falling out of fashion. I've seen justifications for this like: (1) it's better to make people walk around long tunnels/escalators etc. as too many people hanging around can cause crowd problems, or (2) you need extra staff to check if passengers are rushing across the platform to join a train which needs to leave, or even (3) it can cause delays when trains have to be held for transferring passengers. But there's an excellent XPT at Poplar near the centre of London's DLR where all the trains are automatically controlled by computers - and there are - apparently - no problems. The worst new fashion is when designers of new lines describe the non-provision of XPTs as 'for the convenience of passengers' - e.g. at the new(-ish) London Bridge main-line station, or everywhere on the Elizabeth line (except at Stratford, where there was an XPT already with the Central line).

Everyone's favorite transit sh*tshow, Boston, actually has a cross platform transfer at North Station between the green and orange lines heading toward downtown. Its very seamless, and interesting to see a metro and a "light" rail system do a cross-platform transfer. More interesting, they ended up building it during the big dig when they were moving the green line below grade.

Basically this is why Lai King Station in Hong Kong is truely unique. Before the Lantau Airport Railway came along, the old Tsuen Wan Line had an island platform. It was later retrofitted that a new platform level was built above the old island platform and the Tsuen Wan Line was re-routed to create a same direction cross-platform transfer. Back then the Tung Chung Line also acts as a relief line for Tsuen Wan Line as it can reach Central/Hong Kong Station quicker, thanks to fewer intermediate stops and higher top speeds the A-trains can boast.

We have a lot of cross platform transfers in NYC, but many more rely on passageways, escalators and elevators mostly due to the fact that the NYC subway system was built by individual companies that didn't have transfers in mind.

6:50 probably because it already existed and was part of the Shenfield service that the Elizabeth line took over. Custom House however should’ve had one and not that stupid double ticket pad system for changing from Elizabeth line to DLR. They could have tried at Abbey Wood but fair enough that’s harder if you want to also do turnarounds with the trains. The core section also pretty tricky but Custom House should’ve had a cross-platform interchange

Yes to think the Victoria line built during the 1960s with its cross platform interchanges tunnels roll over each other to achieve this and no computers or laser levels and after all the tunnelling of the first section Walthamstow to Victoria they were only 2.5 CMs out when the sections joined up and all that automation too it was exactly on year late but considering the time not bad going at all

Are you telling me you don't enjoy the 300m tunnel stroll transfer at Spadina station? How dare you

In HK MTR, the newest opened station - Exhibition Centrer Station of the East Rail Line is actually build with two level side platforms at the moment to reserve space for future cross platform transfer with the Tseung Kwan O Line (North Island Line). Cross Platform Transfer is still a concept to be adopt in Hong Kong, even for future projects! :D Anyway this is a good video and thanks to mention about HK MTR! :)

Once again wonderful comments section I feel compelled to brag/point out that Chicago has many cross-platform transfers!! :) and I can attest to the fact that they are wonderful!! :)

I really like the cross-plattform transfer between the S-Bahn city tunnel and U7 in Frankfurt as it provides really easy interconnectivity of the region, airport and city (but mostly because it's in my home city)

The Elizabeth Line is an interesting case. There's quite a lot of good transfers on the western and eastern sections, where they use existing tracks and so run alongside other services, but in the central core they are non-existent. I suspect this is because the line had to be dug a lot deeper than the Central line and most of the other lines, and many of them cross at right-angles. The Elizabeth line would have had to have been very wiggly to make that happen. I think, basically, as a network gets denser, with more criss-crossing of lines, it becomes harder and harder to make cross platform transfers work.

Drinking game: Take a shot every time he says "cross-platform transfer".

We invest and build complex interchanges and fly-overs for low-capacity inefficient motor vehicles basically for every highway junction with no exceptions, but the thought of easy and accessible high efficiency cross-platform interchanges for transit users, oh the horror and the waste of taxpayer money.

