For centuries, getting about London has been a significant undertaking. Transporting Londoners from one location to another has been a prominent aspect of the city since the early 1800s when horse-drawn buses moved ordinary inhabitants and elegant taxis were available for those with more significant resources.
The London Transport Museum serves to preserve this history from the beginning to the present, allowing visitors to comprehend better how the city’s transport system originated and grew. Head down below to see how buses, taxis, bicycles, and the Tube have evolved through time.
I. About the London Transport Museum
A transportation museum can be found in London’s Covent Garden named the London Transport Museum (LTM). The museum’s primary focus is on preserving and explaining London’s history as it relates to transportation.
There are two places in London where the museum is. After a two-year makeover, the main facility in Covent Garden, which reopened in 2007, carries the name of its parent organisation and is open to the public every day. The London Transport Museum Depot, located in Acton, is primarily a storage location for historical objects available to the public on certain tourist days throughout the year.
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The London Transport Museum at Covent Garden
A Victorian iron and glass building that was formerly a component of the Covent Garden fruit, vegetable, and flower market serves as the primary museum building. William Rogers designed it as a specialist flower market in 1871, and it is located between Russell Street, Tavistock Street, Wellington Street, and the east side of the ancient market square.
The London Transport Museum was opened there on March 28, 1980, after the market had closed in 1971. The collection, which was once a part of the British Transport Museum in Clapham, has been kept at Syon Park since 1973.
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The Depot
Its doors were opened as The Museum Depot in October 1999 in Acton, west London. It functions as the museum’s headquarters for curators and conservators as well as an exhibition area for objects that are too big to display in the main structure.
Rather of being on display in the main museum in Covent Garden, the majority of the museum’s objects are kept in the depot. The Museum Depot occasionally offers pre-arranged guided tours, so contact the museum to find out when and how to prepare as it isn’t always open to the public.
II. 8 Interesting Things to Explore at the London Transport Museum
(i) Sedan Chair
A Sedan Chair, London’s first permitted public transportation, is a single-person vehicle carried by two people, one in the front and one in the rear, with the passenger sitting pleasantly in the center. In 1634, Sir Saunders Duncombe brought it to the city, and it immediately became a popular mode of transportation.
(ii) Original Tube Map by Harry Beck
When the London Passenger Transport Board absorbed all of London’s public transportation in 1933, Underground electrical draughtsman Harry Beck created the famous graphic for the new Tube map. He created the crisscrossed, colorful lines we know and love by basing his design on the electrical cables he worked with rather than geography.
(iii) Historic Poster
Over 5,000 transportation-related posters and other materials are available online at the London Transport Museum. Their collection has transportation posters by artists, including Graham Sutherland, Abram Games, and Ivon Hitchens. Advertising for sports, tube services, information, and even military propaganda may be seen on the posters.
(iv) Hidden London: Disused Tube Stations
The Hidden London exhibit delves into the history of these stations, including some that were never built and those that became crucial World War II defensive sites and posters, artifacts, and photographs relating to them.
(v) Untangling the Tracks
Untangling the Tracks, a delightful interactive exhibit at the museum enables kids of all ages to participate in a puzzle by ensuring trains arrive on time and without colliding. Visitors may learn about the duties of modern transportation engineers at the display.
(vi) Original and New Routemaster Buses
From its launch in 1954 until 2005, the AEC Routemaster was the famous red double-decker bus zipped across London streets. It outlasted numerous subsequent versions that were supposed to be its replacements. When anything eventually succeeded in replacing the AEC Routemaster, it was the New Routemaster. The museum’s exhibit collection includes examples of both types of buses.
(vii) Horse-Drawn Omnibus
Horse-drawn omnibuses were the major mode of transport for the typical Londoner prior to the introduction of motorized buses such as the ones listed above and the London Underground. It was operated by the London General Omnibus Company and is an excellent example of one of the most oversized vehicles. With an average speed of 8 miles per hour, it can transport 28 people.
III. London Transport Museum’s shop.
The museum shop offers a wide range of replica models, posters, presents, and souvenirs in Covent Garden and is also available in online. The operations of the museum are supported by sales revenue. After being recently replaced by new trains, the museum started selling luggage racks from retired Metropolitan Line A Stock trains in 2012.
IV. About Hidden London Tours
Find a hidden London tour in London, including a return of the popular Kingsway tram tunnel trip and the Shelter at Clapham South! Things that you can explore here are :
(i) The time capsule of an old advertising poster located below Euston station,
(ii) Disused rooms at Charing Cross Underground station,
(iii) Walkthrough Trafalgar Square.
The remaining tram tunnels at the Kingsway tram station closed for almost 70 years but still have an intriguing history.
V. Other Details About the London Transport Museum
(a) What is There to See at the London Transport Museum?
Watch the evolution of iconic automobiles, observe the world’s first underground trains, and look inside an 1890s padded boarding room. Fans of design can visit design galleries for travel with innovative advertisements and art.
Get hands-on in the interactive exhibitions, allowing you to board actual buses and trains and try out Tube driving simulations. You can find out how the famous roundel transport symbol was developed. Please visit the London Transport Museum Depot in Acton during an exhibition day for more information about this collection.
(b) What’s at the London Transport Museum Shop and Cafe?
It would be best to leave enough time to browse London Transport Museum’s shops and refuel at Canteen cafes, which can be accessed by car without a ticket. The canteen overlooks Covent Garden Piazza.
The store is stocked with London transport-themed gifts and souvenirs. Authentic Underground posters, furniture inspired by traditional design, and Transport for London branding.
(c) Prepare for your Museum Visit.
Get information on annual passes and book timed tickets for museum visits. Passes have a 12-month validity period. Children get out for free! Discover the history of London’s transport by visiting the London Transport Museum. Discover our gallery and exhibitions.
(d) How Long Does it Take to Walk Around the London Transport Museum?
The London Transport Museum has an incredible number of exhibits that can be enjoyed within two hours of each visit.
(e) Do You Have to Pay to Go to the Transport Museum?
The London Transport Museum requires a year-round card and a timed ticket. The offer lasts a year, with unlimited visit periods. Their annual pass offers three types of options: Kids can go free and do not have to pay an annual membership.
VI. Conclusion
The London Transport Museum appears benign and small from the outside, and you may believe it’s exclusively for children. However, its location in the structure appears more prominent in the interior once you pass through the entry hall. The museum has social history, geography, urban planning, politics, and graphic design on many floors. Visit this place to see how the transport system has evolved through time.
