London Transport and the River Thames
As part of the Re:sound festival, we have created three new micro operas inspired by research that we have done on the history of London transport and also the river Thames. We’ve been on trips to London Transport Museum, their depot in Acton and also their library, and have had a talk by James King from Thames Festival Trust.
We’ve taken new information that we gathered and worked with curator Jen Kavanagh to put together this online exhibition as well as a small exhibition panel. After reflecting on the research trips and what we learned, we each shared some facts that resonated the most with us individually and that we had found the most interesting to research. Together, we grouped these facts into three themes – People and Memories, Art and Design, and Engineering and Technology.
This online exhibition presents the highlights of what we found fascinating from the research we conducted on these themes. The project was kindly funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
People and Memories
We use transport in London for lots of different reasons. To travel to school or to work, for leisure and attending events, or visiting friends and family. Old buses and trains are also used for tourists, weddings and afternoon teas!
Routemaster buses are iconic to London and many of us have used them at different stages in our lives, including travelling to school. We have fond memories of collecting tickets from the bus conductors in their old fashioned uniforms. This human interaction made journeys more enjoyable. Their old ticket machines used technology that is so different from the tapping of Oyster cards that we have today.
Many men and women from the Windrush generation travelled to London to work on the buses and trains. Some of these people have shared their stories and we were able to find out a little information about who they were. Others are unknown, their names not documented. We were keen to find out more about these important people who contributed so much to London Transport.
Today Underground trains don’t have carriages that are different classes. But in the past, there was 1st, 2nd and even 3rd class on some lines. There were also women’s only carriages to allow female passengers to feel safe when they travelled. Some of these old trains were steam powered, including on the Epping and Ongar line.
Below ground, as well as the Tube, there are also foot tunnels that were built to allow people to cross from one side of the river to the other. This was really helpful in a time when there weren’t as many bridges as there are today. The foot tunnel between Woolwich and Greenwich is 504 metres long. It opened in 1912 and was refurbished in 2010 due to it starting the leak. Not what you want when you’re walking under the river!
There are also ferries that carry passengers and vehicles across the river. John used to drive an ambulance and would use the ferry to cross the river when traffic on the roads was really bad. John remembers the day when London was bombed – July 7th 2005. London was chaotic but even though he had a day off, he went to work with his ambulance to help other Londoners.
By Julie, Angela and John
Engineering and Technology
Technology has changed the way we travel in London today. There were once thousands of horses in the city, pulling omnibuses and trams. The wheels were made from wood, unlike modern rubber ones, and different paint colours were used for different routes.
As the population of London increased, so did the size of buses and trains to allow for more people to be transported around the city. Competition also increased, and in 1933 London Transport was formed. This meant that buses, trams and the Underground were all managed by the same company. Today, this company is called Transport for London.
Innovations in engineering paved the way for the Underground to be built. The first trains ran on the Metropolitan line, which opened in 1893. Although many of the newer Tube lines are now deep underground, the first tunnels were built using a method called ‘cut and cover’. This is a type of construction where a trench is dug and then covered over, creating a tunnel below it.
Engineering also led to lifts and escalators being added to station. The first escalator opened in Earl’s Court in 1911. Today the longest escalator on theUnderground is at Angel station.
Over the history of London Transport, there have also been a number of major disasters. A fire at Kings Cross station in 1987 resulted in the death of 31 people. Although smoking had been banned a couple of years earlier, many people ignored the new rules. An inquiry found that the Kings Cross fire was most probably caused by a traveller discarding a burning match that fell down the side of an escalator.
The river has always been an important way for people to travel and for goods to be moved from one bank to the other. Tragedy struck in 1878 when a boat called the Princess Alice sank in the Thames. Around 600-700 people died. The accident led to more efforts being made to clean the river of sewage and pollution. Today, bridges and tunnels are used to transport goods instead.
By Kieran, Stuart, Dee and Yusaku
Art and Design
Design has always played a big role in London Transport. From the signs and maps, to posters and seat covers, patterns and materials have made travelling around London a nicer experience.
The round sign that is used for station names and signs on the Underground is called a roundel. It was first introduced in 1908 and the earliest signs were made from painted enamel in a wooden frame. This made them long-lasting and easy for passengers to read.
As more and more people used the Underground, the design and layout of the tube carriages has changed. The Art Deco 1938 Tube stock had seats where passengers would sit close to each other, face to face. Although they looked beautiful, with wooden floors and printed material on the seats, there wasn’t much room for people to stand up. New trains, like those used on the Overground and the Elizabeth Line, have much more standing space to fit in more people. This forces people to travel more closer physically, even if they don’t interact with each other.
Uniforms have changed over time too. From skirts and jackets for women and long coats for men, the uniform today is much more practical for their jobs.
There is also lots of creativity on the Underground. Busking is very popular and was made official in 2000. Every year over 100,000 hours of live music is performed in stations for passengers to enjoy. Having buskers in stations, as well as CCTV and staff, makes us feel safer to travel.
Staff also decorate their stations sometimes or plant gardens and grow plants to make them more attractive places. There are also poems that are displayed on boards, or daily sayings and facts that are posted up by staff.
By Helen, Karen, Brian, Sarah and Elma
"Very sad to see how prisoners were treated"
Participants in Streetwise Opera’s creative workshops at the Nottingham Playhouse share their experiences engaging in this research about the Luddites.