London and Beyond: The Piccadilly Line
The Piccadilly line serves many of London's most popular attractions, including Buckingham Palace, British Museum, and Hyde Park. Join us as we take you through its history
Map of Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway with Connections (1904-06-05) by Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton RailwayTfL Corporate Archives
The Piccadilly line opened on Saturday 15 December 1906 between Finsbury Park and Hammersmith. At a length of 9 miles it was the longest tube line in London
Underground Map 1922 (1922-03-01)TfL Corporate Archives
A short branch from Holborn to Strand was opened on 30 November 1907. The station was renamed Aldwych in 1915, and you can see the branch in this iconic Macdonald Gill map from 1922
Filming Location
The Aldwych branch was eventually closed in 1994. It's since been seen on screen in TV shows such as Luther and Sherlock, and films such as Darkest Hour and Fast & Furious 6!
The New Underground Station at Piccadilly Circus (1929)TfL Corporate Archives
Demand grew enormously on the line after WWI
In 1907 Piccadilly Circus saw 1.5 million passengers, and by 1922 this had grown to 18 million. The station was upgraded from 1925-1928 with a design by the architect Charles Holden
Map of Northern Extension of Piccadilly Line (1929-11-01) by Underground Electric RailwaysTfL Corporate Archives
The line was extended again until the 1930s: to the north the line was extended to Cockfosters. This map from 1929 shows the planning stage for the northern extension
Track Plan of Western Extension of Piccadilly Line (1035-06-15) by London Passenger Transport BoardTfL Corporate Archives
The line was also extended to the west to South Harrow, Uxbridge, and Hounslow West. The journey from Uxbridge to Cockfosters was at the time the longest electric journey then operated by the Underground
Right royal occasion on the Piccadilly line (1978-01-06)TfL Corporate Archives
"Fly the Tube"
An extension to Heathrow was first raised in 1956, and eventually approved in 1970. The line to Heathrow Central was opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 1977, making London the first city in the world to have its main airport directly connected to its main transport infrastructure
Estimated Modal Split of Airline Passengers using Heathrow Airport (1978-06-15) by London Transport ExecutiveTfL Corporate Archives
This diagram from 1979 shows the change in passenger behaviour when travelling to Heathrow from before and after the extension opening
Underground Map 1979 (1979) by London Transport ExecutiveTfL Corporate Archives
Underground Map Showing Toilets (2023-08-03) by Transport for LondonTfL Corporate Archives
A fourth terminal opened at Heathrow, leading to a further extension of the line to Terminal 4 in 1984. In 2008 Heathrow opened Terminal 5, with the Piccadilly line extension opening on the same day
The line now connects some of the most famous landmarks in the capital, as demonstrated by this 2012 poster produced for the year of the London Olympic Games
Did you know? The shortest distance between adjacent stations on the Underground is on the Piccadilly line between Leicester Square and Covent Garden, at 0.26 km.
Story compiled by TfL using information in records at the Transport for London Corporate Archives. The Corporate Archives seeks to preserve and make accessible records, not to interpret them. A wider range of material is available for physical consultation.
Permission is granted to reproduce for personal and educational use only.
This story has been enhanced using images from the collections of the London Transport Museum. All enquiries regarding those images should be made directly to that institution.