The Principio transfer is really cool. If I really wanted to, I could walk from my class on calle Joaquin Mario Lopez to Moncloa at 12:15, take 6 to Principio, walk straight to a southbound 10 to Parque de Atraciones or the zoo and then reverse the trip to Arguelles for my 3:30-although I never did that for various reasons, but I did the trip via Lago instead once or twice by that methodology which is one of the few regrets I have about my time abroad (alongside not hitting up Port Aventura, but no one talks about Walibi Rhone-Alps, which is kind of in the middle of nowhere and they did not offer the Lyon shuttle on opening day, which was weirdly the Wednesday of Holly week, and then they were closed until the weekend-which I still don't understand)

I absolutely love how you make seemingly “boring” subjects in the already rather sterile and abstract field of transit incredibly interesting

Long Island Rail Road at Jamaica Station, NY uses three tracks to make some cross platform transfers work. Tracks 1 and 2 share an island platform and tracks 2 & 3 share an island platform. So if you arrive on track one and are departing from track 3, you wait for a train to pull into platform 2 and walk across through it to the other platform. They are pushing Brooklyn trains over to platform F so it's ruined for us when Grand Central Terminal expansion opens.

Yes, Lionel-Groulx is a great example of a cross-platform transfer that works effectively. I wouldn't however give credit to the planners for that reason. The Green line (and Orange line as well) were extended in the '70s, and it is important to understand the history and topography of Montreal that led to this design. The Green Line used to end at Atwater, and there was a tunnel segment used for switching empty trains between the two tracks that extended beyond the station. The Green Line was on a hill (Mount Royal) whereas the Orange Line was at a lower elevation. They re-dug the crossover extension to start the descent as an immediate turn to the left would not be possible (or at least not at an acceptable grade), as well as Westmount towers would need to be dug under which was not viable. Next time you are in Atwater station, take a look at the tunnel in the direction of Lionel-Groulx and you will see that while the track descends, the roof of the tunnel remains high for some distance (at least 500' of train length, plus some more for switches). An artifact that doesn't make much sense unless you know the history.

NYC subway has many cross platform transfers for people coming from different parts outside of Manhattan to switch to which line they want for Manhattan's core. (Ex. If you are coming from Coney Island, Brooklyn those trains go sixth ave in Manhattan, but if you want to go up Eighth ave you can change to that train (which came from Euclid Ave, Brooklyn) in Downtown Brooklyn. Those trains do meet again in the core of the city but since there's several other lines, you'd have to navigate through the stations a bit or a lot.

In Malaysia, there are cross-platform transfer between the Kajang and Putrajaya MRT lines at 2 stations: -Kwasa Damansara -Tun Razak Exchange Also, Putra Heights station is also cross-platform transfer between Sri Petaling and Kelana Jaya LRT lines. Putra Heights station is also the southern terminus of both lines These are in Klang Valley (Selangor+Kuala Lumpur+Putrajaya)

Totally agree. The cross platform change between the Bakerloo and the Victoria line is a real time saver at Oxford Circus.

there are a lot of great cross platform transfers in the nyc subway. ac to f in jay st, ac to g hoyt schermerhorn, q to f in lex63, 23 to 45 in nevins st, e to bd in 7 av 53 st, qb to r in dekalb ave, 7 to nw in queensboro plaza, almost all express - local transfers

singapores jurong east cross platform is impressive but lacks the timing often in off peak when coming from the NSL to transfer to EWL eastbound, the EWL train simply slaps you and runs away and then you have to waste 5min throwing ur phone onto the ground

I might have said this earlier, but a video about the Frankfurt U-Bahn would be interesting. It feels more like an aboveground-train network, but the U-Bahn has some interesting elements, such as the U6 and U7 lines going directly along the S-Bahn tracks underground in the core of the city (Hauptwache-Konstablerwache). It is also interesting because initially on its development, they called it a Stadtbahn but became collectively known as a U-Bahn when they added more underground lines. Another thing interesting is the way they can integrate four lines (U1-U3, U8) into one central corridor, and that the U5 partially runs along a road (like a Tram) while still going underground. (They still managed to get level boarding on the stations along the road!) Another fact (I know there is a lot of them) is that the U3 line used to be a Tram line going all the way up to its existing terminus at Oberursel Hohemark! (The Frankfurt Tram network has now reached its 151st anniversary :) - so I really think that the Frankfurt U-Bahn (Ahem.. Stadtbahn) is really worth a look!

