THE LONDON UNDERGROUND Read about the history of the London Underground and answer the questions The London Underground The London Underground was the first underground system in the world It is over 140 years old Its’ construction began in 1860.The system was opened in 1863 and was only miles long (6.5 kilometers) running from the west of London to the city in the east It was not very deep and steam trains were used Then deeper tunnels were built and in 1890 the electric railway was opened Londoners called this system the Tube and it is still a very popular name for the London Underground Some deep stations of the London Underground were used for protection of people during the Second World War A great number of people use the underground system every day because it connects nearly all the parts of this magnificent city It is not only the oldest and the biggest in the world, but it is one of the most modern and efficient systems, comprising eleven lines which cover London Questions: When did the construction of the underground begin? When was it opened? How long was the first line? How were the stations of the London Underground used during the Second World War? What can you say about the underground nowadays? What route the girls choose? K: Look Mary, here is the underground map M: We are at St Paul’s It is the Central Line K: We need to get to the Leicester Square First of all we have to go to the Tottenham Court Road and then change to the Northern Line and the next station will be the Leicester Square M: Kate, look, we can it quicker We can go to Holborn, change to the Piccadilly Line and then we get to the Leicester Square K: Your route is better What are the most interesting facts? *The Underground name f irst appeared on stations in 1908 * London Underground has been known as the Tube since 1890, when the f irst deep-level electric railway line was opened * The Tube’s world-f amous logo, ‘the roundel’ (a red circle crossed by a horizontal blue bar), f irst appeared in 1908 *Number of miles/ km travelled by each Tube train each year: 114,500 mile/ 184,269 km * Total number of passengers carried each year: 1,107 million Read and say what information is new (pay attention to the underlined phrases): The London Underground Nowadays London Underground operates nearly 400 route miles of underground railway line, the majority of which is double track Most of the underground lines are deep level tubes which currently extend for nearly 172 route miles The highest point reached by London Underground trains is at Amersham on the Metropolitan Line at about 500 feet above sea level. The absolute deepest part of the system is on the Northern where, below Hampstead Heath, the rails are over 220 feet below the ground The longest continuous journey on the Underground (without a change of trains) is on the Central Line where a journey from West Ruislip to Epping covers just over 34 miles. The shortest distance between stops is on the Piccadilly Line: Leicester Square and Covent Garden stations being a mere 0.16 miles.  The busiest line on the system is the District Line which carries over 180 million passengers per year over its 40 mile length   (adapted from http://www.londonrailways.net) Arrange the dialogue in the logical order and read it: - And in my route there are only five and it is quicker - Or we can go to Holborn, change to the Piccadilly Line and the second stop will be the Piccadilly Circus Look at the map, Mary We are at the Bank now It is the Central Line - We can go to the Oxford Circus and change there to the Bakerloo Line and the next station will be the Piccadilly Circus - Lets count the stops In my variant there are six stops -OK, let’s try your variant - We need to go to the Piccadilly Circus * Average train speed: 33 km per hour/ 20.5 mph * Length of network: 402 km/ 249 miles * Total number of escalators: 426 * Station with most escalators: Waterloo – 23 * Longest escalator: Angel – 60m/ 197f t, with vertical rise of 27.5m/ 90f t * Shortest escalator: Stratf ord, with a vertical rise of 4.1m * Total number of lif ts, including f our stair lif ts: 164 * Total number of stations served: 270 * Total number of staf f : 19,000 approx * Carriages in London Underground’s f leet: 4,134 (adapted f rom http:/ / www.tf l.gov.uk) Key: EX.4: K: Look at the map, Mary We are at the Bank now It is the Central Line M: We need to go to the Piccadilly Circus K: We can go to the Oxford Circus and change there to the Bakerloo Line and the next station will be the Piccadilly Circus M: Or we can go to Holborn, change to the Northern Line and the second stop will be the Piccadilly Circus K: Let’s count the stops In my variant there are six stops M: And in my route there are only five and it is quicker K: OK, let’s try your variant