This journey is in zones 1-3 and you’ll have to use the Northern and District lines, changing trains at Embankment
- From Balham take the Northern Line
- Change at Embankment to the District Line
- Leave the train at Blackfriars
Number of stops: 10 · Journey time: Approx 31 mins
Stations on the route: Balham ➜ Clapham South ➜ Clapham Common ➜ Clapham North ➜ Stockwell ➜ Oval ➜ Kennington ➜ Waterloo ➜ Embankment [change train] Embankment ➜ Temple ➜ Blackfriars
Live status and delays
Closures on the Northern and District line
First and last train times
Northern line timetable
Alternative routes include Balham to St Pauls, Balham to Temple and Balham to Mansion House
Stairs, lifts and escalators
Balham is not wheelchair accessible
Blackfriars is wheelchair accessible, and has step-free access from the street to the train
Balham entrance – You must use three flights of stairs between the Chestnut Grove entrance and the booking hall (7 steps down +14 steps down +11 steps down), or 5 steps down +14 steps down +11 steps down between the Balham High Road West entrance and the booking hall, or 21 steps down +10 steps down between the Balham High Road East entrance and the booking hall, plus another escalator or three flights of stairs from the booking hall to the platforms (2x3 steps down +16 steps down)
Changing trains at Embankment – You must use stairs when changing platforms
Blackfriars exit – There’s a lift between the platforms and the exit. If you want to avoid the lift then you can use two flights of stairs from the platforms to the booking hall (16 steps up +10 steps up from the eastbound platform, or 9 steps up +17 steps up from the westbound platform). After that there’s another three flights of stairs to the Victoria Embankment exit (6 steps up +3 steps down +17 steps down), or three flights to the New Bridge Street exit (6 steps up +6 steps down +18 steps down), or two flights to the Riverside Walk exit (6 steps down +18 steps down), or two flights to the Blackfriars Bridge exit (2x10 steps up to the eastside, or 6 steps up +21 steps down to the westside), or one flight to the Queen Victoria Street exit (16 steps up)
This journey is in zones 1-3 and you’ll have to use the District and Northern lines, changing trains at Embankment
- From Blackfriars take the District Line
- Change at Embankment to the Northern Line
- Leave the train at Balham
Number of stops: 10 · Journey time: Approx 32 mins
Stations on the route: Blackfriars ➜ Temple ➜ Embankment [change train] Embankment ➜ Waterloo ➜ Kennington ➜ Oval ➜ Stockwell ➜ Clapham North ➜ Clapham Common ➜ Clapham South ➜ Balham
Live status and delays
Closures on the District and Northern line
First and last train times
District line timetable
Alternative routes include Blackfriars to St Pauls, Blackfriars to Temple and Blackfriars to Mansion House
Stairs, lifts and escalators
Blackfriars is not wheelchair accessible
Balham is wheelchair accessible, and has step-free access from the street to the train
Blackfriars entrance – There’s a lift between the entrance and the platforms. If you want to avoid the lift then you can use three flights of stairs from the Victoria Embankment entrance to the booking hall (17 steps down +3 steps down +6 steps up), or three flights from the New Bridge Street entrance (18 steps down +6 steps down +6 steps up), or two flights from the Riverside Walk entrance (18 steps up +6 steps up), or two flights from the Blackfriars Bridge entrance (2x10 steps down from the eastside, or 21 steps down +6 steps up from the westside), or one flight from the Queen Victoria Street entrance (16 steps down). After that there’s another two flights of stairs down to the platforms (10 steps down +16 steps down to the eastbound platform, or 17 steps down +9 steps down to the westbound platform)
Changing trains at Embankment – You must use stairs when changing platforms
Balham exit – You must use an escalator or three flights of stairs from the platforms to the booking hall (16 steps up +2x3 steps up), plus another three flights of stairs between the booking hall and the Chestnut Grove exit (11 steps up +14 steps up +7 steps up), or 11 steps up +14 steps up +5 steps up between the booking hall and the Balham High Road West exit, or 10 steps up +21 steps up between the booking hall and the Balham High Road East exit
Cash, Oyster & Travelcard fares
The journey is in zones 1-3. The cheapest fare is £3 off-peak (£3.70 peak) when you pay by Oyster or contactless. There are no return tickets, you just pay the same as two singles
| Fare zone | Cash | Oyster & Contactless cards | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single fare | Single fare | Daily cap | |||
| Peak | Off-peak | Peak | Off-peak | ||
| Zone 1-3 fare | £6.70 | £3.70 | £3 | £10 | £10 |
| Fare Zone | Travelcards (Train, Bus & Tram) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| One day travelcard | Week travelcard | Month travelcard | ||
| Anytime | Off-peak | |||
| Zone 1-4 travelcard | £15.90 | n/a | £61.40 | £235.80 |
| Zone 1-6 travelcard | £22.60 | £15.90 | £78 | £299 |
| Zone 1-9 travelcard | £28.50 | £17 | £111.30 | £427.40 |
| Note: Ticket prices are correct as of | ||||
Peak and off-peak times
For Oyster and contactless off-peak is outside the hours of 6.30 AM-9.30 AM and 4 PM-7 PM (Mon-Fri). For travelcards it’s any time after 9.30 AM (Mon-Fri). Weekends are always classed as off-peak.
The fare is based on what time your journey begins. It doesn’t matter when it ends.
Alternative ways to travel
Walking – The distance on foot is about 5¼ miles, so we don’t recommend walking
By bus – A single ticket is £1.75 (you may need more than one bus). The daily cap is £5.25 and a 1-day travelcard is £6 – Bus fares
By taxi – A 5¼ miles journey should cost approximately £23 to £35.50 and take 23-37 minutes
By car – Parking near Blackfriars station