I am a daily public transport user in Kuala Lumpur and are so used to line transfers by going up and down escalators and never ending pedestrian tunnels. Transfers are an absolute nightmare especially during the morning/evening rush hour. Recently I tried the newly launched MRT Putrajaya Line and it allows super easy, cross platform transfer with the older MRT Kajang Line at Kwasa station. I was plesantly surprised at how convinient this was for my body and mind.... Hope my city can take inspiration from our neighbors down south and across the world for a more people-friendly public transport system.

I come from Hong Kong, and island platforms and cross-platform transfers are completely natural to me. Ditto to platform doors (this was added later to improve safety and reduces air conditioning costs) and wheelchair access to all stations (this was also added later). When I see brand new transit systems built, and I see the designers doing it 'wrong' despite that they should have looked at other cities for best practices how to build the most efficient system, I have to shake my head and wonder....what are you doing....now you'll have to go back and fix all your mistakes later?!?!?

The reason why London has moved away from cross-platform transfers is two-fold: The ability to isolate different parts of a station to deal with situations as required, and the safe temporary "storage" of passengers should the need arise. Taking Waterloo as an example: First, should there be an emergency situation of some sort on the Jubilee Line, then only that part of the station needs to be temporarily closed while keeping the other lines open and stopping as normal rather than closing the whole station. Secondly, the long passageways are designed to hold people in the event of a delay in the service. Should there be a 10 minute gap in the Jubilee Line service in the morning peak and hundreds of people are still alighting the other lines every minute during this time hoping to get the Jubilee Line, where will they go? They will be held in the tunnels as a safety measure to prevent overcrowding of platforms giving staff precious minutes to be able to non-stop Bakerloo & Northern Lines as required. Contrast this to a 10 minute gap on the Victoria Line during the peak with all its cross-platforms and it will become dangerous far more quickly with alighting passengers from other lines who wish to use the Victoria Line having nowhere to go. Personally I agree that cross-platform is by far the best! However as you stated, public transit is now designed from an operational point of view and not a user point of view.

The difference between transferring at Lionel-Groulx and Berri-UQAM is so pronounced. Making a long transfer everyday makes a commute so much less appealing than an easy one and I think in a north american context really encourages people to drive.

Mile End station in east London is a perfect example! can get off the central line and change for the district AND Hammersmith and city lines only a 5 steps away

not only metro, in Tokyo's JR system, there are lots of cross platform interchange for rapidall stop, along the Yamanote Ring Line and several Metro and JR/private rail Routes. Btw, MTR's urban line system still as a Legendary of Cross platform interchange. coz the three urban lines, Island, Kwun Tong and Tsuen Wan are planned together, and the part of system can have "preserved space" for next stage, such as reserved expansion space of station/for next route's expansion like Admiralty before construction work of Island Line, some station for interchange at Early era of Kwun Tong Line, Prince Edward still closed, etc.

I think we've been doing this in The Netherlands for over a hundred years ...

New York and London reign supreme with cross platform transfers

Reece Stratford is not mentioned because it was done 85 years ago with the nationalisation and integration of the Underground. The Elizabeth line branch has had a dozen rebrands over the last 3 decades. If anything the new central core is to relieve overcrowding at the successful cross-platform interchange. Stratford is a sequence of cross-platforms with Mile End and Barrons Court that allows for a level journey to Heathrow with heavy suitcases.

You left out Manchester airport from the examples. There, the tram has its terminus right next to the railway tracks. The best and easiest transfer possible.

Warsaw metro M3 planned line not only shows poor planning ( the first part of the line is not really useful as it is not really gonna be better for vast majority of people). But lack of abab platforms at stadion is just baffling

You missed the best part of cross platform transfers: watching everyone frantically run to catch the train that pulled in parallel to yours.

