Royal Jubilees
TfL has been responsible for the public travel arrangements for multiple royal jubilees. Come with us as we offer a different insight into these events...
Time Covers - The 30S (1935-05-06)LIFE Photo Collection
King George V’s (1865-1936) Silver Jubilee celebrations took place between 6th and 12th May 1935. London Passenger Transport Board (LPTB) stated that no occasion to that date could parallel the event as railway traffic reached “unusual proportions.”
Jubilee poster (1935-05-12)TfL Corporate Archives
On The King's Orders
All underground stations remained open on Jubilee Day with increased services. Hyde Park Corner Station remained open throughout the night on King George’s orders, to allow the celebrations to continue until the morning. (London Transport Museum collection)
LPTB carried 1,939,000 passengers on six underground lines on Jubilee Day – an increase of 30% from an ordinary day. Trains ran for a total of 603,993 miles.
The Royal Jubilee report (1935-05-12)TfL Corporate Archives
LPTB carried 1,939,000 passengers on 6 underground lines on Jubilee Day – an increase of 30% from an ordinary day. Trains ran for a total of 603,993 miles. The number of passengers carried on the transport network across the heaviest traffic days was 36 million
Queen Elizabeth II’s (1926- 1922) Silver Jubilee was celebrated in 1977. London Transport Executive (LTE) launched 25 silver buses as a contribution to the celebrations. External advertisers were invited to submit designs for the buses, with these covering the cost of the project.
Photograph of a Silver Jubilee bus (1977-06-07)TfL Corporate Archives
Royal Themed Advertisements
The silver buses were launched at the Easter Parade at Battersea Park on 10 April 1977 and were officially introduced into service the next day. The buses operated for up to 7 months on 3 central London routes. Successful advertisers included Woolworths, Air Jamaica and Heinz
Silver Jubilee Bus Carpet (1977-06-02)TfL Corporate Archives
Bus Interiors Decorated with Commemorative Carpet
The carpet was “Royal Red, Jubilee silver and black, to match the red wool moquette upholstery” and incorporated Jubilee-related symbols. The carpets were installed on the centre aisle of the upper and lower decks of all 25 silver buses
Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden Jubilee was held over an extended bank holiday weekend between 1st and 4th June 2002. As well as the Royal procession, several large scale events were held to mark the occasion.
Events included a music concert at Buckingham Palace Gardens, a firework display at Green Park and Trafalgar Square, and a Notting Hill Carnival recreation down The Mall which involved 20,000 people
All night service (2002-06-03)TfL Corporate Archives
London Underground Co-ordinates Jubilee Planning
TfL began planning for the event a year in advance to ensure that the surrounding underground stations could cope with the high volume of passengers by working out maximum station capacities per hour
Graphical overview of service level proposals for Golden Jubilee weekend (2002-06-04)TfL Corporate Archives
Overview of service level proposals for Golden Jubilee
Showing proposed levels of service on 3rd and 4th June for the Underground, buses, Docklands Light Railway and National Rail
Travel guide map for Golden Jubilee weekend (2002-06-04)TfL Corporate Archives
Travel Guide Map for Golden Jubilee Weekend
Showing route of royal procession, areas subject to road closures, location of festival stages, location of big screens, key walking routes, lost children points, main bus route numbers, and principal tube stations
The Million-Person Hour (2002-06-01)TfL Corporate Archives
Carrying “up to a million people each day"
For just the 3rd time in its history, London Underground operated an all-night service at selected stations, something only done for the coronation of King George VI in 1937, and on the night of the millennium celebrations
Golden Jubilee London Underground sample ticket (2002-06-04)TfL Corporate Archives
Golden Jubilee London Underground Ticket Sample
Set of Golden Jubilee postcards (2002-06-04)TfL Corporate Archives
Set of Golden Jubilee Postcards
4 postcards produced by TfL to mark the Queen's Golden Jubilee
To assist members of the public and staff with their travel plans TfL produced 3 million copies of a special Golden Jubilee Travel Guide. Commemorative tube maps were issued and ticket stock printed to mark the occasion
Golden Wonder (2002-05-01)TfL Corporate Archives
'Achievement through Teamwork' Nomination
The Golden Jubilee Weekend Project to deliver transport services was nominated at the Railway Industry Innovation Awards in 2003. The project was commended for its approach to integrated planning and collaboration with external agencies
Queen Elizabeth II became the second monarch in history to celebrate a Diamond Jubilee; with the first being Queen Victoria in 1887. The main celebrations were held over the weekend of 3rd and 4th June 2012.
Poster examples (2012-06-17)TfL Corporate Archives
The national focus of the celebrations was London, and the festivities included the Diamond Jubilee Concert, street parties, and the Thames Diamond Jubilee River Pageant, which was considered a major event on 3 June 2012
TfL staff magazine Upfront deemed the Pageant the “biggest collection of historic vessels ever assembled”, featuring 670 military and commercial vessels travelling a 7 mile route from Wandsworth to Tower Bridge. All 8 of TfL’s piers were involved, with Westminster and Tower Piers being the busiest
Diamond Jubilee Tube Train (2012-05-18)TfL Corporate Archives
Jubilee Livery
2 Jubilee line trains were wrapped in decorative Jubilee livery to mark the celebrations. They ran along the Jubilee line during Jubilee weekend
Graph detailing expecting demand and queuing times at stations serving the Diamond Jubilee concert in the Mall
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.
One item is an image from the collections of the London Transport Museum. All requests and enquiries regarding this image should be made directly to that institution.
One item is an image from the collections of LIFE Photo Collection. All requests and enquiries regarding this image should be made directly to that institution.
