London Underground

London Underground (LU) carries more than one billion passengers a year, as many as the entire National Rail network.
With around three and a half million journeys made each day, on 11 lines serving 270 stations, we are now running more services than ever before on the 140-year-old network.

Our vision Our strategy Our challenge

Our vision
The Mayor's Transport Strategy sets out the approach for achieving the Mayor's transport vision: that London's transport system should excel among those of global cities, providing access to opportunities for all its people and enterprises, achieving the highest environmental standards and leading the world in its approach to tackling urban transport challenges of the 21st century. Our vision is to deliver a world-class Underground for a world-class city. This is a realistic goal, and we have made great strides, but there are still challenges to overcome before our upgrade of the Tube is complete.

Our strategy
Our strategy is to deliver a reliable train service with the highest standards of customer care. We plan to do this as efficiently as possible through our people and technology. Passengers use the Tube because it is fast and convenient. Fundamentally, the service needs to be reliable and we must have well-trained staff, infrastructure that works and systems to ensure we swiftly recover from delays. The historical under-investment in the Underground has left it with unreliable and outdated infrastructure. Our first challenge is to deliver a reliable and safe everyday service, despite this. Reliability and safety may be the foundations of a good service but they cannot make a transport system worldclass on their own. Our surveys show that the quality of travelling time is also important to passengers. The experience of our passengers has always been at the heart of our strategy. This is shown in the way we operate - providing visible and helpful staff, high-quality information and security systems, and investment to make the network more accessible.

Our challenge
Our challenge is to keep London moving while we transform the Tube.

To overcome the legacy of under-investment, we have embarked on a massive investment programme to deliver the extra capacity needed to keep pace with rising demand. The level of renewal and refurbishment work is on a scale unseen for more than 60 years. It presents a major challenge: maintaining the service during the biggest rebuilding programme the Underground has ever seen. London was the first city in the world to boast an underground - in the 21st century it deserves one that is world-class.

Find out how we're upgrading the Tube

History
London Underground was formed in 1985, but its history dates back to 1863 when the world's first underground railway opened.
Today, London Underground is a major business with three million passenger journeys made every day, serving 275 stations and over 408 km of railway.

Past and future

London has changed a lot since the first stretch of line - the Metropolitan, or Met - opened on 10 January 1863. The first stretch measured six kilometres (nearly four miles) and ran between Paddington (Bishop's Road) and Farringdon Street.

Cut and cover

To build the Met, streets along the route were dug up, tracks laid in a trench, covered with a brick-lined tunnel and the road surface replaced. Known as the 'cut and cover' method, this was quick and effective, but created as many problems as it was designed to solve. It caused congestion during construction and it was abandoned towards the end of the 19th century. By then, however, the Metropolitan was a success, stretching ever further across Middlesex, through Hertfordshire and into Buckinghamshire. Other companies were keen to get involved and by Christmas 1868, the Metropolitan District had opened a line between Westminster and South Kensington. This linked to a branch line from the original Met and some eastward extensions. These railways completed today's Circle line by 1884. Once the system had started there was no stopping it and the search was on for further opportunities.

The Thames Tunnel

Twenty years before the Met steamed into history, Sir Marc Brunel - and his famous son Isambard - had built the Thames Tunnel between Rotherhithe and Wapping. This was the first underwater tunnel in the world. The method used was similar to coal mining. Engineers sank vertical shafts and excavated the tunnels from within a metal shield. It is a tribute to the Brunels that major refurbishment to the tunnel was only needed during the 1990s. Originally designed for horse-drawn traffic, it opened in 1843 for pedestrians, became a railway tunnel in 1869 and now carries the East London line.

Tunnel vision
The Brunel Engine House Museum, behind Rotherhithe tube station, tells the story of this unusual tunnel: one time banquet hall, shopping centre, and fairground. In 1870 another sub-Thames railway opened. This had a cable-hauled line between the Tower of London and Bermondsey.

In marked contrast to the Thames Tunnel, this failed as an Underground line and was converted for pedestrian use after just a few months. It closed for good when Tower Bridge station opened in 1894.

