Live London Underground / bus maps

In June 2010, I attended
Science Hackday in London. The TfL API with open data has just been announced and I thought it would be fun to create a live tube map based on the available information on the arrival times of upcoming stops. (hard at worklook at the little computer, little phone!).

This is the result, a page that shows all the trains on the network in near real time, using “a little math and magic” as I put it. I love how sometimes the trains separate and zoom based on some miscalculation of where they should be.

It proved popular, with coverage from BBC
and the Guardian
to the Daily Mail. In fact, it proved so popular that they should get the API
for a several months
out of necessity (not from me! My site makes several calls to generate data, one per line every two minutes).

I added a version of Skyfall after the MOVIESThe release of, a schematic version of the map later (after I have time to work out all the co-ordinates!), and separately a map that makes the the same for buses and any bus route in London.

I’ve kept it running ever since, through API changes, bus routing changes, server moves, and whatever else came up. TfL never thought of the site, as far as I can tell.

But on the 7th of January 2025, I received two emails out of the blue; a vaguely personal from someone at TfL telling me to get rid of the Tube schematic map, and my hosting provider received a very impersonal from the “Trademark Enforcement team”. (That second one says “We have informed the registrant of our complaint, but this issue has not been resolved.” .)

This is of course completely within their right to do, although I was hoping for a different approach. Sure, I could have made some changes and kept the maps, although as above they have been good for years. But I believe it is possible to “protect” your trademark (or what you think it is) and not treat people like this. And rewarding this heavy-handed approach (by continuing to provide a useful addition to their service without a contact bar in it) to me feels wrong.

The internet isn’t what it was 15 years ago, and I can’t be bothered to deal with large organizations removing any semblance of joy from it. I’m sure they don’t care, but I’m so tired.

Sorry, the maps are no longer available.

Feel free to contact TfL if you find these maps useful, or entertaining. Or if you work for a small TfL who are upset about what other small TfLs have done, let them know.

I traintimes.org.uk still there.

Matthew Somerville

PS If you want live bus info and maps, there it is bustimes.org.