Cool the commute: where to rent along the Piccadilly line for faster journeys and walk-through air-cooled trains by 2023

Commuting on the Piccadilly line is set to become a far more pleasant experience, with new walk-through air-cooled trains promised by Transport for London.

As well as making journeys less hellish during hot summer rush hours, these state-of-the-art trains, due to be introduced in 2023, will increase capacity and allow TfL to create a new timetable with more frequent, faster services across town.

Renters keen to experience a more civilised journey to work — and who also want fast access to the West End — have ample choice along the line, which runs from Cockfosters in far north London to Acton Town in the west where it splits, with one line terminating at Heathrow airport and the other at Uxbridge.

NORTH LONDON: BOUNDS GREEN

In north London the star station-stop options include Bounds Green in Zone 3, a family-friendly Victorian suburb where a two-bedroom home rents for just over £1,400 a month, according to exclusive research for Homes & Property by Rightmove. Renting a three-bedroom house costs just under £1,962 a month.

The North Circular road is the noisy northern boundary of this area, which is unfortunate, and Bounds Green Road lacks kerb appeal. But explore a little further and you will find streets of neat Victorian houses, along with Myddleton Road, the beating heart of the area. With resident-organised street markets, independent shops, cafés, and restaurants, Myddleton Road gives this part of N22 a real focus and a community feel.

The neighbourhood is a magnet for parents — the local senior school is rated “outstanding” by Ofsted — as well as for City workers. In addition to Piccadilly line services to the West End there are trains from nearby Bowes Park railway station to Moorgate in 24 minutes.

Chris Davenport, senior group consultant at Hobarts estate agents, says renters tend to gravitate towards the area after being priced out of posher options including Highgate and Crouch End. “You are not paying for the postcode here,” he points out.

He agrees the district’s main roads aren’t its best selling point. “But once you get into the quieter roads you can see that it has got everything you need, with a real resurgence of interesting little shops and cafés,” he adds.

KING’S CROSS VIBE: CALEDONIAN ROAD

Renters who like the style of regenerated King’s Cross but can’t afford one of its contemporary flats or period houses (a typical two-bedroom King’s Cross flat rents for £2,629 a month and a three-bedroom house at £3,931) could move one or two stops along the line and make big savings.

One stop further north, and just into Zone 2, is Caledonian Road station. Renting a two-bedroom flat close by costs an average £1,981 a month, a saving of almost £8,000 per year (and you could easily walk to King’s Cross). Three-bedroom houses rent at an average £2,916 a month – an annual saving of more than £12,000. Flats in Holloway Road, another stop along, are much the same price as they are in Caledonian Road (£1,929) but a three-bedroom house could be around £300 cheaper per month, all for an extra three minutes on the train.

FOR RICH RENTERS: KING’S CROSS AND EARL’S COURT

Those who would like to rent along the Piccadilly line’s Zone 1 route are going to need big budgets. The cheapest option is King’s Cross, followed by Earl’s Court. No longer a cheap option for backpackers, a typical two-bedroom flat in Earl’s Court costs just over £3,000 a month and a three-bedroom house more than £5,750 a month.

AFFORDABLE WEST LONDON: TURNHAM GREEN

For a more pocket-friendly west London address, prices drop dramatically as you move into Zone 2.

In Turnham Green a two-bedroom apartment typically costs around £2,308 a month, which is £700 a month less than in Earl’s Court. A three-bedroom house could offer better value for sharers, with a typical example coming in at just over £2,900 a month, close to half the price of an Earl’s Court home of the same size

Erica Whitehead, sales manager at Fletchers Estates, says renters in the area tend to be couples, single corporate tenants, or families lured by the good local schools and proximity to the many bars, cafés, shops and restaurants along nearby Chiswick High Road — including an outpost of the Soho House chain.

There is also the lure of the attractive streetscape, dotted with trees and commons.

Homes are mostly period, streets are leafy, and as well as the Piccadilly line Tube there are rail services from nearby Chiswick to Waterloo which take from 15 minutes.

The M4 is also handy, as is the River Thames and the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew.

“You are in London but you have got so much greenery around you,” says Whitehead. “There are loads of nice restaurants, you always see people sitting outside having a coffee at all the cafés, and there is High Road House which is always rammed. It has lots to offer.”