You’ll often find me over on this little corner of the internet, waxing lyrical about the London Underground. The capital’s trailblazing transport network was the very first of its kind and has been ferrying folk across the length and breadth of the city for over 160 years now. So there’s plenty to rave about, as far as I’m concerned. But my transport-related ramblings rarely come in the form of news as exciting as this.
The London Transport Museum have just announced the return of their wildly popular heritage vehicle outings. Next month, some very lucky Londoners will have the chance to hop aboard a beautifully restored vintage Tube train and take a trip back in time. Back to a time with no Oyster cards, no Citymapper, and most certainly no underground 5g – can you even imagine?!
London Transport Museum’s heritage vehicle outings
The vintage vehicles that’ll be heading out on the upcoming heritage journeys are from the iconic 1938 Stock. These trains – at the time – represented the ultimate combination of cutting-edge technology and gorgeous aesthetics. Each dreamy Art Deco vehicle was made up of four carriages, and they were the very first Tubes to have all of the electrical equipment underneath the floor. Long story short: they were a very exciting stock of vehicles. And now, nearly 90 years after these legendary locomotives hit London’s tracks, mere mortals like you and I are being given the rare opportunity to plonk ourselves down on the classic moquette seating, and experience the lovingly-restored trains in all their vintage glory.
The upcoming heritage journeys will be taking place on the Piccadilly Line. There will be three days worth of vintage train rides taking pace on the dark blue line; one of which will be dedicated entirely to the Heathrow Loop. The Piccadilly Line extension to Heathrow was a major milestone in international travel history. It provided Londoners with a reliable and affordable way to reach the capital’s biggest airport (and still does to this very day, for that matter).
On May 2, passengers can take a ride around the Heathrow Loop, with trains departing from Northfields at various times throughout the day and journeys lasting around 45 minutes. On May 3 and 4, the journeys will be heading between Northfields and Cockfosters, and these journeys will last approximately 70 minutes.
Unfortunately your trusty Oyster Card will not suffice on these trips, and tickets need to be booked in advance. You can’t reserve specific seating, but you can choose which carriage category you sit in. If you opt for Gold, you’ll be riding in the very front carriage of the train. Prices start at £25 for adults and £15 for children, and tickets get snapped up extremely fast – so you’ll need to be speedy if you want to secure a sought-after spot.
Find out more about the London Transport Museum’s heritage vehicle outings and snap up a ticket before they sell our here.
