The area around London’s famous Oxford Circus is to be transformed into two pedestrianized “piazzas” after years of deliberation. Work due to start later this year will include “significant improvements to the public spaces” as well as additional planting and seating in the shopping and leisure district, Westminster City Council and the Crown Estate announced on … [Read more...] about Oxford Circus finally to be partially pedestrianized starting this summer
Transport
A Brief History of London’s Ring Roads
Traffic calming and efforts to ease congestion have taken many forms throughout the world and especially in London. Today, emphasis on public transportation, bike shares, and the advent of the London Congestion Charge at the beginning of the century are the primary ways that the city seeks to make it easier to get around. In the 1960s, the Greater London Council (the … [Read more...] about A Brief History of London’s Ring Roads
London 101: What is the London Congestion Charge?
Everyone hates traffic. No matter where you are in the world, there is nothing more frustrating than sitting behind the wheel of your car, needing to get somewhere, and moving at an absolute crawl. To find a solution to this issue in the most central areas of London, the City took a page from Singapore’s Electronic Road Pricing Toll System. Today, the London Congestion … [Read more...] about London 101: What is the London Congestion Charge?
A Brief History of London’s Buses
London’s buses are an iconic symbol of the city. The red double-decker isn’t seen as heavily in any other part of the world and they are as much a part of London as the Tower Bridge, Parliament, and Buckingham Palace. Of course, these buses known as the Routemaster weren’t the first to offer transport for Londoners. buses on the streets of this great metropolis stretch back … [Read more...] about A Brief History of London’s Buses
Top Ten Things to See at the London Transport Museum
Getting around London has been a big deal for centuries. Going back to the beginning of the 1800s when horse-drawn buses transported everyday citizens and handsome cabs were available for those with more means, transporting Londoners from one point to another has been a major part of the city. The London Transport Museum exists to document this history from its earliest days … [Read more...] about Top Ten Things to See at the London Transport Museum
HIDDEN LONDON: The Lost Tunnels of Euston Station
London Transport Museum’s ‘Hidden London’ tours are great to know about as you get access to tunnels and stations on the London transport network that are not usually open to the public. In Londontopia magazine issue #1 I reported back about the hidden tunnels at Charing Cross station. So it was a treat to join another tour, this time at Euston station. This one was a treat … [Read more...] about HIDDEN LONDON: The Lost Tunnels of Euston Station
The DLR: Ten Interesting Facts and Figures About Docklands Light Railway
Like a little brother to the London Underground, the Docklands Light Rail transportation system was developed following the revitalization of the Docklands in East London. The DLR as it’s known opened in 1987 serving much of Eastern London like its own little Underground. While still under Transport for London, it’s run as a separate light metro rail service, though it does … [Read more...] about The DLR: Ten Interesting Facts and Figures About Docklands Light Railway
It’s Official: Crossrail – Aka The Elizabeth LIne – Is Officially Delayed Until At Least 2020
The announcement has been made. Many suspected this would be the case. Crossrail, London's new underground railway, has had its opening delayed until at least Autumn 2020. The entire line won't open until 2021 at the earliest as well. The new cross-London railway line, which will slash journey times across the capital, was supposed to open last year, but at the last minute … [Read more...] about It’s Official: Crossrail – Aka The Elizabeth LIne – Is Officially Delayed Until At Least 2020
London Tube: You’ve Got to Watch This Amazing Mesmerizing Animation That Shows the Real Geography of the London Underground
I found this on Reddit the other day and knew I had to share it. Most first time travelers to London will quickly learn that the London Underground Tube Map is not designed with geographic reality in mind. It has almost no relation to geographic reality in London and you discover these quirks when you try to, for example, connect between lines at Bank. This dates back to when … [Read more...] about London Tube: You’ve Got to Watch This Amazing Mesmerizing Animation That Shows the Real Geography of the London Underground
Check Out This Amazing Animated Visualization of London’s Tube Lines
I can't stop watching this animated visualization of London's Tube Lines. It first made the rounds on Reddit and then it went viral on Twitter. It was made by Twitter user Baggma and I've linked to the original Tweet below. My favorite bit is the Elizabeth line coming in at the bottom, then creeping back away (it's recently been announced its delayed, probably for several … [Read more...] about Check Out This Amazing Animated Visualization of London’s Tube Lines
London Alert: London’s Classic Routemaster Bus Heritage Routes To Stop Running on Weekdays
The Routemaster is an icon of London (see our article on its history here). Our image of London is so suffused with it, that even though the bus was long ago taken out of regular service, it still serves that purpose. Several buses are kept in good order and operated on Heritage Routes through central London for tourists to still enjoy. Seeing a Routemaster on the roads, with … [Read more...] about London Alert: London’s Classic Routemaster Bus Heritage Routes To Stop Running on Weekdays
Crossrail News: The Elizabeth Line Opening Has Officially Been Delayed
Big news in the London Transport realm. Crossrail, aka the Elizabeth Line, London's new east-west underground railway, has had its opening delayed. It was scheduled to start opening in stages in December 2018, but Crossrail (the company building the railway) has confirmed today that they will not meet that target. They have set Autumn 2019 as the tentative open date. From … [Read more...] about Crossrail News: The Elizabeth Line Opening Has Officially Been Delayed
London Alert: New Import Product LIVE – London Underground LED Lightbox
This week we have something very special. An exclusive officially licensed London Underground LED Lightbox that offers 10 different sign options. This item comes straight from the UK and is not available anywhere else in the USA. Because these have a high import cost, we have to know how many to order in advance and will likely not be getting extras. So, if you want this … [Read more...] about London Alert: New Import Product LIVE – London Underground LED Lightbox
