The London Underground – or “tube” as it is affectionately known to locals and tourists alike, is the oldest and one of the most extensive mass transit systems in the world. The system boasts 82 miles of tunnels, 250 miles of track and over 100 stations, many of which are architectural masterpieces. To the millions of Londoners who take it to work each day, it is hardly exotic; but some of the station names have an undeniable intriguing ring to them. You can’t help wonder what lies above ground as you speed through the stations named Swiss Cottage, Elephant & Castle and Temple. London’s celebrated underground has confidently entered the 21st century with the recent addition of new lines running south and east of the center and major renovations for many older stations.
London’s first underground railway opened in 1863 and ran for a modest four miles. Today, if you travel on the Circle Line between Paddington and Farringdon, you are literally retracing the tracks of that first historic train journey. The trains were hauled by steam locomotives and the tunnels were cut by the “cut and cover” method of digging a huge trench, laying the tracks and then putting a roof over them. In 1870 the first line constructed by actually boring a tunnel, was opened. It ran under the River Thames – a considerable engineering feat at the time. In 1913 the main London post office opened a section of underground railway to run in a huge circle, connecting London’s main rail stations and post office. Today, driverless trains carrying 30,000 bags of mail still run daily through these tunnels.
The "Tube" Expands Between the Wars
The Underground’s growth years came in the years between the two world wars. As London and its suburbs grew ever outwards, the underground became an increasingly important and efficient means of transporting large numbers of workers to and from the city. Endless rows of identical houses were constructed in an attempt to house all these workers. Some of those suburban stations have names which capture the idyllic feeling of the countryside that was once there before the housing boom – Maida Vale, Wood Green, Burnt Oak and Parsons Green. A new term was coined to describe the ideal way of living that could be found at the end of the line – London’s far-flung suburbs became known as “Metroland” after a phrase in a poem by John Betjeman. Metroland represented the best of both worlds – country living with easy access to the city.
One of the Most Famous Maps in the world..
In 1933, a draughtsman named Harry Beck further revolutionized the Underground with his revision of the underground map, which with all the new stations was becoming difficult to read. Beck redesigned the map, ignoring the distances between the outlying stations and enlarged the central area to make it easier to read. That map that you see in every underground station today, as well as on countless t-shirts, coffee cups, posters and diaries is basically the same innovative map that Beck designed. Beck received only a few pounds for his work, as he admitted he worked on the map largely during his spare time.
The underground proved a blessing for Londoners during the blitz in World War II. As London was bombed almost nightly, Londoners would descend to the platforms of the deepest stations and patiently wait it out. Henry Moore, better known for his sculptures, managed to capture the atmosphere of the cramped and uncomfortable conditions in a series of pencil drawings.
Many stations, especially those that date from the building boom of the 1930s are considered masterpieces of Art Deco design, with spacious curved booking offices, decorative motifs and distinctive tile work. The architect Charles Holden was largely responsible for some of the more futuristic-looking stations; his masterpiece is St James Park station, in the office building above, London Transport still has its headquarters.
Some stations are worth visiting even if you never leave the station itself – Baker Street station, just yards from the fictional home of the great detective Sherlock Holmes has murals depicting scenes from the novels set into the walls of the platforms. Platform 6 at Baker Street has been faithfully preserved to show what the station looked like back in the 1860s. Many stations on the Piccadilly Line have elements of their original designs intact as well as some good examples of decorative tile work. In sharp contrast, the new station at Canary Wharf in the shadow of the skyscrapers of London’s second financial district is a stunning and airy masterpiece of glass and steel, with over 100 shops inside.
Escalators and Elevators
The system can get crowded, especially during rush hour – 2,500,000 people use the Underground every day, and sometimes it seems as if they are all trying to catch your train. So far though, the authorities have not had to employ staff to literally push people onto the trains, as with the Tokyo subway. Some of the larger stations can be confusing with seemingly endless passageways and elevators. And if you choose to walk up the steps instead of taking the elevator, or "lift" as it is called in England (which at certain stations are notorious for being out of order anyway) watch for the helpful sign at the bottom of the steps which tells you exactly how many steps there are to climb. Some of the deeper stations also have long escalators; commonplace today, but when the first escalator was installed in Earl’s Court station, transport authorities employed a man to ride up and down it all day to convince the public it was safe.
When you exit your station, look for maps on the wall showing the local area; they also indicate which exit to take from large stations with many exits. If you are really concerned about shortening your journey time, you can actually buy a tube map that shows the most convenient place on each station platform to board and leave the train.
"Mind the Gap!"
If you are waiting for a train at Embankment station, you may be puzzled by loudspeaker announcements instructing you to “mind the gap”. What this mysterious message is referring to is the alarmingly large space between the edge of the platform and the train's door - and helpfully advising you not to fall into it. If you are stuck on the tube with nothing to read – try to avoid making eye contact with the person sitting opposite you, which is frowned upon in tube etiquette. Instead, you can read one of the poems displayed on the wall of your car. “Poems on the Underground” was launched in 1986, part of an innovative program to bring poetry to a wider range of people.
Over the years, many new underground stations have been opened, while some others have closed. If you look carefully as you speed through the darkness between stations, you can still see the platforms and other fixtures of stations long since closed. Some stations were adapted for other uses – just off Goodge Street, what was once a tube station is now a secure document storage facility. Another disused station, Down Street in the trendy Mayfair area is now a bookstall – at one time Winston Churchill used the station as an emergency shelter during World War II.
Buskers, Cats and Track Cleaners
The underground attracts its share of odd characters. Many of London’s unfortunate homeless population spend their days dozing in one of the warm carriages of the Circle Line, as the train makes its endless way around central London. Most of London’s busiest stations have their resident “busker”, or street entertainer performing songs with a hat out for any spare change you care to throw their way. A sign at Bond Street station warns you not to give any money to the buskers dressed as cats, who at one time were a more or less permanent fixture at the station.
And if you venture down into the underground in the early hours of the morning – sometime after the last train of the night and before the first train of the morning – you will come across a small but dedicated group of workers. Every night, a group of Underground employees walks every inch of the tracks picking up trash, debris and anything else that shouldn’t be there. It’s a tough job – but someone has to do it.
If you just can’t get enough of the Underground, take a train to Covent Garden station and walk the short distance to the London Transport Museum. Here you will find the history of London’s Underground and buses displayed in a fascinating series of exhibits, interactive displays and maps. Costumed actors help to bring the history of London, its transport system and its people, to life. There are also several historic trains on display that have reached the end of their working life. And remember – mind the gap!