Bakerloo Line

OLD! RICKETY! DIRTY!
When ooohhhh when is all that money I’ve been plugging into TFL all these years going to see these trains be replaced with a newer models.
Soooo glad this train is not part of my daily commute.

You may not have been blessed with the nicest colour as your underground siblings but you are my favourite! And I’ll tell you for why.
— You are very rarely late or delayed
— You very rarely, if ever, seem to be closed due to engineering works
— You go to a lot of the key /​best places so are very handy
— You usually have a seat for me in the morning and evening on my commute
— You may be a little rickety but you’re loveable
— Your drivers seem friendly and sometimes *shock horror* have a bit of a joke
I’ve been travelling on the Bakerloo line for years but more notably for the past four because it’s one of two tube lines I can use for my work commute and compared to the other, the Jubilee line, the Bakerloo line is much less stressful and much more reliable.
God Bless the Bakerloo line and long may she reign!

Bakerloo line, why do you always smell of sick mixed with warm bus fumes?
Why do you rattle so and make me feel queasy?
Bakerloo, I prefer the alternative air-​conditioned, not sicky, Overground route. But you are so damn regular. Your convenience seduces me nearly every time.
It makes me feel dirty.
You are my least favourite tube,
Love from Helen

The Brown line.
When living further out west, then it’s hard to miss the Bakerloo line.
Most mainline stations come in to this line. Paddington and Marylebone specifically.
Usually packed in the morning from those stations to help people get to central London and the other lines. People in, people out. People in, people out.
This feels like the line that connects people to the other lines!

Ah, Bakerloo. We’ve spent some quality time together. And some unquality time. So often, I’ve spotted you from the National Rail at Paddington, I could probably navigate the passenger flow at the top of the escalator with my eyes closed. And yet, despite that familiarity, you still screw me over every so often. Your red signals keep me sitting between stations. Your crossover with the Metropolitan at Baker Street lets me wait a while too. Your electrical flow to the trains causes the jerk starts that hurt sometimes, especially when it happens twice, no three times in a row. You’re only 100 years old. Get yourself together!
Your brown lines usually only take me from Paddington, through famous Baker Street and to Oxford Street, where I go on to see that lovely blue line, the Victoria. Sorry, sweetie. You’re just not going where I want to go.

Having spent many visits to London in the Paddington area I have had the pleasure of becoming very familiar with the Bakerloo line so this is where I will drop my general review of The London Underground.
I love the underground. Even the modern day urban commuting environment has not taken away the utter Britishness of the Underground.
The Underground is capable of being efficient and eccentric at the same time. There is an underlying courtesy even during the worst of the rush hour animosity.
I have been on Subways in Cities all over Europe and in at least four cities in North America and The Underground is one of my favorites.
Why not five stars? That is saved for a future review of my favorite subway of all. Mexico City!

Just between you and me, I love you! Always quiet in the mornings, always a seat in the evenings… when we get to the end of the line, it’s just the two of us left. I dallied with that strumpet the Jubilee line, but once rush hour hits, she’s anyone’s. But I can always rely on you, Bakerloo.

PLEASE MIND THE GAP! MIND THE GAP!
I’d give anything just to hear that catch phrase again and be back in London. I love England. England has everything good, like «Top Gear», BBC 1, great pubs, great Brit music, and I love the tube. Yes! I said it… the UnderGround. I love the Underground and the entire transit system of London. It’s easy and convenient. The tube takes you anywhere in London within 30 min. or less. The underground is just a well-​designed train system, especially when I compare the Underground to the Los Angeles’ transit system. Comparing LA’s transit system to London’s is like comparing Victoria Beckham’s 10 thousand dollar tatas to Ricky Gervais man-​breasts. The LA buses are ugly, dodgy, and you just do not want to touch them. Sorry Ricky… I loved you in «Extra.»
In LA, everyone knows not to ride the blue line, green line or red line after 7 PM. It’s just not safe. Plus, they’re slower to get around town. A car is faster, even when it’s parked in gridlock on the 405 FWY. Ew! Avoid this miserable 405 folks, should you ever be visiting Los Angeles, CA.

Brown line…
I give this line a 3 star — this line has 2 train stations — Waterloo and Paddington. If you call yourself a ‘tuber’, it might be for different reasons — because you think it is the fastest way from A-​Z, because you try to avoid using a car or because you cannot afford taking a taxi. Now this is a good point, a taxi not necessarily is faster then the tube but — and this is a big but — it safes you a lot of other obstacles to overcome literally!
London’s underground is not made for luggage. But there is no other city where so much commuting takes place. Especially a lady like me, who does not leaves london with less then 5 pair shoes, the travel to the airport can turn into a travel of hell.
There are no lifts and if you think there are lots of escalators, there are as many staircases and long passages where you are literally using all your strength to carry your 2 suitcases and handbag. Now there might be a last rescue — a gentleman on his way to work making the effort helping carrying your luggage downstairs. Unfortunately London has changed and I have to say there is nothing as awkward seeing a strong young man ignoring all your efforts and passing you without even thinking there is help needed.
I remember, having had a ski accident and coming back with crutches, the underground with their almost no lift policy was a no-​go for me — in the meantime I was ‘busing’ it, which took me double the time, but at least there where no stair cases…

The Bakerloo line services some of London’s hotspot areas. Oxford Circus, Piccadilly Circus are two great areas for shopping and entertainment. You also have major stations like Paddington and Charing Cross. Like the Metropolitan line, the Bakerloo services North West London. It trumps the Met line though because it has so many more stations outside of zone one. Its course dissects zone one from north to south and comes to an end at the travel handy Elephant and Castle.