The Tube: A History of the London Underground
The world’s first underground railway, the London Underground was constructed as a response to the city’s rapid growth during the 19th Century. Today, it is the 11th-busiest subway system on the planet with 1.379 billion passengers using it from 2016-2017. Its tunnels stretch for 249 miles throughout London, often overlapping and giving passengers plenty of options for … [Read more...] about The Tube: A History of the London Underground
London Getting a New Road Tunnel Under the Thames in Greenwich By 2023
Today in London infrastructure news, London is getting a new road tunnel in Greenwich. The Silvertown Tunnel will link the Royal Docks north of the river with the Greenwich Peninsula in the south. It is hoped that the new tunnel will reduce congestion in the Blackwell Tunnel. As any traveler who's been stuck in traffic for 20 minutes getting through that tunnel can confess, … [Read more...] about London Getting a New Road Tunnel Under the Thames in Greenwich By 2023
Tube of the Imagination: A Guide to Fictional Underground Stations
It’s a common practice in literature and media to create fake places for your stories. Maybe the real ones aren’t available or are poorly suited to your movie or show. Perhaps no real place exists that can meet the needs of your story, yet you want everything to be grounded in reality. Being a major world city, London has been subjected to numerous fictional locales in … [Read more...] about Tube of the Imagination: A Guide to Fictional Underground Stations
Laura’s London: Go Yonda Car Tours of London – A Cool New Self-Driving Tour of London
Yonda – with the slogan 'go Yonda' – is London's only self-drive sightseeing experience. The cars are small Smart cars (two and four-seaters available) installed with an easy-to-follow virtual guide that helps customers navigate London's streets while seeing the sights. Smart Cars The two-seater Smart cars are convertible (so you can really get closer to London weather!) … [Read more...] about Laura’s London: Go Yonda Car Tours of London – A Cool New Self-Driving Tour of London
Introducing the New Londontopia Print Magazine – Order Your Copy Now – Quantities Very Limited
We've been working on this in secret and now we're ready for the big reveal. Introducing The Londontopia Print Magazine. Did you know that there isn’t a magazine on the US market dedicated completely to London? We thought this was odd, so now that we’ve got two years of magazine experience under our belts with the Anglotopia Magazine, today we’re launching a dedicated London … [Read more...] about Introducing the New Londontopia Print Magazine – Order Your Copy Now – Quantities Very Limited
The Tube: Transport for London Reveals Fares for the Upcoming Elizabeth Line
Crossrail is coming. In fact, trains will start running on the new 'Elizabeth Line' from December with the entire new Tube Line opening in 2019 (it's been a project 30 years in the planning, see this article for more information). One big question that's been up in the air, however, is what fares would be like? Would they be integrated into the current Tube Network and pay Tube … [Read more...] about The Tube: Transport for London Reveals Fares for the Upcoming Elizabeth Line
London’s Railway Bathrooms To Become Free From 2019
Time to update all the guidebooks. A big change is coming to London's railways later this year (and Britain's). You may have noticed that when you're caught short in London's mainline railway stations that they charge for the privilege of using the public toilets. As an American, this has always struck me as odd. There are rarely any paid public bathrooms here. You never … [Read more...] about London’s Railway Bathrooms To Become Free From 2019
We Need Your Help – Vote On New Column Series – Along the Lines – Exploring London’s Tube Lines
Very soon we're going to start a new article series here on Londontopia. We're tentatively calling it 'Along the Lines' and the concept is simple: every time we're in London, we're going to pick a Tube line and spend the day exploring the entire line, from beginning to end. We plan to visit famous places but also study the architecture and heritage along the line that might … [Read more...] about We Need Your Help – Vote On New Column Series – Along the Lines – Exploring London’s Tube Lines
London Alert: Buy The Official London Underground Tube Map – Anglotopia Exclusive
Due to two deaths in the family this week, we don't have a full Anglotopia Imports Product launch this week. We will next week, though. Instead, we've launched a single product that we think Anglotopia readers are going to snatch up - we've imported the official London Underground Tube Map Poster. We've ordered 50 and they should be arriving next week. It measures 25x35 and … [Read more...] about London Alert: Buy The Official London Underground Tube Map – Anglotopia Exclusive
From April 4th You’ll Be Able to Travel Direct from London to Amsterdam via Eurostar
Big news in London Transport, it's been a long time coming but from April you'll finally be able to travel directly from London's St Pancras right to the heart of Amsterdam. The direct journey will take just 3 hours and 41 minutes via the Channel Tunnel. According to the BBC: Channel Tunnel train service Eurostar is launching a new service between London and Amsterdam. … [Read more...] about From April 4th You’ll Be Able to Travel Direct from London to Amsterdam via Eurostar
Event Alert: Visit the London Transport Museum’s Acton Depot – Open Weekend in April
The London Transport Museum is one of our favorites in London, but the museum in Covent Garden is but a sliver of their entire collection. They store the whole collection in the Acton Depot, and occasionally it's opened to the public. LTM has notified us that this year's open weekend will take place on April 21st and 22nd. Fancy a potter about their massive collection and … [Read more...] about Event Alert: Visit the London Transport Museum’s Acton Depot – Open Weekend in April
Video: The Basics of Crossrail – London’s New Underground Line
Crossrail, also known as the Elizabeth Line, is coming and the folks over at Londonist have put together a great video that summarizes the new line and lays out the new dates when it will be running. This Tube geek can't wait to give it a test! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MipJnrRyiCE … [Read more...] about Video: The Basics of Crossrail – London’s New Underground Line
Londontopia is simply the website for people who love London. It was founded by Jonathan & Jackie Thomas from Anglotopia.net as a place to post articles solely focused on London and its environs. Keep up with all the latest London news at Londontopia! This site is geared towards people who love to visit London and our primary audience is North American but everyone is welcome!