TfL collaborates with Google Arts and Culture to launch online collection

26 February 2024
TfL and Google Arts launch collection of historical and contemporary content about London's transport past
"London's world-renowned transport network is one of our most treasured institutions and this collaboration with Google Arts and Culture is a fantastic way to see its incredible history in a new light"
Justine Simons OBE
Deputy Mayor for Culture and the Creative Industries

Today (Monday 26 February), Transport for London (TfL) joins more than 200 UK cultural institutions who have collaborated with Google Arts & Culture to share their collection and stories online.

TfL's collaboration with Google Arts and Culture, whose mission is to preserve the world's art and culture and to make it accessible to anyone, anywhere for free, will result in the online availability of more than 2,000 documents and images from its Corporate Archive collections.

The collection, covering the first London Underground line opening in 1863 to the modern day, includes more than 400 maps that have been digitised by Google Arts & Culture. Many of these documents are available online for the first time, which TfL hopes will provide interest to Londoners, academics and casual historians of all ages.

Pulling from the Archives, Google Arts and Culture users around the world will be able to see a fascinating timeline of London's transport throughout the centuries through 90+ digital stories bringing the archives to life. Maps prepared for the 1937 and 1953 coronations, cartoons by Harry Beck (designer of the Tube map), and extracts from oral histories with persons who sheltered in the Tube during WWII, are some of the things included in TfL's Google Arts and Culture profile.

Themed sections will allow Google Arts & Culture users to not only examine the organisation's long history but will also provide wider access to more recent milestones such as, imagery and documentation of TfL's involvement in the London 2012 Olympics, and Queen Elizabeth II opening the Elizabeth Line in 2023. Other sections include a crossword inspired by the 1932 TfL staff magazine, recipes, and vintage quizzes that users can undertake.

The collection has been sourced from TfL's Corporate Archives, who are responsible for safeguarding the corporate memory of TfL and its predecessor companies. To provide a rounded view of the organisation for Google Arts & Culture users, the collection will be regularly updated to keep material relevant, to ensure that some of the pioneering and innovative projects TfL is currently working on are equally preserved for the future.

Tamara Thornhill, Corporate Archivist for Transport for London, said: 

'The cultural influence of London's transport system is tangible across London and around the world.

'We have worked on this online collection for more than three years, with the help of Google Arts & Culture's digitisation team, and are thrilled to be able to utilise this platform to exhibit the range of the collections. This collaboration is a real step forward in preserving culture, making our collection more accessible, and helping to open never before seen content to a wider audience.'

Justine Simons OBE, Deputy Mayor for Culture and the Creative Industries, said: 

'London's world-renowned transport network is one of our most treasured institutions and this collaboration with Google Arts and Culture is a fantastic way to see its incredible history in a new light. By digitally preserving its archive collections and making them accessible, we are opening up the fascinating history of London's transport system and its ongoing impact on our city to a much broader audience, as we help to build a better London for all.'

Amit Sood, Director and Founder of Google Arts & Culture, said:

'This new collaboration with the Transport for London Corporate Archives opens up a fascinating historical world and allows anyone to explore the evolution of London's iconic transport system. The archive holds extraordinary stories - stories of engineering ingenuity, design innovation, and communities across decades - and we are thrilled to help share them with the world and preserve a vital piece of London's cultural heritage for generations to come.'

To access TfL's theme page on Google Arts and Culture please visit https://goo.gle/tfl-archives For more information about TfL's Corporate Archive, please visit: www.tfl.gov.uk/archives.

Notes to editors:

  • Corporate Archives are responsible for safeguarding the corporate memory of Transport for London and its predecessor companies
  • The Corporate Archives gather and preserve both historic and contemporary records from the organisation in both physical (over 150,000 items) and digital (25 terabytes) formats, spanning the years 1556 to the present
  • The collection complements a similar collection by London Transport Museum that can be viewed here, https://artsandculture.google.com/partner/london-transport-museum