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This spring and summer, the London Transport Museum is inviting us to join them underground for a new look at the city’s abandoned subterranean transit network.
The Kingsway tram tunnel might have been closed for 69 years, but this once buzzing stretch of track will reopen for tours in May. The museum calls the subway ‘probably the most important stretch of tram track in London, so it’s a rare opportunity to get a glimpse into a once integral part of the network.’
Built in 1906, the tunnel was part of a renewal programme for the areas of Holborn and Aldwych, but then closed just 46 years later. On the tour, you’ll explore what’s left of the tunnel and track – more than half of it remains, including its original features – as well as the former tram station, and learn about how the tram system was a vital part of London life.
The tours kick off on May 25, they run from Wednesday to Sunday each week until July 24, and last for approximately 60 minutes, with slots throughout the day. Tickets go on sale this Friday (March 11) and will cost between £45 and £49. We’d recommend setting a reminder now – the London Transport Museum’s tours usually sell out faster than Glastonbury.
The Kingsway tram tunnel tour is part of a new season of the museum’s Hidden London tours, which will also give the public access to disused stations and tunnels like Clapham South, Churchill’s ‘secret refuge’ at Down Street Station, the derelict Aldwych station and more. Virtual Hidden London tours will once again run via Zoom to open up London’s hidden layers to people all around the world.
Book at the London Transport Museum’s site. Tours run until July 24.
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