We finally took your picture down off the wall, ah Jesse how do you always seem to know just when to...
We finally took your picture down off the wall, ah Jesse how do you always seem to know just when to call
Member since:18.10.2005
Reviews:48
Members who trust:18
Basic Information:
London Underground (The Tube) is a metro based system that runs throughout Central London and beyond.
they system is split into six zones with central London being the middle zone and all the other zones extending in circles around it. i.e. the furthest point West of London will be in the same zone as the furthest point East of London etc
It is reasonable expensive with a single ticket within one zone costing about £2 and a travel card for all zones costing about £10 before 9.30 and about £6 after 9.30. My monthly travel card covering all zones cost about £160 a month (I have since moved to Dublin and am pleased to report my combined tram and train ticket now costs the equivalent of £80 a month!) It is probably best to work out how much travel you will do during the day in order to work out which ticket is better value.
There are ten lines on the tube listed below with a few of the attractions they service:
Central: Oxford Street Shops (Marble Arch, Bond Street, Oxford Circus or Tottenham Ct Road), St. Paul's Cathedral (St. Pauls). London
Stock Exchange (Bank)
District: Tower Bridge and Tower of London (Tower Hill). Wimbledon Tennis (Southfields), Natural History Museum (South Kensington), Big Ben (Westminister),
Waterloo & City Line: Mainly a commuter line with no services Saturday evenings or Sundays. Nothing of interest
**Lines and Stations to avoid if possible**
Circle Line I would always try to avoid this line, I have had to use it as an alternative route to work a few times and it has never been regular, on time and once took me 45 mins to travel two stations!
Central Line in the Summer: It may be difficult to avoid this line as it runs right through the heart of London however during the summer is actually hotter than an oven. A TV crew once had a thermometer on the train I was on and the temperature had reached 102 degrees in a carriage with a bare minimum of standing room only!
Oxford Circus Station: If you are planning to go to oxford street I would recommend alighting the tube at either Bond Street or Tottenham Ct Road as Oxford Circus station is a crowded maze. There seems to be about a million people there regardless of the time and there is also about 8 exits you can take which leaves it pretty much up to guesswork unless you can find an elusive member of staff!
**Tips for surviving your tube journey**
If you are a tourist try and avoid travelling in rush hour. This is between 8am and 9.30am in the morning and between 4.30pm and 6.30pm in the evenings. Your journey will be far pleasenter when you are not pressed up against the back of a random stranger while having someones handbag digging into your side and a woman wearing stillettos standing on your foot.
If you do need to travel during this time here are a few pointers to avoid you being attacked by a tired and angry commuter!
1. DO NOT congregate at the bottom of escalators, it may sound like commen sense to 99% of the worlds population however people still do this, the escalator moves and usually has about a hundred people on it at any one time who cannot stop this usually results in a pile up at the bottom of the escalator with people attempting to walk backwards up a downwards escalator.
2. DO stand on the right of the escalator. by all means allow the escalator to do the work for you I usually do but there are plenty of people who are either in a rush or pretending to be in a rush that like to walk down them so by standing out of the way you are less likely to be shoved out the way.
3. Allow people to get off the train first...this one not just for tourists as there are many other people who don't do this as well, again it's just commen sense, the more people who can get off the train the more people who can get on...simple!
4. It is ok to pick up a paper someone has just put down behind them, it will usually (especially in the morning) be the Metro and the person who has put it down definitly didin't pay for it and probably picked it up from the seat when they sat down.
5. No-one will give you a seat, don't rely on the fact that you are a woman or in fact anything else (there are some nice people who will give seats to old people and pregnant women) people will avoid eye contact in the theory if they don't see you you're not there. Don't be polite and stand back to give someone a seat you thought was going there first the favour will not be returned.
6. Expect to be pushed, shoved and shouted out with the most common shout being "move down!" be aware people will shout this to you whether there is room to move down or not, I am sometimes left wondering whether they are asking me to stand on the persons shoulder next to me!
If you avoid rush hour travelling should be a lot more pleasant and stress free however would still advise sticking to tips 1 2 and 3!!
**Overall Opinion**
The tube is the easiest way to get into London, the bus is slightly cheaper but traffic is horrendus and driving will work out expensive, frustrating and with a high chance of getting clamped or fined! The frequency of trains is usually very regular although watch out for the old signal failures. If they announce there are delays on the line it is still worth going down to the platform as chances are the train that was supposed to be there about an hour before is only arriving now so although there are delays the frequency of the trains is still the same.
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I like the tube, it's easy, its part of London. Although we had to walk everywhere last time we went and my better half would not step foot on a train due to the bombings. She got on one to wembly though for the backstreet boys. From centre point to harrods is not nice walk. Jonathan
skrg28 28.10.2005 23:07
good review, if only it was that easy in real life.
killiefan 26.10.2005 12:57
Great review. I was in London in July but avoided tube for obvious reasons at that time
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Oct 24th, 2005
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