Some Shoppin' and Tubin'

Took the Tube to Oxford Circus and did some shopping on Oxford Street today. I've been getting good use out of my Travelcard which allows me unlimited use of the Tube and buses in Transport for London.

The Underground is really the most amazing transport system I've ever seen. You can get from one end of town to the other and most points in between. I'm staying in Isleworth but close to Richmond station at the end of the District Line. But I can still be in Central London in 30 minutes, provided there isn't a delay.

A District Line train waits at Victoria Station.

With such a huge subway system, things do get delayed all the time. If it's not maintenance or construction, it's because of something as simple as someone on the tracks in one station that can delay the whole system. That was the case two days ago when someone trespassed the tracks at Victoria station. It delayed all District line trains for a good part of the afternoon.

It can be more serious like a bombing or something. They've had many of those over the years. In the July 7, 2005 bombings, they shut down the entire system when three bombs went off on three different trains between stations. Since then, they are quite jumpy with trespassers and unattended baggage. They warn you to keep your bags with you at all times and any bags left behind get destroyed.

When it's working though, it's one hell of a subway system. I've been on New York's and I'd say this one rivals it.

A Victoria line train pulls into Oxford Circus station. I
took this train south to Victoria station where I connected
with a westbound District line train to Richmond.

Apparently, there have been 54 injuries on the Tube so far this year with people who get their feet wedged in the gap between the platform and the car. So, there are announcements at some stations (like Victoria Station) where they announce "Mind The Gap." It's kind of the catch phrase on the Tube.