A Journey with the London Transport Museum

I think I may be in the majority when I say that my knowledge of London Transport Museum was limited at best. Which is unsurprising because part of that assumption was that the Museum is simply a place to view public transport objects of years gone by. That was it in my mind. I have always respected public transport as something that most of us use as part of our everyday lives, but I didn’t realise the important role that London’s transport system has played in shaping London, its growth, culture and society over the last 200 years.

That simplistic view was quashed very quickly when I started working with the Museum. The Museum has this history about it which makes it important to Londoners and international audiences alike. Their collection?includes?London’s first Omnibus which ran between Paddington and Bank, operated by George Shillibeer in 1829 and the first double decker buses which were introduced in the 1840s. Furthermore, the Museum houses a steam locomotive from the world’s first underground railway – the Metropolitan line – which opened in 1863 between Paddington and Farringdon. As well as housing some of the world’s transport firsts, the Museum tells the incredible story of many of the world’s greatest?design icons: the Tube Map, Black Cab, Routemaster?bus, and a world leading?collection of over 6,000 posters?which celebrates a century of outstanding graphic design and London Transport’s pioneering role as Britain's greatest patron of poster art.?

The reason I mention this is because the impact of the above is hard to comprehend. The transport system in London is one of the key reasons that we developed as fast as we did. Ensuring quick and efficient transport of goods, materials and people meant that we were one of the leading countries in the world for growth. Look at the underground system we have in London today with 11 separate lines, with 270 stations and nearly 300 miles of underground rail lines. It’s safe to say the city could not function without the underground system now in place.?

The information in this blog isn’t to celebrate the transport system alone, the London Transport Museum itself is doing so much more for a wide range of audiences through its education programmes and it rightfully should be talked about.?

One of the biggest successes has been its Enjoyment to Employment programme.?The idea is to turn childhood enthusiasm for transport into careers in the transport industry.?By bringing together its inspiring collection, audiences and industry partners, it delivers a high-quality programme of STEM activities based on the story of transport in London to children and young people aged 0-25 at key points throughout their learning and development. Their programme includes work with families, primary and secondary age children and through its Route into Work programme the Museum helps young people from underrepresented groups or are not in education, employment or training access apprenticeship and career opportunities in the industry?

Through the programme children and young people have the opportunity to take part in?new experiences that ignite their curiosity and inspire them.?They build their knowledge and understanding about transport, STEM and the world of work is developed. Perceptions?about transport and engineering are changed?and life, employability and professional skills are developed.??

This programme reaches 60,000 children and young people each year.

• 82% of secondary school pupils state that they have a greater knowledge of what engineers do after an ‘Inspire Engineering Day’ session.
• 90% of secondary school pupils have a positive view of engineering after taking part in ‘Inspire’
• 93% of young people say they feel confident or very confident in their employability skills.?
• 18 young people last year progressed into jobs, apprenticeships, or further education because of the programme.?

As the world’s leading Museum of urban transport, the Museum’s mission is to inspire people’s curiosity in public transport to shape the future. This year the?Museum has also launched Climate Crossroads, a new sustainability programme?which will?bridge the gap between the transport industry and young people, sparking?debate and encouraging positive action.

With transport?associated with?14% of London’s landscape, the Museum will be helping its visitors to think differently about how simple changes to the way we travel can make our city a greener place to live, encourage more active travel choices and inspire young people to pursue the skills needed to realise a greener future.??

There is a lot more I could cover off. There are numerous events throughout the year including, Museum After Dark ‘Lates’, their hugely successful Hidden London programme offering behind the scenes tours of disused places and spaces on London Underground and regular openings of the Depot, the Museum’s collections store in Acton which?houses over 320,000 objects, including many original works of art used for the Museum’s celebrated poster collection, vehicles, signs and more

If you wish to find out more about the Museum, here is a link to the website:

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London Transport Museum (ltmuseum.co.uk)

Stuart Milliner

Manager – Fundraising Appointments

The Talent Set