Hillhead Subway Station

This is — much like previous reviews– without doubt the best subway station in Glasgow. Amazing Alasdair Gray tiles, a Tinderbox, excellent escalators and lots of ticket machines and staff on hand.
This station is ideally located on Byres Road with all the wonderful shops, local schools and amazing venues such as Botanic Gardens and Oran Mor. Some Subway stations are not located where they would be if you were building it again but Hillhead is perfectly situated.

Hillhead Subway is useful for Byres Road and all the west-​endy attractions around there such as the Botanic Gardens and nearby places to eat and drink like Ashton Lane.
I love that there is now a coffee shop in the station (by Tinderbox, arguably a Glasgow coffee institution). The mural is beautiful, an artistic tiled map showing nearby places to visit. The station has an element of quirkyness about it as you have to go up then down to get to one of the platforms (a little Fawlty Towers, but I think that is because of where the tunnel is). Always a clean and bright station.

The station looks lovely. But I am struggling with SPT to where the £300 million has been spent on the underground.
That’s £20 million for each of the 15 stations. An insider told me it had been squandered on bonuses. Connection buses bought to connect, but buses were too wide for the road. I’m sorry.
But all I’m seeing is tiles on the floor, walls, new ticket office, ticket barriers. Hardly £300 million worth. And the trains are pretty much held together with a plastic coating to try and make them look new.
Where are our new trains. Please don’t say track work, as I almost got thrown from my seat when the train moves side to side as the tracks are not straight. And still no wifi??? The ticket hikes are what they are hoping to buy things with as they gave squandered the money.

Is it pretty sad that I have Subway envy? You see, when it comes to Hillhead Subway station I certainly do. It’s not my ‘local’ station and yet I wish it was as it is one of the nicest on the whole of Glasgow’s Subway clockwork orange circle.
It used to be pretty shoddy before the refurb but now it is all shiny, bright and new. Downstairs isn’t pure dead brilliant but upstairs it looks well swish. It’s not the biggest of the stations by far but like all good ‘things’ what it lacks in size it makes up for in other areas so to speak…*cough*
My favourite thing about this particular Subway station is the magnificent mural on the wall facing you as you pass through the ticket barriers. It is truly something to behold. It is the fine work of our very own Glasgow artist, Alasdair Gray. Due to the placement of the mural unfortunately I don’t feel as though you really ever get long enough to stand and admire it completely. If you did you would be fo sure annoying some of your fellow passengers by getting in their way. I guess it’s quite good you only ever catch a short glimpse of it as you exit or enter the station for that means every time you travel you might see something else you haven’t before. I’m sure there’s a painting of a two-​headed baby… or did I imagine that?!
The other cool thang about Hillhead is they now have their very own petite cute little Tinderbox café, the lucky bums. So on your way to work or whatever you can grab a coffee (that isn’t Starbucks) before you jump on the Subway. Wheeeeeeeee! Coffeeeeeeee!
Hillhead Subway: I wish you were my local *kiss*

«Every time the Hillhead Subway gate dings, a hipster gets their skinny jeans and lensless black frame glasses» or so goes the Partick student version of It’s A Wonderful Life that I just dreamed up in my head.
Of all the subway stations in Glasgow, I have to think this is my favourite. It’s a weird thing to think, that you have a favourite subway station, but I do. And it’s this one.
It’s bright, VERY BRIGHT — it’s fresh and modern looking, the mural on the wall at the top of the escalators is superb; I always see something new every time I come here.
The wee «bridge» over the tunnel when you get downstairs makes me chuckle, as it just seems like it’s a weird bit of planning, but it’s part of the character of the station.
The station location (yaaaay rhyming is fun, kids!) is ideal for the high life of Byres Road and is slap bang next to several great places to eat and drink, and the awesomeness that is Ashton Lane.
Cracking stuff. DING! DING! DING!

One of the first stations to be refurbished, Hillhead now looks like an overly-​lit public toilet with its uniform coverage of large white tiles and really bright fluorescent lighting. There’s no attempt at any artistic merit at the platform level; however that is redeemed largely by the fantastic Alasdair Gray mural on the entrance concourse wall.
I feel they have missed a trick with the refurbishment by not taking the opportunity to install LED lighting and incorporate more design elements on the platforms. It’s hard to maintain the sense of individuality that the stations used to have when they are all bright white tiles. Some design motifs would have helped, and with LED lighting they would not only be more eco-​friendly, they could change the mood of the lighting to suit the occasion.
The best it can be described as is functional and utilitarian. But I do love the mural upstairs.

Definitely the nicest station on the route, as it was the first to be refurbished. However, it is not only the bright, clean walls and shiny orange escalators, this station has something no other station has. It features a mural by celebrated Glasgow artist Alasdair Gray, who has also provided iconic artwork for the nearby Ubiquitous Chip and the Oran Mor. As an almost daily user of this station it is still a pleasure to see it on every visit.

