The London Underground (the Tube) is the oldest metro system in the world. It began operating on 10 January 1863. This first section of the London Underground railway was opened by Prime Minister Gladstone. It ran from Paddington to Farringdon Street stopping at seven stations. The trains ran every fifteen minutes.

There are currently 275 stations on 12 lines, and 253 miles of route, mainly double tracked, of which 20 miles are in shallow tunnels and 93 miles in deep tunnels. To travel between the surface and the underground stations there are 408 escalators and 112 lifts.

Follow this link to find out more about the London Underground

Also on this day .....

10 January 1840: Sir Rowland Hill introduced the Penny Post to Britain. Mail was delivered at a standard charge rather than being paid by the recipient. On its first day, 112,000 letters were posted in London alone.

10 January 1985: The C5 electric car with a top speed of 15 mph was demonstrated by its inventor, Sir Clive Sinclair. It was battery-driven car and sold for £399 but flopped.