Public transport in London

The 'Tube'

A London bus

London Underground is made up of 12 lines, each with their own unique colour so you can easily follow them on a map. Most lines run through central London, and many serve parts of Greater London.

Train Directions

Trains and platforms are described as eastbound, westbound, northbound or southbound depending on the direction of the line. Trains travelling from left to right on the tube map are eastbound, from right to left are westbound, from top to bottom are southbound and from bottom to top are northbound.

Zones

London's tube system is split into 6 'zones' which appear in concentric circles. On the tube maps, central London is zone 1 (the middle circle), and the further away you travel from central London, the higher the zones get.

Travel is cheaper in zones 3, 4, 5 and 6 than in zones 1 and 2. However, you need to pay for all zones you travel through during your journey.

Buses

Regent Street

There are over 6,500 buses in London operating 700 routes every day. Buses run all over London, serving over 17,000 bus stops, so you'll never be far from a bus route.

Some bus services only run during the day, from about 06:00 to 23:00. However, many routes run a 24-hour service. Night buses - prefixed with the letter 'N' (e.g. N24) - run during the night and offer a good alternative to the tube, (which closes around 00:00), and taxis which can be expensive.

London Train Services

London's National Rail system stretches all over London. Many lines start at the main London railway stations (Paddington, Victoria, Waterloo, Kings Cross) with links to the tube. Trains mainly serve areas outside central London, and travel over ground.

London has 60 National Rail stations, with numerous routes running from each one. Several train companies run different routes all over London.

Tickets and Fares

When travelling on public transport in London you have several ticket options. You can either pay a cash fare, use a pre-paid Oyster card or buy a paper travel card. The price of your journey depends on which ticket type you choose, which zones you travel in and what time you travel at. Oyster cards always offer the lowest fares.

Oyster Cards

The reusable pre-paid plastic travel card for single journeys, 1-day, 7-day, 1-month, 6-month or 1-year travel passes.

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