Where do passengers get on and off the London’s tube?
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When the world’s first underground railway opened in London in 1863, it was just a short, steam-powered line running about 6 kilometers between Paddington and Farringdon. Back then, it was known as the Metropolitan Railway—a creative fix for the growing congestion on the streets above. Fast forward more than 160 years, and the London Underground—affectionately known as the Tube—has evolved into a vast, electric-powered system covering 402 kilometers (as of 2024) and serving 272 stations. It’s more than a way to get around—it’s part of the city’s daily heartbeat.
I recently came across an interactive visualization that really stood out to me—it maps where people actually get on and off across London’s Tube network. Not just a pretty graphic, but one packed with meaningful data. Today, millions of journeys happen each day across the Underground. But where exactly are people entering and leaving?
The interactive map, designed by Gwilym Lockwood, shows a geographically accurate version of the Tube network, with each station scaled based on how many people use it. That’s already a big difference from Harry Beck’s iconic schematic map, which distorts geography in favor of clarity. Here, you see stations in their actual locations, which gives a much better sense of how usage patterns stretch across the city. The underlying data comes from doogal.co.uk data, and it’s based on average weekday station entries and exits. You can dive into the full interactive version on Tableau Public—hovering over a station brings up detailed figures, even broken down by time of day.
The Busiest Tube Stations in London
The map backs up what any regular commuter would probably guess—some stations are in a league of their own when it comes to foot traffic. According to TfL’s latest data (2022–2023), these are the five busiest stations by combined entries and exits:
- King’s Cross St. Pancras – ~81 million
- Oxford Circus – ~70 million
- Victoria – ~65 million
- Waterloo – ~63 million
- Liverpool Street – ~59 million
These stations aren’t just busy—they’re major junctions where several Underground lines intersect, and many of them also link with National Rail services. King’s Cross, for example, is a hub for international travelers via the Eurostar. Their oversized appearance on the map matches their real-world importance.
Keep in mind that the number of passengers can vary a lot between weekdays and weekends. For instance, Canary Wharf is packed on weekdays thanks to the financial district, but it’s much quieter on a Saturday. Likewise, stations near museums or tourist landmarks may see peaks that shift with the seasons or even the weather.
