Celebrating 150 Years of the London Underground

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Wed 09 Jan 2013 - Tue 31 Dec 2013

9 January 2013 marked 150 years since the very first London Underground or Tube journey was made between Paddington and Farringdon on the Metropolitan Railway. As part of the anniversary celebrations, a vintage steam train which carried passengers in the 19th century ran on 13 January, with another scheduled for 20 January. Hundreds of rail enthusiasts, Londoners and curious spectators took up positions at stations and on bridges to catch a glimpse of the train, as it travelled between Earl's Court, Edgware Road and Moorgate.


Ticker holders travelled in coaches pulled by Met Locomotive No 1, a 1898-built and restored steam engine that commenced from its shed near Earl's Court, west London, to start a journey from Kensington Olympia to Moorgate.


The coaches included the Metropolitan Railway Jubilee Carriage 353, the oldest surviving operational Tube carriage built in 1892. Attached to the Jubilee carriage was a set of 4 carriages known as the Chesham carriages that dated back to 1898.


Completing the commemorative train was No. 12 Sarah Siddons, one of the world's oldest electric locomotives in service. Passengers including London Mayor Boris Johnson were able to experience the thick clouds of white steam and bits of soot that accompanied the steam engine.


The same trip that 40,000 Londoners made on 9 January 1863 transformed the history of public transport by establishing the world's first underground system. By 1880, it accomplished 115 million trips a year. Since then the London Underground had featured regularly in UK's history. Its tunnels were air raid shelters for thousands of Londoners during World War II. The expansion of the Tube impacted the city's design and housing by encouraging residents to move away from the inner city to new housing areas while enjoying access to work and social activities in the metropolis. In 2005, a terrorist attack left 52 people dead in the tunnels. However the entire system was up and running in less than 12 hours.


While much has changed over time, the congestion of the world's first subway system described by London newspapers in 1863 remained a constant. London's arteries never stops and the Tube continues to play an important role in the lives of Londoners, connecting people and places across the capital. Today the Metropolitan Line is a 249-mile system carrying 1.2 billion passenger journeys each year. It is being upgraded to provide 30 percent more capacity in order to cope with a growing population and to support the economic growth of London and the UK. It is also impossible to envisage London without the Tube due to the recognition of its iconic logo around the world.


With the support of Cubic Transportation Systems, Siemens, CBS Outdoor, Canary Wharf Group, Costain and Invensys and Virgin Media, special events and activities are being organised by London Underground throughout the year to mark this historic 150-year anniversary of the Tube. They will feature the Tube's rich heritage and history and the vital role the London Underground has played, and will continue to play, in the economic success of London. More information is available at www.tfl.gov.uk and www.ltmuseum.co.uk .

Some of the highlights for 2013 include:













#farringdon
#things_to_see
#january
#paddington
#learn_something
#history
#fun_things_to_do
#june
#december
#november
#october
#september
#august
#july
#february
#edgware
#march
#april
#may
#earls_court
#community_events
#automotive
!date 09/01/2013 -- 31/12/2013
%wnlondon