GB Rail Facts and Figures
How Many London Underground Stations Are There?
Introduction
As with the main line network, statistics surrounding London Underground station numbers are not straightforward to compile. What constitutes a station is a matter contaminated by issues around ownership, name, management and when stations were combined.
The following list is compiled from the most accurate source of opening and closure dates available.
In order to inject consistency into an area where many have operated on a subjective basis, it is taken
that irrespective of ownership by individual London Underground predecessors a station only counts as a
single entry if it were possible to pass from one to another via a single property boundary. Thus Oxford
Circus (which had two station buildings on opposite sides of the road, one for each railway) counts as
one station as there was always low level interchange available between lines. Contrariwise, Notting
Hill Gate is counted as two stations until 1959 as (though they were nearby) there was no connection
between them until 1959 when an interchange subway was built.
Hammersmith counts as two stations, still. It is hoped that this approach seems
reasonable and will accord with what passengers experience.
Without some kind of reasonable and coherent rule, the
compilation of any kind of statistical record becomes
chaotic.
There are inevitably borderline cases. For example, Kings Cross is counted as two stations until 1978
because the Pentonville Road station (that only served main line trains) was not
hitherto connected with the main
Underground station. It is true that there existed a very long, tortuous subway
for some years before
the Second World War that connected the tube and former Metropolitan Line stations
but this was effectively a public subway and could not credibly create anything resembling a single station. Paddington
(suburban) and the Circle and Bakerloo station is still counted as two. Bank-Monument is counted as one
after the escalator link was put in, in September 1933. Stations owned or managed jointly with a main line company
are included as owned or managed by LU alone (I do have separate figures but
they are not shown in here as it would make the table unduly
complicated).
For the reasons described there may occasionally be slight discrepancies with officially produced statistics, not themselves consistent. For example LU currently claims to serve 270 stations with stations owned/managed 260 (a difference of ten). My numbers are 269 and 262, a difference of seven. The basis upon which the LU numbers are arrived at are not explained (I conjecture a reason in note at the end).
I give as an example the year 1939 where my table shows drop of two 'owned' and drop of one 'worked through' compared with 1938. This is accounted for by St Johns Wood (Bakerloo) opening but Lords, Marlborough Road and St Mary's closed, a net reduction of two. On the other hand East Finchley was also freshly 'served' (it was then an LNER station) so reduction of stations 'served' is only one. 1939 was an easy year, disentangling some other locations was much more fun, especially where LU statistics were wrong.
There are some areas for debate, for example the treatment of the East London Railway. The approach taken here observes that the East London Railway was purchased by the Southern Railway in 1925 and so LU is not strictly its successor in title. The opening dates therefore reflect the coming into being of the joint committee that operated the line from 1884 when Met and District Railways obtained an interest (which interests endured to be passed to LT). I have adopted a similar approach with regard to the Brill Tramway (never owned by the Metropolitan) but NOT, for example, with the Aylesbury & Buckingham Railway which the Metropolitan absorbed absolutely in 1892 and where it therefore seems reasonable to include its stations as though they were any other London Transport consituent.
Basic London Underground Passenger Station Numbers Data
The table on the right shows the following, in column order:
(1) Year, being position on last day of calendar year indicated (or estimated in the case of current
year);
(2) Number of passenger stations owned by, managed by or leased to LU, whether or not actually served by
LU trains, where LU means London Underground or its predecessors in title.
(3) Number of stations managed by or served by LU trains, being all the stations in column 2 plus
stations served by LU trains that are not managed by LU (whether owned or not). LU means London
Underground or its predecessors in title.
General Notes:
(a) the term 'Stations owned or managed' means stations 'owned' whether wholly, partly or jointly and includes stations 'owned' even if not served by LU trains. It also includes stations where some services are provided by other operators and stations which are leased to or managed by LU even where another party may be the freeholder. It does not include the unusual circumstance where stations may have been vested in LU but were for some years staffed and managed by another operator.
(b) the term 'Stations served' means all of the above, plus any other stations actually served by LU trains.
