UNDERGROUND: How The TUBE Shaped London

J.M. Syken

Course Outline

In this course, we will examine the background and history of the creation of the world’s first urban, subterranean railway; the London Underground (a.k.a. “The Tube”). We will examine the need for an underground railway system to alleviate the metropolis’ overcrowded streets and early plans, starting in the mid-1830s, to realize such a railway. The creation of the world’s first sub-aqueous tunnel: the  Thames Tunnel - begun in 1825 and completed in 1841, and its early use as a pedestrian/horse-drawn carriage tunnel and adaptation in 1869 as a railway tunnel will be discussed as well as the advancements in tunneling technology that allowed for more expeditious and less costly underground tunnels.

The creation of the Metropolitan Railway (a.k.a. “The Met”) – the first line of the London Underground opened in 1863 and its construction using the “cut and cover” technique and associated problems (which led to later extensions/new line using deep tunneling methods) will also be highlighted and discussed. The early use of “smokeless” condensing locomotives and the later introduction of electric locomotives will be examined as will be the use of pneumatic railways. The creation of entirely new lines in the latter half of the 20th Century (i.e. Victoriaand Jubilee Line/s) as well as future plans for the system (i.e. Crossrail) and the role heroic played by the Underground during the “London Blitz” of WWII will also be a subject of great interest.

This course includes a multiple-choice quiz at the end, which is designed to enhance the understanding of the course materials.

Learning Objective

At the conclusion of this course, the student will:

• Understand/appreciate the origins, need etc. of the concept of an underground railway serving London;
• Understand/appreciate the importance of the world’s first sub-aqueous tunnel: Thames Tunnel, and how it led to advancements in tunneling technology (i.e. improved shield);
• Understand/appreciate the creation of the first line of the underground system (The Met) and how the shallow “cut and cover” technique caused surface congestion;
• Understand/appreciate the adoption of “deep-tunneling” techniques for line expansion/creation;
• Understand/appreciate the problems associated with steam locomotives in tunnels and the introduction of both pneumatic and electric locomotives as a resolution to the problem;
• Understand/appreciate the on-going extension/expansion of the underground system and its links to “Overground” transportation;
• Understand/appreciate the role/s of “The Creators of the London Underground” – Charles Tyson Yerkes, Albert Stanley and Frank Pick;
• Understand/appreciate the artistic/architectural design/features of the Underground;
• Understand/appreciate the role played by the Underground during WWII as shelters and underground factories;
• Understand/appreciate changes to the system in the immediate pre-WWII and post-WWII years;
• Understand/appreciate the creation of the “Victoria Line” in the 1960s and the “Jubilee Line” completed in 1999; and
• Understand/appreciate the legacy of the underground as the world’s first “subway” system and its impact on shaping modern London.

Intended Audience

This course is intended for architects, engineers and other design professionals.

Benefit to Attendees

The attendee/s will gain an intimate knowledge and insight into one of the greatest engineering achievements in human history, the London Underground.

Course Introduction

The course includes an in-depth PowerPoint presentation and the viewing of a documentary film

Course Content

In this course, you are required to view/study the following slideshow and the materials contained in the web pages:

UNDERGROUND: How The Tube Shaped London (printable handout in PDF, 10 MB, see Note A below for downloading instruction)
UNDERGROUND: How The Tube Shaped London (non-printable slideshow for screen-viewing only, 28 MB, see Note A below for downloading instruction)

Archival/Documentary Films:

TITLE: The Northern Line of the London Underground
LINK: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6Ytw-CqtXY
DURATION: 17:35

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSMGsi9WSss
(Film: Engineering the London Underground - 12:04)

Note A: Please click on the above underlined hypertext to view, download or print the document for your study. Because of the large file size, we recommend that you first save the file to your computer by right-clicking the mouse and choosing "Save Target As ...", and then open the file in Adobe Acrobat Reader from your computer.

Course Summary

When the first line of the London Underground opened in January 1863, it was a foul smelling and, in general unappealing environment mainly due to the presence of the “smokeless” steam engines (in reality, they weren’t smokeless completely). Even so, Londoners flocked to “The Tube” (as it was quickly dubbed) for relief from the burden of traveling on the surface streets. Its creation using the sub-surface “cut and cover” method so disturbed the flow of traffic on the already overcrowded streets that it would not be used again; deep tunnels would eliminate the problem in the future. The creation of the underground system coincided with advances in tunneling technology (in fact, helping greatly to advance the science) and the first uses/improvements of electric locomotives and “multiple unit” electric trains. The underground would also see success and failure with pneumatic underground trains, a vestige of which remains in the form of “MailRail” – the underground postal line still serving London. The history of the Underground is intimately entwined with the development of London from the mid-19th Century to the present day. In fact, much of Britain’s “Finest Hour” – as Winston Churchill so eloquently termed it, was spent sheltered from “The Blitz” safe below in the deep-tubes and stations of London’s Underground, forever endearing it to that generation of Londoners.

Related Links

For additional technical information related to this subject, please visit the following websites:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_Underground

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lA9g7fDWnok
(Film: The History of the London Underground - 09:01)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKzgp17-Jzg
(Film: Meet Crossrail's CEO: Andrew Wolstenholme OBE - 16:29)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zs8-kOj9vOw
(Film: The Tube - 22:32)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwRRSJ_wtIg
(Film: How They Dug the Victoria Line [BBC] - 39:22)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swSeHxk9TGI
(Film: Inside London's New Railway - 07:05)\

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSTFB6Qxs7o
(Film - Lost in Time: The Crystal Palace - 27:19)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mi6dNcCYwbs
(The Secret Life of a Bus Garage - 45:58)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=So2HM-VI35w
(This is How They Built the London Underground - 50:31)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lN0mh2dnyrg
(Film: Victoria Line Story - 1:40:49)

Quiz

Once you finish studying the above course content, you need to take a quiz to obtain the PDH credits.

---

DISCLAIMER: The materials contained in the online course are not intended as a representation or warranty on the part of PDH Center or any other person/organization named herein. The materials are for general information only. They are not a substitute for competent professional advice. Application of this information to a specific project should be reviewed by a registered architect and/or professional engineer/surveyor. Anyone making use of the information set forth herein does so at their own risk and assumes any and all resulting liability arising therefrom.

---