Tube or False?
From its beginnings in 1863, the world's first Underground railway has played a major role in developing the Capital. Perhaps you're aware of its rich art and design heritage and that it has led the way in technological innovations; but did you know it has saved lives and is even part of a soap opera? To celebrate all the amazing and unusual things that have happened on the network over the last 150 years, we're challenging Underground users to spot whether fact really is stranger than fiction. You've seen the posters on the Tube network, now click on the arrows to find out whether these fascinating facts are Tube or False, and find out why London Underground is one of the most exciting and interesting metros in the world.

Sleeping in Tube stations during WW2

It's true. Not only did the Tube help 200,000 inner-city children escape to the country, it was also used to shelter hundreds of thousands of civilians every night during the Blitz. On 27 September 1940 a census found that a staggering 177,500 Londoners were sleeping in Tube stations. With so many people seeking shelter in the Tube, London Underground sprang into action and installed 22,000 bunk beds, washroom facilities and even ran trains that supplied seven tonnes of food and 2,400 gallons of tea and cocoa every night. Before long there were even special stations with libraries, evening classes, movies and musical evenings.

Escalators stretching around the world

It's trueand it's easy to see why. There are now over 400 escalators on the network which run for 20 hours a day, 364 days a year - so you can imagine how they can achieve such great distances. And it's not just the escalators that run on for miles; the total length of track is over 250 miles long making it the second longest metro system in the world after Shanghai. Our Tube trains travel a distance of approximately 43,000,000 miles in a period of just 12 months. That's the equivalent distance of 1,735 times around the world or 90 trips to the moon and back.

Milestones
Here's a brief history of the London Underground in key facts.
Key dates
Date Milestone 1843 Opening of the Thames Tunnel, constructed by Sir Marc Brunel and his son Isambard. 1863 The Metropolitan Railway opened the world's first underground railway on 10 January between Paddington (Bishop's Road) and Farringdon Street. Opening of the first section of the Metropolitan District Railway from South Kensington to Westminster (now part of the District and Circle lines).

1868

1869 First steam trains travel through the Brunels' Thames Tunnel. 1880 Opening of the first Tube tunnel, from the Tower of London to Bermondsey. 1884 Completion of what is now the Circle line. 1890 The City and South London Railway opened the world's first deep-level electric railway on 18 December, from King William Street in the City of London, under the River Thames to Stockwell.

1900

Prince of Wales opens the Central London Railway from Shepherd's Bush to Bank (the 'Twopenny Tube'). This is now part of the Central line.

Formation of the Underground Electric Railway Company of London (known as the Underground 1902 Group). Mergers brought all lines except the Metropolitan into the Group by the First World War. 1905 District and Circle lines electrified. Baker Street & Waterloo Railway (now part of the Bakerloo line) opened from Baker Street to Kennington Road (now Lambeth North). 1906 Great Northern, Piccadilly & Brompton Railway (now part of the Piccadilly line) opened between Hammersmith and Finsbury Park. Charing Cross, Euston & Hampstead Railway (now part of the Northern line) opened from Charing 1907 Cross to Golders Green and Highgate (now Archway). Albert Stanley (later Lord Ashfield) was appointed general manager of the Underground Electric Railway Company of London Limited. 1908 The Underground name first appeared on stations. Electric ticket-issuing machine introduced. First appearance of the famous circle and horizontal bar symbol (the roundel).

1911 First escalators installed, at Earl's Court station. 1929 Last manually operated doors on Tube trains replaced by air-operated doors. 1933 The Underground Group and the Metropolitan Railway become part of the London Passenger Transport Board, taking control of all the Capital's railway, bus, tram, trolleybus and coach services.

1933 First Underground map in diagrammatic form, devised by Harry Beck. 1940 From September, and until May 1945, Tube station platforms were used as air raid shelters. The Piccadilly line, Holborn - Aldwych branch, was closed and used to store British Museum treasures. The London Passenger Transport Board was nationalised and became the London Transport Executive.

1948

1952 First aluminium train entered service on the District line. 1961 End of steam and electric locomotive haulage of London Transport passenger trains. 1963 The London Transport Executive became the London Transport Board, reporting directly to the Minister of Transport.

