The original Central Line station at Shepherd’s Bush has been closed to the public since 1924 – but now it can be seen again
The public has been given access to a hidden Tube station for the first time in 100 years, allowing people to experience the “stuffy and smelly” early conditions of the London Underground.
The original Central Line station at Shepherd’s Bush has been closed to the public since 1924, but the London Transport Museum is giving tours of its preserved tunnels, which lie concealed behind closed doors at the modern station.
Siddy Holloway, the presenter of Secrets of the Underground, told the Telegraph: “Pretty soon after the Central Line opened in 1900, it started to get a reputation for being stuffy and smelly.
“That has always been a problem with the deep level lines. It’s nothing new, and they tried everything to stop it. Shepherd’s Bush was really the first bustling commuter station from the suburbs, and that certainly played a part.”
Visitors on guided tours will learn about how early engineers tried to cool down the still notoriously warm Central Line a century ago, and how the enterprising Tube line introduced the first tickets that could be used interchangeably on trains, buses, and trams – the precursor of modern travelcards and Oysters.
Ms Holloway said the Underground route, London’s third deep Tube line, was a commercial success, allowing huge numbers of commuters to travel from the suburbs to the City.
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