London Underground Central line history in four maps

Opened in 1900 as the Central London Railway, the first trains carried passengers between Shepherd’s Bush and Bank.

The tunnels were built to gently rise when approaching a station, to aid braking, and to slowly fall when leaving, to help with acceleration.

The line was well-used from the outset and quickly nicknamed the ‘Twopenny Tube’ due to its flat fare.

Over the coming weeks, we’ll be using maps to tell you the story of each of London’s Tube lines. The images used in this story have been provided by TfL Corporate Archives. To find out more about the history of the London Underground visit TfL’s Google Arts and Culture page – https://artsandculture.google.com/story/welcome-to-tfl-tfl-archives/wAWRESAnwnAAnQ?hl=en

Tube map from 1908 marking the Central line in blue and not red (Image: TfL Corporate Archives)

First extended to Wood Lane in 1908, the line inched eastwards four years later, with a new stop at Liverpool Street.

By 1920, the route went as far as Ealing Broadway in west London.

Central line services became part of a wider integrated Tube network in 1933, with the formation of London Transport.

Central London Railway map from 1912 showing the extension to Ealing Broadway (Image: TfL Corporate Archives)

Soon afterwards, the line was finally shown in its distinctive red colour on the Underground map.

Plans for further expansion were halted due to the Second World War but began in earnest again from 1946.

At the end of the decade, the line extended as far as West Ruislip in one direction, and Ongar in Essex in the other.

Tube map from 1994 showing the shuttle service between Epping and Ongar (Image: TfL Corporate Archives)

The Central line route remained unchanged until 1994, when the shuttle service between Epping and Ongar was discontinued.

Until 2020, some trains still travelled through to Woodford via Hainault, but in recent years the Hainault to Woodford section of the line has operated as a shuttle service.

Tube map from 2000 showing how the Central line looks today (Image: TfL Corporate Archives)

Today, there are 49 stations served by the Central line, with up to 28 trains an hour at peak times.

Among its many quirks, the line has the least used Tube station at Roding Valley, as well as the station with the shallowest Underground platforms at Redbridge, less than eight metres below street level.

Make sure to check our website at the same time next week to find out about the history of the Piccadilly line.