Transportation in London
Are you going to London? Ok, forget the car. You will have a lot of manners to travel there.
London has a very efficient transport network and like the host of the Olympic Games in 2012 has been commended as the city with the best public transport. London’s bus network is one of the largest in the world, running 24 hours a day, with 8,000 buses, 700 bus routes, and over 6 million passenger journeys made every weekday. In 2003, the network’s ridership was estimated at over 1.5 billion passenger trips per annum, more than the Underground. 
Buses have been used on the streets of London since 1829.
This is the famous red double-decker bus. It’s internationally recognized and is a trademark of London transport along with black cabs and the Tube.
If you don’t want take a bus, you can take a taxi. It can be the famous black cab or any other.There are currently around 20,000 black cabs in London, licensed by the Public Carriage Office (PCO). Although London’s taxis are traditionally painted black, it is by no means a pre requisite, it was just the cheapest option in days gone by and so became standard!
London has taxis in other colors too, like red, blue, green… And a curiosity: London has 50 golden cabs! They were produced for the Queen’s Golden Jubilee celebrations in 2002. Indeed, according to a recent poll of 3,300 worldwide travellers, London taxis are the best the in the world. Travellers also consider London taxis to be the cheapest, cleanest, safest and most available, while the capital’s cabbies are deemed the friendliest and best drivers with the best knowledge of routes.
Besides that, there is the centrepiece of the public transport network: the Tube. It’s the London Underground, one of the oldest, longest, and most expansive metro systems in the world, dating from 1863. It was called Metropolitan Railway when was made, and because that there is the term “metro” today. Over three million journeys a day are made on the Underground network, nearly 1 billion journeys each year. The world’s longest subway system runs for 244 miles below the streets of London.
About 976 million people are carried by the Tube each year and it’s controlled for Private companies.
London is connected with the national railway network, the Europe and Airports.
The most famous stations are:
(Eurostar)
- Charing Cross;
- London Bridge;
- Paddington (conected with Heathrow Airport);
- Victoria Station (conected with Gatwich Airport);
- Liverpool Street (conected with Stansted Airport, Southend and City);
- King’s Cross (conected with Luton’s Airport and EuroStar, the train to Paris)
- Waterloo
(King’s Cross in “Harry Potter)
CARS
Which side of the road do you drive on in England and what side of the car is the steering wheel on?
“In London you drive on the left side of the road and the steering wheel is on the right side of a car in most England-made-cars.”
To learn more about it, read this:
Right-hand traffic and left-hand traffic mean regulations requiring all traffic to keep either to the left or the right hand side of the road.This is so fundamental to traffic flow that it is sometimes referred to as the rule of the road.This basic rule eases traffic flow and reduces the risk of head-on collisions. Though originally most traffic drove on the left worldwide,today about 66% of the world’s people live in right-hand traffic countries and 34% in left-hand traffic countries. About 72% of the world’s total road distance carries traffic on the right, and 28% on the left.
The UK has left traffic. Many countries owe the fact that they drive on the left to British colonial influence.
Vehicles driving on the left on the A1(M) Motorway near Washington Services in Tyne and Wear, England heading towards Scotland
As a result of European Union legislation ensuring the free movement of goods, many British consumers exercise their right to buy RHD cars from car dealers in any other EU country, where they are often cheaper, despite originating from the same factories as UK-sourced cars. Models obtained from other EU countries often have a lower value upon resale due to shorter warranty periods and UK dealers refusing to buy them or accept them in part-exchange.
Although the United Kingdom is separated from Continental Europe by the English Channel, the level of cross-Channel traffic is very high; the Channel Tune alone carries 3.5 million vehicles per year between the UK and France. Most vehicles crossing the English Channel, whether via the Channel Tunnel or on ferries, are UK-registered RHD vehicles. Relatively few drivers from Continental Europe take their LHD cars to the UK, but large numbers of British drivers take their RHD cars to Continental Europe for holidays and even for one-day shopping trips. It was reported in 2000 that wished to build a second Channel Tunnel because the existing rail services are expected to outgrow their capacity by 2025. Unlike the existing rail tunnels, a drive-through road tunnel was planned, comprising a single bore tunnel containing one carriageway on top of the other. The current status of this project is unclear.
Today, UK motor vehicles are normally RHD, the main exceptions being service vehicles such as road sweepers and gritters where view of the kerb is more important than of the centre line. Unlike the US (see below) postal delivery vehicles andwaste collection vehicles are not usually different from normal traffic, that is to say, they are RHD.
In cities with heavy tourism, LHD coaches can cause problems as they disgorge their passengers into the middle of the street. Some fleet operators who regularly tour from Continental Europe to the UK use coaches with doors on both sides. Conversely, some Double-decker buses exported to LHD countries for tourist purposes are converted to have their doors on the other side.
