London Underground

The London Underground is an electric railway public transport network (a metro or subway system) that runs both above and below ground throughout the Greater London area. It is usually referred to by Londoners as either simply "the Underground" , or (more familiarly, due to the shape of its deep-bore tunnels) as "the Tube". It is the oldest and biggest such underground system in the world. Operations began on 10 January 1863 on the Metropolitan Railway; most of the initial route is now part of the Hammersmith & City Line.

Practical

Tickets

London Underground uses Transport for London's Travelcard zones for all fares, including Underground-only fares. Travelcard Zone 1 is the most central, with a boundary just outside the Circle Line. Most of inner London is within Travelcard Zone 3. Zones 1 to 6 cover all of Greater London and a few extra stations; the remaining zones are named A, B, C and D, of which zone D is the most remote and consists of Amersham and Chesham out in the Chiltern Hills on the Metropolitan Line. These lettered zones cater for the rural extremities of the tube and do not encircle the capital.

Related Topics:
Transport for London - Travelcard - Travelcard Zone 1 - Inner London - Travelcard Zone 3 - Greater London - Amersham - Chesham - Chiltern Hills

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In general, the more zones travelled through, the higher the fare. Journeys through zone 1 are more expensive than those involving only outer zones. The zone system works well because the most popular destinations and the stations where lines cross are in zone 1, meaning that most journeys over similar distances will cost the same.

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There are assistance booths open for limited periods and ticket machines usable at any time. While some machines which sell a limited number of tickets accept only coins, other touch-screen ticket machines will accept coins and English paper money—though not Northern Irish or Scottish notes—in good condition, and usually give change. These machines also accept major credit and debit cards and some newer machines will accept payment only by card.

Related Topics:
Paper money - Northern Irish - Scottish

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In 2003, Transport for London launched the Oyster card across the entire London transport network (all modes of transport controlled by TfL with the exception of most National Rail services) including the London Underground. It is a proximity card and on the Underground allows a traveller to touch the card on one of the yellow readers positioned on the automatic entrance and exit gates rather than feeding it through a card ticket reader. Unlike card tickets, the Oyster Card is not disposable, and value can be added to it at computerised ticket machines and at ticket offices.

Related Topics:
2003 - Oyster card - National Rail - Proximity card

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Transport for London also sell daily, three-day, seven-day, monthly and annual Travelcards, allowing unlimited rides in one or more zones on the London Underground; these are a good deal for commuters or anyone else who rides the tube daily. Travelcards also permit travel on National Rail within the zones they cover and bus travel for the whole of Greater London. "Off-Peak" Travelcards, also known as "One-Day Travelcards", are sold from machines only after 09:30, and a "Peak" Travelcard is available at a higher price. Many shops, usually newsagents, sell bus passes and Travelcards; these are identified by a "Ticket Stop" sign, usually in a door panel or front window. A day pass is valid until 04:30 the next morning. Passes can be bought from these agents during a day prior to travel. See http://www.myenglandtravel.com for more details.

Related Topics:
Transport for London - Travelcards

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Station access

Due to its age—accessibility was not considered an important issue when the system was built—not all Underground stations are accessible by people with mobility problems. Many have some of the 410 escalators (each going at a speed of 145 ft per minute, approximately 1.65 miles per hour) or 112 lifts. New stations are designed for accessibility, but retrofitting accessibility features to old stations is considered prohibitively expensive.

Related Topics:
Underground station - Escalator - Ft - Miles per hour - Lifts

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The escalators in London Underground stations are both an asset and a liability. They are among the longest escalators in Europe and all are custom-built for each station. They must run 20 hours a day, 364 days a year and cope with 13,000 people per hour, with 95% of them operational at any one time. Etiquette dictates that people using escalators on the tube stand on the right-hand side or walk on the left.

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Transport for London now produces a map specifically indicating which stations are accessible and more recent line maps display with the symbol of a wheelchair which stations provide step-free access to street level. However, step height from platform to train is often as high as 200 mm on some lines, and there can be a large gap between the train and some curving platforms. Only the Jubilee Line Extension is completely usable by the unassisted wheelchair-using traveller.