1969 The Queen opens the Victoria line. 1970 The Underground and the Greater London area bus network passed to the London Transport Executive, reporting to Greater London Council. Last steam shunting and freight locomotive withdrawn from service. The Victoria line extended to Brixton. Fatal accident on the Northern line at Moorgate in which forty-three people were killed. New safety measures introduced.

1971

1975

1977 The Queen opens Heathrow Central station (Terminals 1, 2 and 3) on the Piccadilly line. 1979 The Prince of Wales opens the Jubilee line. Brunel Engine House opens to the public: a museum about the birthplace of modern urban 1980 transportation, called by the Victorians the Eighth Wonder of the World, now an International Landmark Site. 1983 Dot matrix train destination indicators introduced on platforms. 1984 London Regional Transport (LRT) created, reporting to the Secretary of State for Transport. 1984 The Hammersmith & City and the Circle lines converted to one-person operation.

1986 The Piccadilly line extended to serve Heathrow Terminal 4. 1987 Tragic fire at King's Cross killed 31 people. 1989 New safety and fire regulations introduced following the Fennell Report into the King's Cross fire. 1992 The London Underground Customer Charter launched. 1993 Angel Station reconstruction completed. Work started on the extended Jubilee line from Green Park to Stratford.

Penalty fares introduced. London Underground took over the Waterloo & City line and responsibility 1994 for the stations on the Wimbledon branch of the District line from Putney Bridge to Wimbledon Park. Aldwych station and the Central line branch from Epping to Ongar closed. London Underground restructured in preparation for Public Private Partnership. 1999 Shadow running to test working relations between London Underground and the infrastructure companies began. 1999 Opening of extended Jubilee line and through services from Stanmore to Stratford. 2000 All 106 new trains in service on the Northern line. 2002 Public Private Partnership (PPP) contract with Tube Lines for maintenance and upgrading of Jubilee, Northern and Piccadilly lines.

Oyster card introduced. Busking legalised. PPP contracts with Metronet for maintenance and upgrading of Bakerloo, Central, and Victoria lines, 2003 and 'sub-surface' (Circle, District, East London, Hammersmith & City, Metropolitan) lines commence (April). Tube transfers to become part of Transport for London (TfL) (July). 2005 52 people killed in bomb attacks on three Tube trains and a bus on 7 July. Tube carries one billion passengers in a year for the first time. 14 former Silverlink stations transferred to London Underground (LU). 2007 East London line closes for rebuilding and extension as part of new London Overground network. Tube carries four million passengers on one day for the first time. Piccadilly line extension to Heathrow T5 opens. Metronet transfers to TfL control. Circle line changes shape. LU named Best Metro Europe.

2008

2009

HM The Queen visits Aldgate station. LU achieves Carbon Trust Standard. 2010 First ever air-conditioned, walk-through Underground train runs on Metropolitan line. Tube Lines is acquired by TfL, marking the end of the PPP. Last ever Chesham shuttle runs as through services take over. Passenger numbers exceed 1.1 billion for the first time during the 2010/11 financial year. Full fleet of brand new Victoria Line trains operational. 2011 Green Park Station is first station within the Circle line to become step-free. LU achieves PAS55 certification, the first UK railway operator to do so. LU also progressed to Level 3 of the Office of Government Commerce's P3M3 Maturity Model.

Key facts

Facts and figures Investment and performance Technical information

Facts and figures

Number of miles/km travelled by each Tube train each year: 114,500 miles/184,269km Total number of passengers carried each year: 1,107 million Average train speed: 33km per hour/20.5mph Length of network: 402km/249 miles Proportion of the network that is in tunnels: 45 per cent Longest continuous tunnel: East Finchley to Morden (via Bank) - 27.8km/17.25 miles Total number of escalators: 426 Station with most escalators: Waterloo - 23 Longest escalator: Angel - 60m/197ft, with a vertical rise of 27.5m/90ft Shortest escalator: Stratford, with a vertical rise of 4.1m Total number of lifts, including four stair lifts: 164 Four passenger conveyors - two at Waterloo and two at Bank Deepest lift shaft: Hampstead - 55.2m/181ft Shortest lift shaft: King's Cross - 2.3m/7.5ft Vertical lifting platforms highest rise: Walthamstow 1.98m/6.5ft Vertical lifting platforms shortest: Hainault 0.64m/2.1ft Carriages in London Underground's (LU's) fleet: 4134 Total number of stations served: 270 Total number of stations managed: 260 Total number of staff: 19,000 approx Stations with the most platforms: Baker Street - 10. Moorgate has 10 platforms but only six are used by LU (two are used by First Capital Connect and two were formerly used by Thameslink services) Busiest stations: During the three-hour morning peak, London's busiest Tube station is Waterloo, with 57,000 people entering. The busiest station in terms of passengers each year is also Waterloo with 82 million The Underground name first appeared on stations in 1908 London Underground has been known as the Tube since 1890, when the first deep-level electric railway line was opened The Tube's world-famous logo, 'the roundel' (a red circle crossed by a horizontal blue bar), first appeared in 1908 Back to top