CONGESTION CHARGE:
The congestion charge or the congestion pricing was introduced by Mayor of London and is designed to reduce the traffic volumes in the city centre.The London congestion charge is currently charged at 8 pounds since 2003.Much of money raised is being used to improve London’s public transport infrastructure.
Now we are going to know the viewpoint of a Londoner about the congestion charge in London.
What do you think of the Congestion Charge in London?
LONDONER 1:
“Since I don’t own a car and don’t drive, it doesn’t bother me at all and in fact helps me enormously. When I want to get a bus into the centre of London there aren’t so many cars there so I can get to my destination quicker.
Also, the money used from the congestion charge has been put back into public transport. The buses near me used to be old routemaster style buses which meant that I couldn’t use them with a pushchair. The new buses enabled me to get around London with my baby which was life changing.”
LONDONER 2:
“I don’t think a good idea,it is being used to fund the 2012 Olympics because they now know that the sums do not add up.”
AIR TRANSPORT
London is a major international air transport hub with the largest city airspace in the world. Eight airports use the words London Airport in their name, but most traffic passes through one of five major airports.London Heathrow Airport is the busiest airport in the world for international traffic, and is the major hub of the nation’s flag carrier,British Airways.London Gatwick Airport is London’s second largest airport and second busiest in the United Kingdom after Heathrow.London Stansted Airport is a hub for a number of major European low-cost carriers. It is the third busiest airport in the United Kingdom and is the third largest airport serving the London area after Heathrow and Gatwick; and it is one of London’s five international airports along with Luton and London City.
Heathrow Airport
Gatwick Airport
Heathrow Airport
Gatwick Airport
Stansted Airport
WATER TRANSPORTATION
British Waterways London manages 100 miles of canals and navigable rivers stretching from Rickmansworth down to Brentford in the west, from Hayes to Limehouse through central London, and from Limehouse to Bishop’s Stortford and Hertford in the Lee and Stort Valleys.
This network provides a valuable and unique resource for alternatives to road and rail transport. Opportunities exist not just for freight but also for public transport in addition to the already vibrant leisure use.
Public Transport
The Regent’s Canal in central London is already used for public transport with the long established London Waterbus Company providing an hourly service between Camden, London Zoo and Little Venice and the new summer service of canoe taxis from Little Venice. There are also trip and restaurant boats running from Paddington and Camden.
The lock free section of the Lee Navigation between Limehouse Basin and Old Ford Lock provides great potential for the introduction of water taxis and water buses to service the Olympic Park and Stratford City with connections to the DLR and tube network. Whilst there are no services provided at the moment, the opportunity is there for operators to establish a service in this area.
Freight
Modern environmental concerns, added to the growing pressure on London’s transport infrastructure, have led many to look at how the waterways can be brought back into use for freight.
London Duck Tours
London Duck Tours offer one of the most unique, informative and exciting tours of London. The London Duck Tour combines transport by land and water along the Thames River. The London Duck Tour is an exciting adventure for visitors and tourists of all ages.
The London Duck Tours are a must do when touring London, as you will see the city in a totally different view. Exploring London both from the streets and by river is an entirely original idea used to tour the city of London. Do not miss this opportunity, book the London Duck Tours adventure today!
CYCLING
Cycle journeys in London have risen by 100% in the last five years – and are set to rise even further with a huge boost in funding.
Over one million Londoners own bicycles but as of 2008 around 2 per cent of all journeys in London are by bike.Estimates indicate there are more than 500,000 cycle journeys each day in the capital – a 91 per cent increase compared to 2000 – even though 2007 was England’s wettest summer since 1912.
To cycle or not to cycle, that is the question.
What are the benefits?
1. Cycling is a great way to get fit. It burns around 400 calories an hour – and gets you to your destination at the same time. Even 30 minutes a day can have a dramatic effect on your health, reducing the risk of obesity related illnesses like diabetes, stroke and high cholesterol.
2. Cycling is the best way to guarantee your arrival time – your speed and route are entirely up to you.
3. It’s environmentally friendly. You produce no pollution and no noise, which benefits not just you, but your local area too.
4. It’s cheaper than running a car or going to the gym.
Now we are going to know the viewpoint of a Londoner about cycling in London:
“I’ve only been cycling 3 months and love every minute of it. I just wish that other cyclist would stop at red lights as its giving the rest of us a bad name. Ive also found that taxis and buses can be a cyclist nightmare when they cut in front to turn left or fly past you then slam on breaks when they get a fare or to a busstop – WHY???? Also think that the roads need a major overhaul as they are disgraceful especially when the iron works are sticking out of the road!!! OK – my whinge is now out of my system and i shall continue loving my bike and my ride!!!”