Same platfrom/track transfer on common sections of less busy multi-route networks can be similarly convenient, although crowding can be more of an issue. London's Victoria Line, planned and constructed in the late 1960s, certainly provided some impressive cross-platform stations, including a switch over of running directions through Euston for a more convenient interchange with the west end branch of the Northern Line. As large networks develop, fitting in easy interchange becomes more and more difficult at large multi-line stations unfortunately. The decision of which lines and directions of many to bring alongside each other for this is also not always straightforward where there's a lot of interchange. Apart from the safeguarded future Crossrail 2 corridor, it is said that there is probably no room to fit in any more lines AT ALL under London's central West End (commercial/entertainment) and City (financial) areas, let alone give the 'luxury' of aligning new tracks for cross-platform. There's also the question of speed. A very long roundabout approach alignment to get alongside another line might add distance and impose speed limits due to curvature. In London, many cross platforms, especially older ones, although broadly parallel and on the same level, are formed of individual station tunnels for each track, connected by a limited number of fairly narrow cross passages. 'Consistent platform for destination' is also a relevant feature. London's Infamous Camden Town alternates trains for City and West End routes from both converging Northern Line branches, each with their own platforms so you can't always know which is next for your particular city centre destination. At least the platfroms are on the same level so you can scoot through the passageways fairly quickly if info. changes, although its a fair distance between them, particulalry at the north end.

I think Crossrail in Stratford isn’t mentioned much because it isn’t a new cross platform interchange - it was built in the 1940s and Crossrail just took over the suburban services there.

If Line 1 in Toronto gets long enough, could be smart for them to snip it at Union, but have cross platform transfers for the few people who actually want to keep going. 🤔

I am not sure whether you are correct: I like to see some statistics before I believe specialist designers are not doing everything they can to create the best experience. In my Dutch train system, we move more and more to a Japanese system of trains: very little use of switches, mostly fly-overs to get to the optimal platform. Two main connections (between 4 larger cities, ABCD) are usually configured as a cross, with trains arriving at the same time on the same platform in the center station. Once every 15 (or 10) minutes, the trains run A-B+C-D, the next pair runs A-D+C-B. When you caught the easiest train for your trip, you do not have to switch trains. Otherwise, it requires a simple platform transfer during your trip. These cross-connections are on many stations.

The Netherlands actually has whole timetables built around cross platform transfers: for example the Intercity service from Rotterdam to Groningen has a cross platform transfer from the local trains from The Hague/Rotterdam at Gouda. At Utrecht Central there's a cross platform transfer from the IC from The Hague, at Amersfoort Central onto the IC to Deventer and at Zwolle onto the IC to Leeuwarden. Similarly the IC services from The Hague and Schiphol to Amersfoort Schothorst / Enschede alternate destinations, offering a direct train hourly and a cross platform transfer in Amersfoort at the other half hour for the same trip.

I assumed these were the norm given my experience in NYC and Tokyo.

I think I read this before, but while Hamburg in Germany might by all accounts have quite a lacking metro system for its size, it does cross platform transfers really well. They are timed, too, so both trains enter and leave at the same time so you can switch both ways. This is mostly utilized for passengers to enter/exit the central metro (or U-Bahn) ring line. The lines that cross it often have cross platform transfers with it. And the new line U5 that that is under construction will add at least two more cross platform transfers with other lines.

As a North Londoner, I'm blessed with two cross-platform changes on my route to the office, changing at Finsbury Park (Picc to Vic), then again at Highbury & Islington (Vic to National Rail)

I love Cross Platform transfers in Hong Kong. From Kowloon Tong to Disneyland, I have cross-platform at Prince Edward, Lai King, and Sunny Bay!

From my experiance they do this pretty well in the Netherlands, on my daily commute from Helmond to 's-Hertogenbosch I have to transfer in Eindhoven and on the way back to change trains I have to exit the train, walk to the otherside of the platform and then go on a train that arrives at the same time. And generaly for large transit hubs a platform is used for multiple train lines.

A little late to the party, but I just want to mention Rosslyn and Pentagon stations in the DC Metro. Both are stations where the line splits in two (Rosslyn the Blue line splits from the Orange and Silver, and at Pentagon the Blue line splits with the Yellow). It could've been so easy to just build a regular island platform station to allow travel between branches, but NOPE. Engineers decided to vertically stack the platforms so that one platform literally is below the other, so that if you want to switch branches you have to go up or down a set of escalators to get to the other platform, all because they were too lazy to build an underground flyover.