Investment and performance

LU transferred from the control of the Government to Transport for London (TfL) on 15 July 2003 TfL is investing billions of pounds into upgrading the Tube During 2010/11 LU:

Carried record numbers of passengers, exceeding 1.1 billion journeys for the first time Ran over 69million train km - the equivalent of 1,750 laps around the world or 90 trips to the moon and back Operated 95.6 per cent of all scheduled train services Recorded an overall customer satisfaction score of 79 out of 100 - equaling the record set in the previous year

Back to top

Technical information
Average train speed

33km per hour (20.5mph) including station stops In central London, trains cannot reach speeds of more than 30-40mph because of the short distance between stations On the Victoria line, stations are wider apart and trains can reach speeds of up to 50mph On the Metropolitan line, trains can reach over 60mph

Maximum number of trains required for scheduled peak period service

AM Bakerloo line Central line Circle / Hammersmith & City line District line Jubilee line Metropolitan line Northern line Piccadilly line Victoria line Waterloo & City line Total 33 76 32 76 49 48 91 78 37 5 525 PM 32 76 32 76 50 50 91 78 37 5 527

Elevation
Highest point above mean sea level Highest station above mean sea level Greatest elevation from ground level Metropolitan line (beyond Amersham station) - 150 metres (500ft)

Amersham - 147 metres (490ft) Northern line (Dollis Brook viaduct over Dollis road, Mill Hill) - 18 metres (60ft)

Depths
Maximum depth below mean sea level Deep level Tube lines Sub-surface cut and cover lines Central London Maximum depths below ground level Maximum depths below ground level Deepest stations below street level Deepest stations below street level Jubilee line - 32 metres (105ft) Northern line - Holly Bush Hill, Hampstead - 68.8 metres (221ft) East London line - (Wapping) - 18.3 metres (60ft) Northern line - Bank (DLR concourse) - 41.4 metres (136ft) Northern line - Hampstead - 58.5 metres (192ft)

Outer London

Depots
Bakerloo line Central line Circle / Hammersmith & City line District line Jubilee line Metropolitan line Northern line Piccadilly line Victoria line Waterloo & City line Stonebridge Park West Ruislip/Hainault/White City Hammersmith Ealing Common/Upminster Stratford Market Neasden Golders Green/Morden Northfields/Cockfosters Northumberland Park Waterloo

Most distant places served

Approximate distances from central London Epping to Liverpool Street 27km (16 miles) - North Morden to Moorgate 16km (10 miles) - South Upminster to Tower Hill 25km (15 miles) - East Chesham to Aldgate 47km (29 miles) - West

Distances
Longest distance between stations Metropolitan line - Chesham to Chalfont & Latimer - 6.3km (3.89 miles) Shortest distance between stations Longest continuous tunnel Longest journey without change Piccadilly line - Leicester Square to Covent Garden - 0.3km (0.161 miles) Northern line - East Finchley to Morden (via Bank) - 27.8km (17.3 miles) Central line - West Ruislip to Epping - 54.9km (34.1 miles)

Length of route : Owned/managed

Single lines Double lines Triple lines Quadruple lines and over Total lines 12km (seven miles) 355km (220 miles) 5km (three miles) 30km (19 miles) 402km (249 miles)

Length of route: In tunnel

Sub-surface cut and cover Deep level Tube Totals Proportion of route in tunnel 32km (20 miles) 149km (93 miles) 181km (113 miles) 45 per cent

