Why is the London Tube so famous?

The London Underground, or the Tube as locals prefer to call it, is the world's first underground railway which began operating in 1863. Today it serves over 1.3 billion passengers a year, which works out to 4.8 million Londoners and travellers using it daily to get around London and the surrounding boroughs.



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Each subway system was scored on the level of comfort on offer to passengers, which included ventilation and public bathrooms. London topped the list, offering the most toilets per passenger and ventilation systems at most stations.

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The Metropolitan line is the oldest underground railway in the world. The Metropolitan Railway opened in January 1863 and was an immediate success, though its construction took nearly two years and caused huge disruption in the streets. Read more about the Metropolitan line.

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If you're seeking a cooler tube ride, you'll want to stick to the Jubilee or Waterloo Lines. With an average of 26.9C and 25C respectively, they recorded the lowest temperatures.

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The Metropolitan line is the oldest underground railway in the world. The Metropolitan Railway opened in January 1863 and was an immediate success, though its construction took nearly two years and caused huge disruption in the streets.

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The deepest station is Hampstead on the Northern line, which runs down to 58.5 metres. 15. In Central London the deepest station below street level is also the Northern line.

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The current operator, London Underground Limited (LUL), is a wholly owned subsidiary of Transport for London (TfL), the statutory corporation responsible for the transport network in London.

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The average speed on the Underground is 20.5 mph (33.0 km/h). Outside the tunnels of central London, many lines' trains tend to travel at over 40 mph (64 km/h) in the suburban and countryside areas.

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The shortest distance between two adjacent stations on the underground network is only 260 metres. The tube journey between Leicester Square and Covent Garden on the Piccadilly Line takes only about 20 seconds, but costs £4.90 (cash fare). Yet it still remains one of the most popular journeys with tourists.

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When the first private tube companies began operating after 1863, they focused on north London, where there was more opportunity. 'The Underground chose to run extensions into the open semi-rural districts to the north instead, where they'd have less competition and sell more tickets,' says Murphy.

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Roding Valley is London's least used tube station. Roding Valley is found on the central line. Roding Valley transports around the same number of passengers in 1 year, that London Waterloo does in 1 day.

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Its history is linked to both the oldest line on the Underground, the Metropolitan, and the youngest, the Jubilee.

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Opening in 1979 the Jubilee line today began life as a branch of the Metropolitan Railway in 1932, before being transferred to the Bakerloo line in the 1930s. The Jubilee line is the youngest line on the Underground network, before the opening of the Elizabeth line in 2018.

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Whatever direction you're coming from –whether via car, tube or walk – you'll know you're reaching King's Cross St Pancras when traffic will start slowing down and you'll even have to queue to cross the road. As such, seeing it top the chart as London's most stressful station is certainly not a surprise.

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Armed with a thermometer, ITV London reporter Rags Martel stepped underground to find out London's hottest tube. On board the Bakerloo line the heat rises fast, climbing from 28C to 32C by the end of a 5 minute journey. Commuters on the tube called it inhumane and like a sauna.

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