Explanation for discrepancy between my numbers and those of LU:
It will be noted that on this website it is suggested LU has 262 stations owned or managed, and 269 stations served (so there are just seven more stations served that LU does not own or manage). The equivalent LU numbers given on their website and in official statistics is 260 stations owned or managed, and 270 served (suggesting ten stations that are served but neither owned or managed). How can this be?
LU has supplied me with their basic station data which also totals 262 stations owned or managed, but then add that TWO stations are omitted as they are treated as single stations for ‘management’ purposes. However, their 262 includes both Bank and Monument but omits Ealing Broadway while this site includes Ealing Broadway but counts Bank/Monument as a single station; thus (by accident) we agree the managed station total is 262, though the list is slightly different. The two stations counted singly by LU for ‘management’ purposes are Bank/Monument and Paddington H&C with Paddington District, Circle & Bakerloo. So that is the explanation for their publishing their station total as 260.
LU have then supplied me with their list of additional stations that are served, but not owned or managed, and there are EIGHT of them. I can share with you that these are: Barking, Ealing Broadway, Heathrow T5, Kensington (Olympia), Richmond, Upminster, Willesden Junction, Wimbledon. It is fairly obvious that either the grand total should be the sum of the stated managed stations (260) plus the above eight, making it 268, or that if the grand total is going to be 270 then the stated number of managed stations has to be the 262 number. Quoting 260/270 cannot be correct. LU noted in their message to me that ‘there is a slight discrepancy between the number managed / served (262 / 8) in the attached and those published on our website’.
Having said that, LU includes Ealing Broadway in their list of stations served (but not owned), whereas I regard that station as partly owned and include it in the list of managed or owned stations (and have already said LU omits it). This explains why my total of stations served is 269, rather than LU's 270. My reasoning for this treatment is that there are over seventy stations that are not wholly LU freehold so I treat any of them where part of it is freehold as though it was fully owned, or statistical analysis would rapidly become intolerable. The District Line platforms at Ealing Broadway are definitely LU freehold and always have been, but LU has evidently taken the view that the fact that tickets are sold from the main line ticket office is the deciding factor (I think the Central platforms were technically owned by the Western Region until the 1980s, but that position was later altered). Of course, if LU excluded the station from their additional eight then they would have to add it it to their managed list, making it 263 (or 261, if double counting Bank/Monument and Paddington are excluded). Their email made no promise to rectify the mistake, but at least you now know what is going on.
It should also be noted that 11 of the LU managed stations are actually owned by and leased from Network Rail and also appear in the list of main line station numbers, creating a degree of double counting in the total number of GB railway stations. The next task is to get to the bottom of all that, as those numbers invite considerable suspicion.
These 11 are: Gunnersbury, Kew Gardens, Harrow & Wealdstone, Kenton, South Kenton, North Wembley, Wembley Central, Stonebridge Park, Harlesden, Kensal Green and Queens Park.
Note: Some pre 1933 totals reworked recently in light of better information.