Underground lines
Bakerloo line Elephant & Castle to Harrow & Wealdstone - 23km (14.5 miles) - serves 25 stations

Central line

Ealing Broadway or West Ruislip to Woodford (via Hainault) or Epping - 74km (46 miles) - serves 49 stations Connects to most of London's National Rail termini - 27km (17 miles) - serves 36 stations Hammersmith to Barking - 25.5km (16 miles) - serves 29 stations Upminster and Ealing Broadway to Richmond or Wimbledon, with other branches to Edgware Road and Olympia - 64km (40 miles) - serves 60 stations Stanmore to Stratford - 36km (22.5 miles) - serves 27 stations Aldgate to Amersham, with branches to Chesham, Watford and Uxbridge - 67km (41.5 miles) - serves 34 stations Morden to Edgware, Mill Hill East or High Barnet, with two central London branches 58km (36 miles) - serves 50 stations Cockfosters to Heathrow or Uxbridge - 71km (44.3 miles) - serves 53 stations Walthamstow Central to Brixton - 21km (13.3 miles) - serves 16 stations

Circle line Hammersmith & City line District line Jubilee line Metropolitan line

Northern line Piccadilly line Victoria line

Waterloo & City line Waterloo to Bank - 2.4km (1.5 miles) - no intermediate stations

Generating stations' installed capacity

197,077 litres gasoil Greenwich Gas Turbine Plant - 105MW (Megawatts) Fuel consumption for year

Resource use
Total electricity supplied 1,163 (Gigawatt hours) Percentage of energy used which is renewable: 17 per cent Carbon efficiency: 78.9g CO2/passenger km travelled 143 Watts-hours/passenger km travelled 624m litres

Energy efficiency Water used each year

Recycling and waste management

Station, depot and office waste generated Station, depot and office waste recycled Construction and demolition waste generated Construction and demolition waste recycled 12,385 tonnes 74 per cent 183,456 tonnes 92 per cent

Wildlife and habitats

LU manages about 10 per cent of all green spaces in London. Wildlife observed on the Tube network Woodpeckers, deer, sparrowhawk, bats, grass snakes, great crested newts, slow worm

Pumping systems
Number of individual pumps Number of installations Daily discharge 1,125

714 Over 47 million litres water per day - enough to fill a standard leisure centre

swimming pool(25 metres x 10 metres)every 15 minutes

Rolling stock

surface and Tube lines each have their own type of rolling stock.
Rolling stock cannot be transferred easily from one line to another, although it has been done in the past. For instance, the 1983 stock introduced to the Jubilee line displaced 1972 stock to the Northern line. Northern line 1959 stock then moved to the Bakerloo line which meant 1938 stock could be withdrawn. Different lines have different sized tunnels. The original City & South London Railway tunnels were 10ft 2in (3.1 metres) in diameter. Later lines saw the internal tunnel diameters rise to 3.6 metres, and up to 3.8 metres with the Victoria line.

1996 stockThe

S stock Besides diameter, other physical features such as curvature and platform length mean that rolling stock can usually only be used on one specific line. For example, the Central and Victoria lines platforms are 400ft long and have different Automatic Train Operation signalling systems. Most other Tube platforms are only 350ft. The platforms on the western part of the Circle line were too short to take the District line D78 Stock. As part of the upgrade plan, these platforms are being lengthened to take the S7 trains that will run on both the Circle and District lines. As the Underground is modernised, the signalling systems are being updated to provide automatic train protection (ATP) which requires specific equipment on board the train to communicate with the signalling system. Only trains fitted with the correct equipment can operate on a line with ATP, another reason why trains only operate on a designated line. Tube stocks are usually identified by the year in which delivery was scheduled. Sub-surface stock has a letter followed by two numbers. This indicates the year it was first delivered.

'D' stock Most rolling stock lasts around 40 years. Major refurbishment can prolong life by another 10-15 years and costs around a sixth of the cost of a new train. A Stock (A60/62) was initially introduced in 1960 and so has been in passenger service for more than 50 years. Further reading: Underground Train File - 1933-1959, by Brian Hardy. Published by Capital Transport 2001.