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The latest progress update from Transport for London (TfL) and Boldyn Networks has revealed that they’ve now extended 4G and 5G mobile (mobile broadband) coverage on the London Underground and Central London to include further sections of the Piccadilly, Northern and Victoria lines. This can be harnessed by all the major mobile operators.
Just to recap. Boldyn Networks (formerly BAI), using kit from Nokia and others, currently holds a 20-year concession deal with TfL, which was signed in June 2021 (here) and allows them to build the new 4G and 5G “Ready” mobile network infrastructure across the whole Tube (London Underground), DLR and Elizabeth line network.
The latest progress update for this reveals that mobile coverage has now been expanded along the Northern line with the tunnelled section between Balham and South Wimbledon recently getting mobile coverage, as well as Kennington, Oval, Tooting Broadway and South Wimbledon stations.
On the Victoria line, coverage is now being rolled out between Vauxhall and Pimlico. This follows coverage on the Piccadilly line and Victoria line being extended up to King’s Cross St Pancras earlier this year, and the Elizabeth line achieving full 4G mobile coverage last year, enabling hundreds of thousands of customers to browse the internet and make calls while travelling along London’s newest rail line.
The latest connected sections means that customers in South London travelling along the Northern line from South Wimbledon to Stockwell now have continuous coverage, with work underway to extend coverage in the tunnels down to Morden and up to Kennington by the end of summer 2025. The Bank branch of the Northern line between Euston and Bank is also receiving coverage for the first time, with more mobile networks going live along this section in the “coming weeks“.
In the “coming months“, mobile coverage will begin to be expanded along the Jubilee line, starting at Swiss Cottage and working its way along the line to link with existing coverage at Westminster. Major interchange stations such as Green Park and King’s Cross St Pancras, as well as further sections of the Victoria line from Green Park to Brixton, will also start to get mobile coverage for the first time.
Rebecca Bissell, Director of Technology Product and Operations at TfL, said:
“It’s great that these new sections of the Tube, in particular in south London and the first sections of the Northern line which serve the City of London, are starting to get mobile coverage. We are committed to bringing high-speed 4G and 5G mobile coverage to the whole of the Tube network, allowing our customers to stay connected while travelling to work, shopping or socialising. Further tunnelled sections will be going live in the coming months and we are working hard to bring the benefits of being able to stay in contact while travelling through our city as quickly as possible to the rest of the network.”
The original goal of this effort, which also extends to some of the London Overground network, was to reach completion by the end of 2024 (ticket halls, platforms and tunnels). But the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, acknowledged in March 2024 that “small sections of some lines, such as those that are closer to the surface, where partial mobile coverage exists, require bespoke works that may extend into 2025/26.”
The work due to take place during 2026 will be primarily on some sections outside of Central London, sections of the Circle and District line where a number of stations already have limited mobile coverage due to being closer to the surface, as well as where smaller tunnelled sections need to be treated individually.
List of below-ground London Underground and Elizabeth line stations where mobile coverage is now available:
- Central line – Shepherds Bush, Holland Park, Notting Hill Gate (Central line only), Queensway, Lancaster Gate, Marble Arch, Bond Street (Central and Elizabeth line only) Oxford Circus (Central line only), Tottenham Court Road, Holborn, Chancery Lane, St Pauls, Bank (Central line only)
- Northern line – Hampstead, Belsize Park, Chalk Farm, Highgate, Archway, Tufnell Park, Kentish Town, Camden Town, Mornington Crescent, Euston (Charing Cross Branch), Angel, Warren Street (Northern line only), Goodge Street, Tottenham Court Road, Leicester Square, Charing Cross, Embankment, Kennington, Oval, Clapham North, Clapham Common, Clapham South, Tooting Bec, Tooting Broadway, Colliers Wood, South Wimbledon
- Elizabeth line – Paddington, Bond Street, Tottenham Court Road, Farringdon, Liverpool Street (Elizabeth line only), Whitechapel, Canary Wharf, Woolwich
- Jubilee line – Westminster, Waterloo (Jubilee line only) Southwark, London Bridge (Jubilee line only), Bermondsey, Canada Water, Canary Wharf, North Greenwich
- Piccadilly line – Russell Square, Holborn, Covent Garden, Piccadilly Circus, Hyde Park Corner
- Bakerloo line – Piccadilly Circus, Charing Cross, Embankment