What is the best type of public transport in London?

London has a vast array of public transport services. You can travel by road, rail or water. But what is the best? Well that depends entirely on you. This guide will show the pros and cons of the main two services and you can decide what service will meet your needs.

London Buses

The London Bus Network is big. There are hundreds of routes active at anyone time in London and there is a separate Night Bus network to make this service available 24 hours a day.

Pros:- During the day you can get to within walking distance of any point of London on the London Bus, it really is that big. Also through a combination of buses you can get to and from any point of London.

There are buses available 24 hours a day. While the night bus service is rather more limited when traveling to and from the outer parts of London, you can generally get close to most London destinations.

It's cheaper than The Tube. You pay a standard flat price for getting on a bus, meaning traveling for one stop costs you the same as traveling for the duration of the route.

Cons: - You are on the London roads, and this means congestion. Outside of rush hour and if you are lucky enough not to be on a road undergoing maintenance then it can be very quick. However if you are traveling at the peak of rush hour it can delay your journey hugely. Plus there seems to be roadworks on half of the London roads these days so don't take the time of journey as gospel, there is always a chance you are going to have delays.

The interior is not always in the best condition. Other bus users may leave behind their rubbish which in my experience can be anything between used newspapers to a box of half eaten fried chicken. There is a campaign to try and clean up the buses by encouraging passengers to take their rubbish off the bus with them, whether it works or not is to be seen. Personally I would never guarantee someone you will not encounter other people's trash on the Bus.

If you are waiting for a bus you will not be told of any delays. Most bus stops are just that, a post by the road with a map and a timetable. If there are road delays or a bus has been taken out of service there is no way of you finding out. It doesn't happen too often but it can be frustrating stood by the roadside continually wondering when the bus is going to arrive. A limited amount of stops do have an electronic board with information of how long the bus will take to arrive, but these are not entirely accurate. On a few occasions I've watched these boards count down to zero, then say the bus is a due and then the entry on the board will disappear without any sign of a bus.

London Underground

Normally called The Tube, the London Underground is a rail service which stretches from some of the counties surrounding London.

Pros: - The Underground is probably the fastest form of London Transport. You can get from end to end of London in well under an hour and it's perfect for your daily commute.

The staff are generally very helpful. They are much maligned and abused, but the guards and stewards that work on the Underground have always been friendly and helpful in my opinion. If you are lost, or need information they are usually very helpful. Remember these are people that suffer all of the abuse from irate travelers when delays beyond their control occur, yet the majority in my experience stay professional and are pleasant to talk to.

They are generally cleaner than the London Bus. Cleaners normally go through the carriages at each end of the tube line to pick up and dispose of rubbish before the train goes on another journey, plus there are cleaners who get on at different points of the tube to do the same.

Cons: - The biggest drawback for me is it is not a 24 hour service. The last tube train is normally around 1 a.m. meaning that if you have gone out into London for the evening and gone to a nightclub or late night bar which a lot of people do in London, you cannot use the Tube to get home again.

Delays. Anyone who has used the Tube more than a few occasions would have seen there can be regular delays. This is not totally the fault of the system; it's servicing tens of thousands of people an hour at peak time plus a lot of the tracks and signals has been in operation for decades so you will get people taken ill on the train or signal failures which will cause delays. I have commuted in London for years and if I last a week without any delays on my journey I call that a very good week.

So what would be better for you? If you need to cover large distances of London on a regular basis or as fast as possible, I would get on a tube train. If I wanted to take my time a see a little of London on the way, or if the journey time didn't really matter to me, I'd jump on a bus.