New London tube map revealed as Elizabeth line unveiled

A BRAND new London Tube map has been unveiled ahead of the opening of a new line.

The latest map has been updated with the biggest change to the tube network in recent history – the Elizabeth line.

The railway, named after Her Majesty The Queen who cut the ribbon on her namesake line, will open on Tuesday May 24Credit: AFP

The latest map has been updated with the biggest change to the tube network in recent historyCredit: TFL

The double purple line differentiates it from underground trainsCredit: TFL

Transport for London (TfL) published the map with a swish new double purple line which represents the new route as well as its stations.

The railway, named after Her Majesty The Queen who cut the ribbon on her namesake line, will partially unveiled on Tuesday May 24.

It will connect Essex and Reading through London but was initially set to open in December 2018.

The double line rather than a solid line differentiates the Elizabeth line as a new railway as opposed to a London Underground line, TfL said.

The purple line is the second to honour the Queen after the Jubilee Line gained its name in 1977 to celebrate 25 years of Her Majesty on the throne.

Services on the Elizabeth line’s new central section will run from Paddington to Abbey Wood through the tunnels beneath London constructed by Crossrail.

Transport for London improved and opened 41 stations to help service this line.

The Elizabeth line will initially run 12 trains per hour between Paddington and Abbey Wood, Monday to Saturday.

The Elizabeth Line will run every five minutes between 6.30am and 11pm, there is no mention of the night tube service on the line yet.

A full timetable should be in place after May 2023.

To get from Liverpool Street Station to Woolwich is expected to take 15 minutes using the new line, having previously taken 45 minutes.

If you want to get from Farringdon to Canary Wharf, it’s estimated to only take you 10 minutes – a third of the current time.

TfL said that for the initial stages of operating, the line will not run on Sundays “to allow a series of testing and software updates,” but will run a special service during the Platinum Jubilee weekend.

The £18.8billion project originally had a budget of £14.8billion but the government added a further £4billion.

Construction began on May 15, 2009, at Canary Wharf and they started tunnel work in May 2012.

The new Barking Riverside station on London Overground in East London has also been added to the map.

To assist customers finding their way to or from the new stations, there have also been updates made to signage and wayfinding across London.

All stations on the Elizabeth line will be step-free by the end of this year.

This will come as a huge relief for hundreds of thousands of disabled people on an Underground which has been hounded for it’s poor accessibility.

ROYAL APPROVAL

It comes as Her Majesty beamed as she joined her youngest son Edward for the opening of the new Elizabeth line at Paddington Station.

It had been believed the Earl of Wessex would be the only member of the family to mark the occasion this morning.

But royal fans will be delighted to learn the monarch looked particularly spry and cheerful as she joined Edward for the very special event.

She wore springtime yellow, donning a Stewart Parvin double-wool crepe coat and a matching hat by Rachel Trevor-Morgan.

The Elizabeth line reaches far out to Shenfield in EssexCredit: TFL

Queen Elizabeth II made a surprise visit to the launch of the Elizabeth line at Paddington StationCredit: No 10 Downing Street / BEEM

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps and Prime Minister Boris Johnson joined The Queen on the opening of the networkCredit: AP

She also carried a walking aid.

During the visit, she bought the very first ticket for the line using a commemorative Oyster card.

Boris Johnson, London mayor Sadiq Khan and Transport Secretary Grant Shapps also visited the station to celebrate.

Julie Dixon, Interim Customer and Revenue Director, said: “Our world-renowned map now has another iconic addition in the Elizabeth line, which will serve London and the south east for hundreds of years to come.

“It has been both a challenge and a privilege to update Harry Beck’s original design to literally put a new piece of transport history on the map.

“This latest version takes into account a number of wider changes to the transport network, but will ensure Londoners and visitors alike are able to navigate around our transport network with ease.” 

The swish new map was unveiled by TfLCredit: AP

New signage has been thrown up around tube stations across London to show commuters where to goCredit: Dan Charity

A glorious purple will make the Elizabeth line stand out from other networksCredit: Dan Charity

Farringdon station in central London will serve the Elizabeth lineCredit: AP