The London Underground is full of urban legends, unspoken rules, and bizarre history.
Newcomers must quickly learn that they have to stand still on the left side of the elevator – and had better walk if they are on the right. There are also bizarre quirks, like Covent Garden and Leicester Square stations being so close to each other you may as well walk it.
But one of the most head-scratching oddities of our beloved tube system is the Waterloo and City Line. Of the 11 underground lines which serve Greater London, this line has by far the least stops – with just two.
This line, coloured turquoise on the tube map, is so short its name also doubles up as a list of the stations it serves – heading north from Waterloo to Bank (one of the main stops for the City of London) and back.
Bank station is also where it gained its odd nickname of “The Drain” – named for the appearance of the subway station, which required travellers to walk down a long sloping walkway to get there.
The line essentially operates as a quick shuttle from the biggest station in the UK into its financial hub. The 2.4km line takes around five minutes, and is the least used train in the capital.
Its history dates back to 1848, when the London and South Western Railway reached Waterloo Bridge (which was eventually renamed Waterloo). This enabled people to reach London from farther away spots such as Richmond and Southampton.
However, for commuters, Waterloo was still some distance from where they were headed to work – creating demand for a quick service to get them into City.
In 1898, the line was finished. Extensions have been proposed several times since – but have never come to fruition.
For instance, in 1913, a private railway company considered proposals to join it up with the Northern Line, but this didn’t happen due to the complexity involved of all the lines around Bank.
Then in 1934 a new intermediate station at Blackfriars was suggested to form an interchange with the District Line, as well as extensions to Liverpool Street station, through Shoreditch, with trains then going to New Cross and New Cross Gate. However, this was also dropped for unknown reasons.
And finally in 1949 a diversion from Fenchurch Street station to Bank was suggested. However, this involved boring out the narrow tunnels of the existing line – making the project far too expensive.
As a result, the line is stuck with just the two stations and by far remains the shortest underground line in London.