1:55 a metion of Principe Pío lest go !. Next as a sugestion explain how we can reuse the old can be use insted of demolish ( like New York did) . The roof of Pricipe Pio is the old Estacion del Norte ( noth station ) roof . And the integration Its relly good

The stratford layout didn't change with the new line though

0:38 Singapore MRT

I always think you should talk about simple systems as well, in London: Poplar, Oxford Circus, and Stockwell achieve cross platform interchange with out any extra flyovers by considering their placement. (There is a clever thing about breaking built in to these as well; Kennington and Mile end also provide similar good examples were a fly under isn't needed but allows the cross platform interchange) Canary Wharf DLR is clever but simple in that it puts the normally terminating branch line in the middle Spanish platform pair.

Berlin has some great examples for cross-platform transfers, even a station where you can transfer between U-Bahn and S-Bahn on one platform, even though they are non-interoperable systems. But they are still rarer than they should be.

It’s great when it works but man the signage is so confusing sometimes when you’re not familiar with the station

Let’s also add Tokyo Metro’s impressive thru running trains onto suburban commuter lines- the ultimate cross platform transfer since you kinda don’t get off the train for it! 😜 There are several instances of cross platforms between different agencies even like at Kudanshita between Toei Shinjuku Line and Tokyo Metro Hanzomon Line, and Naka-Meguro between the Tokyu Toyoko and Tokyo Metro Hibiya lines.

Cross platform transfers can be found in Vienna on the U-bahn and in Manchester on the Metrolink, but in Vienna, at Meidling Haupstraße, there are cross-platfrom transfers between the U4 and U6

The Elizabeth Line cross platform transfer at Stratford vastly pre-dates the Elizabeth Line - the exact same platforms were used for the old Liverpool Street suburban service and had been for years - probably since the Central Line extension in the 1940s.

There's a cross-platform transfer in Boston at Kenmore Station on its Green Line between the B branch and the C & D branches, another one at Park Street between the B & C trains and the D & E trains, and another one at North Station between the Orange Line and the Green Line but unfortunately only in one direction.

Funny how 2:59 mark is from Admirality station, and that itself is a good example of cross-platform transfer between two lines, but the hustle is for the other two lines on the station.

In Berlin many U-Bahn and S-Bahn Station are cross platform transfer. In particular wuhletal is a cross-platform between s-bahn and u-bahn. And I recollect something similar in Copenhagen and Athens

Your videos are looking great!

Surprised to find out this isn't universal. Seems just intuitive. I guess that's where the seamlessness comes in.

Weirdly, stacked cross-platform transfers just seem intuitively wrong for me. I’m a weird case (with OCD to compound the problem), but having a stacked platform (like Rosslyn and Pentagon stations in Washington) just feels _wrong_ somehow. The side-by-side stations look super cool, though!

Switzerland. Not 100%. Maybe 30% of transfers. But if you count up and over to the adjacent platform or just up/down to a layered platform (in a multilevel station), then we approached 60%-70% of transfers, line to line by train.

Part of why the Elizabeth line/Central Line cross platform interchange isn't mentioned is because it's been around since 1946!!! It was originally the interchange between the "Shenfield Electrics" local service from Liverpool Street and the Central Line, but I mean strictly, it's older than that, because the Central Line was weaved into the Great Eastern Main Line at Stratford, so the platforms themselves date back to 1839.....

If your'e not falling asleep on the train are you even doing it right

In Hamburg the U-Bahnstation Berliner Tor is a crossplatformstation where you can change between U2 and U3 and every 5 minutes both Drive und at the same time and drive out at the same time-also are all 4 platforms at the same floor

BART, in the San Francisco Bay Area, has a similar feature as what you describe for Singapore. Unfortunately, what the Bay Area lacks is consistent connections between modes and different operators. e.g. People need to walk a few blocks between BART and the Transbay Terminal, and most of the VTA's rail connections are half-arsed.