(1)
Year |
(2)
Total stations owned or managed |
(3)
Total stations served by LU trains |
---|---|---|
2019 | 262 | 269 |
2018 | 262 | 269 |
2017 | 262 | 269 |
2016 | 262 | 269 |
2015 | 262 | 269 |
2014 | 262 | 269 |
2013 | 262 | 269 |
2012 | 262 | 269 |
2011 | 262 | 269 |
2010 | 262 | 269 |
2009 | 262 | 269 |
2008 | 261 | 268 |
2007 | 250 | 267 |
2006 | 254 | 273 |
2005 | 255 | 274 |
2004 | 255 | 274 |
2003 | 255 | 274 |
2002 | 255 | 274 |
2001 | 255 | 274 |
2000 | 255 | 274 |
1999 | 255 | 274 |
1998 | 248 | 268 |
1997 | 248 | 268 |
1996 | 248 | 268 |
1995 | 248 | 268 |
1994 | 248 | 268 |
1993 | 248 | 271 |
1992 | 248 | 271 |
1991 | 248 | 271 |
1990 | 248 | 271 |
1989 | 248 | 271 |
1988 | 248 | 271 |
1987 | 248 | 271 |
1986 | 248 | 271 |
1985 | 247 | 270 |
1984 | 247 | 270 |
1983 | 247 | 270 |
1982 | 247 | 270 |
1981 | 247 | 276 |
1980 | 248 | 277 |
1979 | 248 | 277 |
1978 | 249 | 278 |
1977 | 249 | 278 |
1976 | 248 | 277 |
1975 | 248 | 277 |
1974 | 249 | 278 |
1973 | 249 | 278 |
1972 | 250 | 279 |
1971 | 249 | 278 |
1970 | 247 | 276 |
1969 | 244 | 276 |
1968 | 232 | 276 |
1967 | 228 | 272 |
1966 | 224 | 273 |
1965 | 224 | 273 |
1964 | 224 | 273 |
1963 | 224 | 273 |
1962 | 224 | 273 |
1961 | 224 | 273 |
1960 | 227 | 277 |
1959 | 227 | 277 |
1958 | 230 | 280 |
1957 | 230 | 280 |
1956 | 230 | 280 |
1955 | 230 | 280 |
1954 | 230 | 280 |
1953 | 230 | 280 |
1952 | 230 | 280 |
1951 | 230 | 280 |
1950 | 230 | 280 |
1949 | 231 | 281 |
1948 | 225 | 275 |
1947 | 202 | 264 |
1946 | 197 | 252 |
1945 | 196 | 249 |
1944 | 196 | 249 |
1943 | 196 | 249 |
1942 | 196 | 249 |
1941 | 196 | 249 |
1940 | 195 | 247 |
1939 | 195 | 244 |
1938 | 197 | 245 |
1937 | 197 | 245 |
1936 | 198 | 246 |
1935 | 200 | 249 |
1934 | 205 | 253 |
1933 | 206 | 253 |
1932 | 204 | 249 |
1931 | 198 | 237 |
1930 | 198 | 237 |
1929 | 198 | 237 |
1928 | 198 | 237 |
1927 | 198 | 237 |
1926 | 198 | 237 |
1925 | 191 | 230 |
1924 | 189 | 228 |
1923 | 187 | 226 |
1922 | 183 | 220 |
1921 | 184 | 221 |
1920 | 184 | 221 |
1919 | 184 | 219 |
1918 | 184 | 218 |
1917 | 184 | 218 |
1916 | 184 | 207 |
1915 | 184 | 206 |
1914 | 180 | 200 |
1913 | 179 | 199 |
1912 | 178 | 196 |
1911 | 174 | 194 |
1910 | 174 | 194 |
1909 | 173 | 193 |
1908 | 172 | 192 |
1907 | 168 | 187 |
1906 | 149 | 168 |
1905 | 130 | 150 |
1904 | 127 | 152 |
1903 | 122 | 147 |
1902 | 115 | 140 |
1901 | 112 | 128 |
1900 | 109 | 125 |
1899 | 93 | 109 |
1898 | 88 | 104 |
1897 | 88 | 104 |
1896 | 87 | 103 |
1895 | 87 | 103 |
1894 | 87 | 103 |
1893 | 87 | 103 |
1892 | 87 | 103 |
1891 | 82 | 98 |
1890 | 81 | 97 |
1889 | 75 | 91 |
1888 | 72 | 84 |
1887 | 72 | 84 |
1886 | 70 | 82 |
1885 | 71 | 82 |
1884 | 69 | 89 |
1883 | 56 | 75 |
1882 | 53 | 63 |
1881 | 52 | 62 |
1880 | 52 | 62 |
1879 | 47 | 57 |
1878 | 39 | 49 |
1877 | 39 | 49 |
1876 | 39 | 44 |
1875 | 38 | 43 |
1874 | 37 | 42 |
1873 | 35 | 40 |
1872 | 35 | 40 |
1871 | 35 | 40 |
1870 | 33 | 37 |
1869 | 30 | 34 |
1868 | 29 | 32 |
1867 | 12 | 14 |
1866 | 12 | 14 |
1865 | 12 | 13 |
1864 | 10 | 11 |
1863 | 7 | 7 |
1862 | 0 | 0 |