How the first Underground Railway might have run under the West End of London

In 1855, a plan was submitted to Parliament for what could have been the first Underground railway under London – with a route that would have pre-dated the eventual Central and Picadilly Lines by some 50 years. The London Railway…

A look around the Jubilee Line train depot at Stratford

In 1879, the Great Eastern Railway opened a new fruit and veg market at Stratford which gave its name to the local Stratford Market train station. Connected to the local railway, it had 12 sidings to service the market. In…

The final day of the 50-year old Met Line trains

Yesterday, the last of the 50-year old Metropolitan Line trains made its final public trips along the railways, and like an awful lot of people, I took a short trip to say farewell to the old timer.

A “Grand Tour” to say goodbye to London Underground’s oldest trains

To mark the end of the 50 year service of the old Metropolitan Line trains, a grand tour has been arranged to give them a bit of a send-off before the last of them depart to the scrapyard. It’s probably…

An unusual train movement on the London Underground

Earlier this morning, something happened that hasn't been seen for over 65 years - a tube train left Waterloo and arrived at Bank, carrying passengers.

70th anniversary of an aircraft factory hidden in a tube tunnel

After 16 months of preparation during the height of the blitz, a secret aircraft components factory was completed deep underground in North London in what were unfinished tunnels for the Central Line extension.

Punch on the London Underground

Just a few cartoons that I recently acquired about the London Underground that were published in Punch Magazine at the start of the last century. Apart from the jokes, which may or may not work a hundred years after they…

Another upgrade for the Jubilee Line completed

Monday should see the final stage of the long running signalling upgrade on the Jubilee Line come to completion, as the line starts running close to its theoretical peak rate. Last August, the network upgraded from running 24 trains per…

Emergency services to simulate a terrorist attack on the tube network

Whenever the debate about why various disused tube stations — specifically Aldwych — can’t be opened to the public more often, it is usually pointed out that the best of them — specifically Aldwych — are still in use for…

Photos – Blackfriars tube station reopens

Several months late, or a week early, depending on how you look at it, Blackfriars tube station unexpectedly opened to the public this morning.

Green Park tube station to get groundwater cooling system

I thought work on this had been paused as part of the Great Olympic Engineering Shutdown, but a note from TfL earlier today says that a rather interesting air cooling system will be introduced at Green Park station this summer.…

RMT tells station staff they shouldn’t grit platforms/ticket halls

London Underground has a bit of a tendency to put up warning signs about adverse weather the moment the slightest hint of precipitation is detected in the air, but I think we can accept that the past couple of days…

Too many improvements in an email – TfL’s changing language

I noticed something last week which stood out a bit, and it happened again today, so I dug into my archive to see when it happened. What am I talking about? The weekly emails from TfL warning of dire problems…

Guide book to disused underground tube and train stations

A pocket book -- that actually fits in a pocket -- has been launched by regular transport publishers, Capital History and aims to offer a selection of guided walks around London looking for the surface signs of disused railways below ground.

Photos inside the disused tube station at Aldwych

Announced a couple of weeks ago - and sold out within a few days - today marked the first of two open weekends at the disused tube station at Aldwych.

London Underground Moquette at Canary Wharf

The main shopping centre at Canary Wharf is doing something exceptionally rare this weekend – they are admitting that men like to buy clothes. Throughout the year, the place puts on lots of shopping events for the ladies, but the…

A 3D model of Bank Tube Station – and a look at the upgrade plans

If planning permission is granted, then six years of building and tunnelling works will start at Bank tube station from 2015 to fix the notorious bottleneck at the Northern Line.

Your chance to visit an abandoned tube station

Prepare to squeal in delight as the Transport Museum delivers an early Christmas present. The closed down Aldwych tube station by Strand is opening to the public again for a rare chance to go down and see this famous tube…

More details of London Underground’s 150th Anniversary Events

You may recall that the Transport Museum has secured a grant to restore an old carriage in time for the 150th anniversary of the London Underground, which takes place in 2013. A few more details have been released by London…

The Northern Line tunnel – bombed and flooded in 1940 – and still sealed shut

Just before midnight on the 9th September 1940, sailors up on deck of the cargo sailing ship, Seven Seas were watching an air raid by German bombers over the Charing Cross railway bridge when an explosion hit the river and a large wave struck the ship.

Fancy testing part of a future Crossrail Station?

If you use the tube station at Victoria, then you already are!

100th Anniversary of the Escalator on London Underground

Tomorrow (Tue 4th Oct) marks 100 years since the first moving staircase was demonstrated on the London Underground, at Earl's Court station to be specific.

The tube train that travels through time and space

A couple of decades ago, there was a children’s TV show which is often considered to be a precursor of the Crystal Maze in that it featured a few people trying to solve a series of puzzles. The celebrities would…

Chesham Shuttle to Return to Service this Weekend

Last December, the need to change trains to catch a short shuttle service to Chesham on the Metropolitan Line was abolished as direct trains were introduced as part of the line and train upgrade programme. This weekend though, the Shuttle…