The modernisation had been announced in 1974 by the subway's then operators, the Greater Glasgow Passenger Transport Executive (GGPTE).
Although converted to electric traction in 1935, the system's infrastructure and rolling stock was virtually unchanged from its opening in 1896, and improvement to the subway was seen by the GGPTE as an essential part of plans to eliminate transport bottlenecks in the city.
However it was planned to link the subway to the national rail network's newly reopened Argyle Line at Partick via an interchange station.
On 18 September 1940, during World War II, a German bomb, which dropped during a night raid on Glasgow and may have been intended for nearby naval facilities, landed on a bowling green to the south of the station.
The explosion this caused resulted in damage to both tunnels and closure of this part of the system until repairs were completed in January 1941.