Undoubtedly the best station on the Glasgow subway! Alight here for Byres Road, Ashton Lane, Glasgow Uni and everything else in the heart of the bohemian west end. Since the recent refurbishment, the station is looking amazing — clinical white tiling abound, and a stunning mural by Alasdair Gray in the upstairs ticket hall area.
There’s free wifi but its a faff, and the train will have arrived by the time you try to connect.
It loses a star because it still has the unmistakable subway pong!

The newly refurbished Hillhead subway station is looking great.
Conveniently located in the heart of the west end in the middle of Byres road. Situated right next to Ashton lane and within 5 mins of most of the University of Glasgow. 10 mins up the road is the botanical gardens. This is a great base for any west end escapades.
The station itself has just seen a full overhaul but the reliability of all elements would be better if the escalators would actually work more often than not.
They do have automated ticket machines but I wouldn’t hold out much hope for them actually working you are normally better off getting you tickets from the desk.
Wifi in the station is provided by the cloud.
This is a great stop in a great location.

If ever I’m coming to the west end, this, along with kelvinbridge, would be the stations I alight at, depending on where I’m going.
Hillhead station is a lovely station since its recent renovation; with its lovely new bright lights and floors, it’s a bit more of an appealing place to go now. With it being on Byres Road, it’s right next to Ashton Lane, Byres Road itself and is a 15 minute walk from Great Western Road, so it’s located right next to so many local amenities.
It also has a Starbucks right next to the front door that I tend to frequent any time I’m going to this station!

Underground stop on Byres Road, or if your feeling poetic and in anyway romantic, The Gateway to Glasgow’s Multicultural Free Spirited and Artistic Community… Aye.
The ideal stop for many of the west ends focal points and places of interest, whether that be shopping, drinking, eating or stude… ing.
Stop here for Ashton and Cresswell Lane, Byres Road and its probably the closest one to Glasgow Uni to. Have fun!

This Subway is always full to bursting especially with students running up the stairs as fast as they can as they’re late for their first lecture of the day.
After my classes have finished I usually nip on the Subway at Hillhead and get off in the city centre so I can do a bit of retail therapy.
A huge flaw of Hillhead subway is that they don’t have an entrance for disabled people. They only have entry and exit turnstiles but nowhere that you can wheel a wheelchair through. I have noticed this being a problem for disabled customers and mothers with prams when I have been at Hillhead and have seen a few confrontations with staff. This is quite an odd thing to have overlooked especially as Hillhead is such a busy station.

Hillhead is probably my most frequently visited and used tube station.
It takes you right out onto Byres Road and near Glasgow University.
It’s always busy and at peak time can get a bit unbearable. That being said, it’s noticeably larger than most tube stations so it’s not going to be the last place you go before you die of blind panic.
If you are going to Kelvingrove Art Gallery, you are better going to Kelvinhall tube. I found that out the wrong way. The clue was in the name really.

Probably the safest station on the underground line, you’d be very unfortunate to run into any trouble here regardless of the time of day.
Always busy, the station is the handiest get off point for Byres Road, Glasgow University and Ashton Lane, and is one of the best maintained on the Clockwork Orange line.
A handy new addition has been the large screen which displays the expected arrival times of buses at the stops which sit outside.

Hillhead is one of the most popular stops on the Glasgow subway. It is particularly popular with students due to its close proximity to Glasgow University. It is also handy for Ashton Lane, the Botanic Gardens and all the other various shops and pubs along Byres Road.
There is plenty of space to avoid the rush hour stampedes, as well as a staircase you can take instead of the escalator if you’re in a rush. I wish most people would do this instead of squeezing past you when you’re standing on the escalator, this is a real pet hate of mine.

Located on Byres Road, Hillhead subway station is the best place to alight for Ashton Lane, Cresswell lane, and all the charity shop shopping you can handle. It’s also the closest stop for Glasgow University and the Queen Margaret Union, which is pretty self-​explanatory, really!
This is one of the larger stations on the underground loop, and is therefore very accommodating.
Great stop, with lots to do when you arrive. Loads of cafés and bars on Byres Road, great shopping, and of course the Botanical Gardens. Cnanot be beaten on a sunny day in Glasgow’s short summers.

Hillhead is the gateway to the Byres Road area of the West End.
Right bang outside Ashton Lane, and a stone’s throw away from Glasgow University, it’s another very popular and busy stop.
Byres Road itself boasts bars, cafes, shops and of course, more bars. Student central, yes, but it is nice. Really.

Hillhead Subway is the stop to get off at if going to Ashton Lane for the evening.
I once saw David Weir the Rangers player here, but me being a big dirty Catholic just gave him the evil eye. My Rangers-​supporting mate Dave ran over however and mumbled in a starstruck way to him.
Despite this, it’s a very nice area with some unusual shops and cafes about. The abundance of students and young professionals make this one of the most popular parts of the city.