Related Topics:
More recent - Mm - Gap - Jubilee Line Extension

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Safety, reliability and cost

The London Underground has an excellent passenger safety record. Suicides are nonetheless common, at roughly one successful attempt per week across the network, though it is estimated that there are three attempts for each fatality. To help prevent death, most deep tube stations have pits between the tracks at platforms; known as a 'suicide pit', their purpose is to let a body fall safely under the tracks and away from the path of an oncoming train. They were not part of the original construction, and had to be dug out later when the suicide problem became apparent. Delays resulting from a person jumping in front of the train as it pulls into a station are announced as "passenger action" or "a person under a train", but are referred to by staff as a "one under".

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Surprisingly few accidents are caused by overcrowding on the platforms; one explanation suggested for this—presumably by people who have never visited London or the Tube—is that Londoners are too polite to push. More prosaically, Underground staff monitor platforms by CCTV and prevent people entering the system if they become overcrowded. Camden Town tube station is exit-only on Sunday afternoons (13:00–17:30) for the same reason.

Related Topics:
CCTV - Camden Town tube station

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However, the employee safety regimen has drawn criticism. In January 2002, London Underground was fined £225,000 for breaching safety standards for workers. In court, the judge said the company was "sacrificing safety" to keep the trains running "at all costs." He continued that the company, "despite the lip service they paid to health and safety issues, fell lamentably short of the proper safety standards and, objectively, simply ignored their obligations in this respect." Workers had been ordered to work in the dark whilst the traction current was still switched on, often whilst it was raining. Several workers received electric shocks as a result. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/england/1752928.stm

Related Topics:
2002 - Safety standards for workers

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Smoking was banned on all carriages on the trains in July 1984, except for a middle carriage. The ban was extended, for a six-month trial, to all parts of the Underground in summer 1987, and this was made permanent after the King's Cross fire in November 1987.

Related Topics:
Smoking - 1984 - 1987 - King's Cross fire

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The fire at King's Cross station on 18 November 1987 was caused by a burning match falling onto a wooden-tread escalator panel and then igniting grease-laden dust accumulated in the drive mechanism below the escalator. Thirty-one people died in the fire, which prompted the phasing out of wooden escalators and improved safety training for staff.

Related Topics:
Fire at King's Cross station - 18 November - 1987 - Match - Wooden escalator

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On 7 July 2005, a series of terrorist bombs exploded in Underground trains between Aldgate and Liverpool Street stations, Russell Square and King's Cross St Pancras stations, and Edgware Road and Paddington stations. A double-decker bus from London Transport at Tavistock Square was also destroyed in the attacks. The explosions killed 56 people, and resulted in over 700 casualties.

Related Topics:
7 July - 2005 - Series of terrorist bombs - Aldgate - Liverpool Street - Russell Square - King's Cross St Pancras - Edgware Road - Paddington - Double-decker - London Transport - Tavistock Square

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On 21 July 2005, a second series of explosions were reported in London, two weeks and some hours after the 7 July 2005 London bombings. The explosions were much smaller than the previous ones. The four explosions occurred at Shepherd's Bush, Warren Street and Oval underground stations, and on a bus in Shoreditch. This attack was less serious as only one injury was reported and no fatalities.

Related Topics:
21 July - 2005 - A second series of explosions - London - 7 July 2005 London bombings - Shepherd's Bush - Warren Street - Oval - Shoreditch

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There have also been a number of high profile derailments in recent years, mostly on the Central Line.

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The system has suffered from significant under-funding in the past two decades and consequently has far older carriages and signals than its equivalents in such cities as Barcelona, Madrid and Paris. Recently, one of the private infrastructure companies, Tube Lines, was reported as using eBay to find spare parts for some of its equipment because they were not available any other way.http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/4079135.stm

Related Topics:
Barcelona - Madrid - Paris - EBay

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