caused serious disruption to the Circle, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan Underground lines as well as nearby roads. The siting of the High Speed 1 terminus under St Pancras rather than King's Cross also meant that the Thameslink platforms were a long distance by foot from the planned Eurostar platforms. Network Rail initially considered reusing the abandoned Norman Foster proposal, which had called for a combined Eurostar and Thameslink station underneath King's Cross mainline station, but updated to be for Thameslink only. This would have the advantage of fewer closures to the line during construction, as the site was not on the existing line. Ultimately though, due to the cost of relocating the lines and the political issues with demolishing the Grade-II-listed Great Northern Hotel, Network Rail decided to build the new platforms on the existing alignment, under the St Pancras complex. The new platforms are close to the High Speed 1 platforms used by Eurostar trains, and provide an easier connection to the mainline stations at St Pancras and King's Cross. The work required closure of the through Thameslink line for eight months in 2004–05, with trains from the north terminating at St Pancras. The project then stalled but was rescued by extra funding of £63 million in February 2006. The last train at King's Cross Thameslink was the 23:59 from Haywards Heath, which called at the station at 01:08 on Sunday 9 December 2007. From 9 December 2007, Thameslink services started to call at the new platforms at St Pancras. The ticket office on Pentonville Road and the foot tunnel linking it with King's Cross St Pancras tube station were retained and made available as an additional access point for tube passengers, albeit only between 07:00 and 20:00 on weekdays. London Underground closed the entrance indefinitely on 23 March 2020, following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. In November 2021 Transport for London advised in response to a Freedom of Information request that they had no immediate plans to reopen it, because they were in the process of reviewing the utility of the entrance in light of the fact that the ticket office building requires structural improvement works. Services The off-peak service pattern for King's Cross Thameslink in 2007, the year of its closure, was as follows: 4 tph to Brighton via London Bridge and Gatwick Airport 4 tph to Sutton, 2 tph via Wimbledon and 2 tph