New Tube map helps anxious travellers avoid tunnels
Suggestions from customers with anxiety disorders and claustrophobia prompted Transport for London to launch the map.
Wednesday 5 July 2017 16:07, UK
Transport for London has launched a Tube map to make it easier for people with anxiety or claustrophobia to avoid tunnels.
The new map highlights the parts of the network which are underground, helping people to navigate around them.
More than half of the 270 Tube stations are above ground, but until now there was no way of knowing which, unless you were familiar with the particular area of the network.
The only stations that are entirely underground are those on the Victoria Line and Waterloo and City line, which means people who want to avoid those lines can now easily view alternative routes.
The design will be familiar to passengers as it looks just like the standard Tube map, but the stations and stretches of the line which are underground have been given a grey overlay.
Available on the , it also shows the underground sections of the London Overground, DLR and TfL Rail.
Suggestions from customers with anxiety and claustrophobia prompted TfL to launch the map, a move which has been welcomed by charities.
Anxiety UK's chief executive, Nicky Lidbetter, said: "I sincerely hope that the map will encourage those with claustrophobia and/or panic attacks who have previously avoided this form of public transport out of fear, to re-consider their use of the Tube."
TfL's director of customer strategy, Mark Evers, said: "Making the Tube network accessible for everyone is one of our top priorities.
"This new map is just one of the tools we have created in response to feedback from our customers on how we can make the transport network more accessible, making travelling easier and more comfortable for all our customers."