The reason why Singapore stopped doing CPTs after the first pair was really because the top planners in charge associated technical incompatibility between older and newer lines with physical incompatibility, which simply was never the case until the TEL opened in 2020. (funfact: all MRT cars share the same dimensions, which is still true with TEL excepting the door spacing. JRL will be the first line to "break" this standard) Anyways, this bureaucrat mentality really is why we can't have nice things nowadays :c

In the Boston area: R. I. P. original Ashmont Station. The original Ashmont Station looked like a complete dump, but it had cross-platform transfer between the Red Line (rapid transit) AND the Mattapan-Ashmont High Speed Line (light rail, but with streetcars instead of full-size light rail vehicles, but still running on private right-of-way) AND buses. And it gave shelter from the weather. Then the MBTA got CNG buses and wanted to be able to use them on potentially any route, and had NO creativity in figuring out how to make Ashmont Station safe for them while retaining the good shelter (same problem when they rebuilt Kenmore Station, but that's for another time). So they demolished the old station and built this new thing that looks okay superficially, but lost ALL cross-platform transfer, including making you go up stairs or an elevator to get to the Mattapan-Ashmont High-Speed Line. And the new station is a wind tunnel, which gets VERY uncomfortable in the winter. Now, apart from same-platform transfers between trains of different branches of the same line(*), the only remaining cross-platform transfer on the system is between southbound (but not northbound) Orange Line and Green Line trains in the rebuilt North Station. (*)And you can't even count on that: When they built a new platform for Braintree Branch trains of the Red Line to stop at JFK/UMass Station, they did it in the way that was easiest for the construction, so that each branch has its own separate island platform between inbound and outbound trains, both at ground level. Now, you might say _why not just change between branches at Andrew, the station just north, which is more comfortable since it's underground anyway_ -- and you would be right for passengers going south; but what if you are waiting at JFK/UMass and you want to go north -- you've got **2** platforms that you have to catch a northbound train on, because the flying rail junction is north of JFK/UMass. The burden is on you to watch the train countdown signs to know which branch is going to give you a train first, or use a smartphone app to do the same thing, and to keep paying attention to these in case something fries and the answer that was correct when you went down the stairs/escalator/elevator is no longer correct.

Queensboro Plaza is a unique one for New York. It's the only cross platform transfer between a lettered line (N and W of the old BMT Astoria Line) and a numbered line (7 of the old IRT Flushing Line).

The MOST impressive cross-platform designs are the double cross-platform ones. Where at one station you can say switch 1N (Line 1 Northbound) to 2S and 2N to 1S, and then the next 1N to 2N and 2S to 1S

Berlin has it too! On U-Bahn station Wittenbergplatz for instance. S+U-Bahn station Wuhletal even allows for a S-Bahn to U-Bahn cross-platform transfer. In Amsterdam I know Amstel station that has a cross-platform transfer from the subway to regional and intercity trains.

There is cross-platform transfer for the S-trains at Copenhagen central station. The northbound lines all go on platform 9-10 and the southbound lines on platform 11-12. Of course, that’s heavy above-ground rail, not a metro.

1:26 Let's say I'm traveling north on the Green line, how would I think about whether to build a cross-platform transfer to the red line going north or the red line going south?

In the NYC area, the LIRR is about to miss an opportunity to introduce a practically free cross platform transfer. They are going to be opening a second Manhattan terminal, and Port Washington Branch customers are going to have to change at Woodside to switch trains for the other terminal. By swapping the direction of travel on the two PW tracks through Woodside, the Manhattan bound trains would have a cross platform transfer to the Main Line's Manhattan bound trains. It's a railroad with 10-30 minutes between trains, so it can be an at-grade crossover, no need for flyovers.

I would love to see the British Government give TfL enough funding to totally abandon Camden Town Station and to have a new station that doesn't have junctions right below the south end. A gigantic station box, with two cross platform interchanges, where the northbound platforms are dedicated to Edgeware and High Barnet / Mill Hill East and the southbound platforms are dedicated to Charring Cross and Bank, would mean that people would not need to hang around the escalators looking to see what platform to run to. Ideally, they could also have exits at both ends, to split the traffic enough, that peak shopping times didn't shut the station.