London Transport Trivia

Below you will find many fascinating, interesting and unbelievable facts

 about London's Transport system.

If you know of any trivia that I have missed, or if you spot an error, please, get in touch.

Obviously, with upgrades, new stations, extensions and the ever-changing city, these figures are likely to change, but were correct at the time of writing.

A

• Acton has the most stations, of any town, with seven: Acton Central (Mildmay), Acton Main Line (Elizabeth), Acton Town (District & Piccadilly), East Acton (Central), North Acton (Central), South Acton (Mildmay), West Acton (Central)
• Acton Town is the first station, alphabetically
• Acton Town was originally called Mill Hill Park
• Albert Gunter 'jumped' his No. 78 bus over Tower Bridge as it was opening, to avoid a catastrophe, in December 1952.
• Alcohol was banned on the network in June 2008
• Aldgate station is built on a plague pit where over 1,000 bodies were buried, in 1665
• Alperton was originally called Perivale-Alperton
• Amersham is the highest station above sea level, at 150 metres (492 feet)
• Angel station has the longest escalators on the network, and in the UK, with a vertical rise of 27 metres (90 feet) and a length of 61 metres (200 feet)
• Archway was originally called Highgate, then Archway (Highgate), then Highgate (Archway)
• Arnos Grove station was inspired by the Stockholm Public Library
• Arsenal was originally called Gillespie Road, then Arsenal (Highbury Hill)

B

• Baker Street has the most platforms, with 10
• Bakerloo line has 25 stations
• Bakerloo line is 23.2 km (14.4 miles) long
• Bakerloo line opened on March 10, 1906
• Balham is the only station on the network that contains none of the letters from the word ‘underground’
• Bank station has two moving walkways
• Bank was originally called City
• Barbican was originally called Aldersgate Street, then Aldersgate, then Aldersgate & Barbican
• Bayswater became Bayswater (Queen's Road) & Westbourne Grove, then Bayswater (Queen's Road), with the suffix gradually dropped 
• Becontree was originally called Gale Street
• Boston Manor was originally called Boston Road
• Brent Cross was originally called Brent
• British Museum (disused) sits between Tottenham Court Road and Holborn, but it hasn’t been used since 1932
• Bromley-by-Bow was originally called Bromley
• Burnt Oak became Burnt Oak (for Watling), with the suffix gradually dropped
• Bus route 24 is London's oldest, still running bus route, between Pimlico and Hampstead Heath

C

• Cable Car has 2 stations
• Cable Car is 3,600 ft (1.100 m) long
• Cable Car opened on July 4, 2012
• Canons Park was originally called Canons Park (Edgware)
• Central line has 49 stations
• Central line has the longest single journey, from West Ruislip to Epping, at 54.5 km (34 miles)
• Central line is the longest underground line at 74 km (46 miles) long
• Central line opened on July 30, 1900
• Chalfont & Latimer to Chesham is the longest distance between stations, at 6.3 km (3.9 miles)
• Chalfont & Latimer was originally called Chalfont Road
• Chancery Lane became Chancery Lane (Grays Inn), with the suffix gradually dropped
• Chancery Lane has the shortest escalator, which has only 50 steps
• Charing Cross (Bakerloo line) was originally called Trafalgar Square
• Charing Cross has the most exits to street level, with 13
• Charing Cross was created in 1979, when Trafalgar Square and Strand stations were merged
• Charles Holden took inspiration from the Moscow Metro for his design of Gants Hill station
• Chesham is the furthest station from central London, at 40 km (25 miles)
• Chesham is the most northerly station on the network
• Chesham is the most westerly station on the network
• Chiswick Park was originally called Acton Green, then Chiswick Park & Acton Green
• Chorleywood was originally called Chorley Wood, then Chorley Wood & Chenies, before becoming Chorleywood
• Circle line has 36 stations
• Circle line is 27 km (17 miles) long
• Circle line opened in 1863, but wasn't completed until 1884. It became the Circle line in 1936
• Circle line stopped being a true circle in 2009
• Clapham North was originally called Clapham Road
• Cockney rhyming slang for the Tube is ‘The Oxo’, as in 'Oxo cube'
• Covent Garden to Leicester Square is the shortest journey on the network, with the platforms just 260 metres (853 feet) apart
• Croxley was originally called Croxley Green

D

• Dagenham East was originally called Dagenham
• Dagenham Heathway was originally called Heathway
• Debden was originally called Chigwell Road, then Chigwell Lane
• District line has the most stations, with 60
• District line is 64 km (40 miles) long
• District line opened on December 24, 1868
• District line rail maps were originally published, in the 19th century, with the maxim 'Time is Money' on the cover.
• Docklands Light Railway has 45 stations
• Docklands light Railway is 38 km (24 miles) long
• Docklands Light Railway opened on August 31, 1987
• Down Street station (disused) was used as a bunker, by Winston Churchill, during World War II

London's Transport Network Information

History of the Roundel.

London has to be one of the most interconnected cities in the world. From its 86,000 buses to its 4,100 underground trains, you can reach every part of the capital... and beyond.

Then there is the River Boat service and the Tram network. And that is before you get on to the Elizabeth line, the interlinked London Overground lines and National Rail lines

The London Underground system is composed, currently, of 11 distinct lines, serving 272 stations over 400 kilometres (250 miles). The station of Ongar is 'point zero' for measurements along the network.

Below you will find some information for each of the lines. 

('Speed' is an average for the entire line).

Bakerloo

First service: March 10, 1906

Length: 23.2 km (14.4 mi)

Stations: 25

Speed: 27 km/h (16 mph)

Central

First service: July 30, 1900

Length: 74 km (46 mi)

Stations: 49

Speed: 37 km/h (23 mph)

Circle

First service: 1863

Length: 27 km (17 mi)

Stations: 36

Speed: 24 km/h (15 mph)

District

First service: December 24, 1868

Length: 64 km (40 mi)

Stations: 60

Speed: 30 km/h (18 mph)

Hammersmith & City

First service: January 10, 1863

Length: 25.5 km (15.8 mi)

Stations: 29

Speed: 25 km/h (15 mph)

Jubilee

First service: May 1, 1979

Length: 36.2 km (22.5 mi)

Stations: 27

Speed: 40 km/h (25 mph)

Suggested names: Fleet line

Metropolitan

First service: January 10, 1863

Length: 67 km (42 mi)

Stations: 34

Speed: 45 km/h (28 mph)

Roundel

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

I live in Watford, which is the largest town in Hertfordshire, and is the fourth most connected town in the country. 

So, being roughly 18 miles from the centre of London, getting into the Unfinished City is remarkably simple, and cheap.

I can guarantee, though, that 98% of my journeys, into the Unfinished City, are made via the London Underground. The other 2% I make via the overground networks, which include the London Overground and National Rail.

Love the Tube: 160 Years of Service.

The Metropolitan Line station is just a short walk away and can take me straight through to Baker Street or Aldgate. Or I can change at Finchley Road, among others, to change onto a different line, depending on where I am headed,

One of the things that is instantly recognisable around the world, is the Roundel: The symbol used by Transport for London on all of their stations, bus stops, promotional material, etc..

Bank station Roundel.

What many don't realise is how the Roundel developed over time.