Not any longer! Everyone now knows they are in Cricklewood after residents added a bold new sign to the main railway bridge in town.
Despite thunderstorms, paintwork was completed on time, with the new sign highlighting Cricklewood as a destination in its own right.
It is the second project brought to fruition by NorthWestTwo Residents’ Association with funding from Govia Thameslink Railway’s Passenger Benefit Fund, which provides tangible benefits for passengers.
The first, completed just before lockdown, was a mural by local artist Alistair Lambert at Cricklewood station. It commemorates the early days of civil aviation when people could fly from Cricklewood to Paris in a converted WW1 bomber.
A further project will be a series of panels, located in the passenger waiting area, recognising the interesting industrial history of Cricklewood, including the aeronautics, railways, the range of factories and the importance of Clitterhouse Farm (home to a well-known suffragette) and the Crown public house.
Marie Hancock, secretary of the NorthWestTwo Residents’ Association, said: “The concerted effort, catalysed through the GTR Passenger Benefit Fund, has been welcomed locally in a place trisected by three local authorities.
“The new signage is a marker for the station and town centre and puts Cricklewood on the map.”
Cricklewood station manager Marc Asamoah said: “The bright, bold new sign is a great addition to the railway bridge and reinforces the identity of the area.
“It’s always a pleasure to work with our station partners to enhance the railway environment. The residents’ association have already brought a lot of colour to the station and I look forward to seeing future projects come to life too.”
Throughout the painting of the sign, and since its completion, residents and local businesses have posted dozens of comments across social media to express their delight at the new-look bridge, where well-known local businesses – particularly Smiths Industries – used to advertise in the 1960s.
The signage project was supported by Network Rail, Wood Street Walls, Tate Technical, Barnet Council, Conway Aecom, B&Q and Dutch and Dutch.
We’d have liked to welcome people to Cricklewood, but we couldn’t close the road for long and then the thunderstorms arrived.