In a visit today (15^th December), London‘s Mayor, Sadiq Khan saw for himself the first Central Line train to undergo a complete overhaul as part of the £500m Central Line Improvement Programme (CLIP).

The most significant overhaul project to be undertaken by engineers in the history of the Tube, CLIP will transform journeys for millions of the network’s customers each week.

The first refurbished Central Line train, underwent extensive testing during the summer and is currently stationed at the Hainault depot whilst it continues to undergo live testing on the railway. It boasts several improvements never undertaken by TFL before including the installation of a new motor and electrical system.

Other improvements that travellers can expect following the upgrades are improved accessibility, with wheelchair bays being added, enhanced customer information via on board screens and a brand new moquette design.

In another first for the Central Line, each new carriage will now be equipped with CCTV cameras, adding an extra level of security for the approximately 4.5 million passengers each week on what is the city’s longest tube line. Complimenting TFLs existing CCTV system, which already extends to all of the stations on the capitals underground network, the introduction of extra security measures will also be of huge benefit to Tube staff, enforcement officers and British Transport Police service who patrol the network in helping to reduce and tackle crime.

TFL state that over £180 million pound is invested each year in dedicated policing on the network, which includes uniformed and plainclothes officers, with targeted enforcement to tackle crime in hotspots and busy locations.

As a lead promoter of the Mayor’s Women’s Night Safety Charter, TFL works closely with the night-time industry and is relentless in its work to being offenders to justice and making incidents easier to report.

In the lead up to the Christmas and New Year festivities both TFL and the police are reminding Londoners and visitors to the capital of the safe use of taxis and minicabs, with a crackdown on unlicensed minicabs and other illegal activity in priority locations in London.

With Government funding not being secured for the replacement of the ageing fleet, the CLIP project to refresh the trains is vital for ensuring they will continue to run, and will extend their working life. New Piccadilly Line trains will be delivered in 2025, but at the time of writing, funding to transform the signalling on the line, which is crucial to ensure the benefits of the new trains and maximise capacity on the network, nor to replace Bakerloo Line fleet, which is over 50 years old, has also not been secured.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “The safety of Londoners is my top priority and I want everyone to feel safe, and be safe, when travelling around London at all times.

“These newly refurbished Central line trains will improve the experience of commuters and will now have CCTV, meaning customers can travel more comfortably and safely on the line, complementing the 77,000 CCTV cameras already in place across London’s transport network and TfL’s £180m investment in the Metropolitan Police Service and British Transport police presence on its network every year.

“These overhauled trains will improve safety, accessibility and reliability for Londoners – supporting my aim to continue building a safer, greener London for everyone.”

Andy Lord, London’s Transport Commissioner, said: “We are committed to running the best, safest transport network we possibly can. Making journeys on one of the busiest lines on the Tube network more reliable, more accessible and safer is a critical step in achieving this commitment. While we would ideally like to replace the fleet entirely, the work to transform the existing trains on the Central line will mean that customers can expect a better experience and will mean capacity is improved.

“Millions of people from the east and west of London, as well as from Essex, rely on the Central line to reach the centre of the city every day. It is crucial to driving London’s economy in bringing people to areas like the West End, Oxford Street and Stratford. The work will install CCTV on trains, making our customers safer, and will also bring significant accessibility improvements. London is for everyone, and the innovative work by our hard-working engineers will mean more people can use this crucial line as safely as possible.”

Once testing of the first train has concluded, production will ramp up with the project returning one train to service per month once the work on it has been completed. Five trains will be taken out of service at a time to maximise production, with increasing numbers entering into passenger service over the next four years.

The project involves stripping Central line trains down to the frames, with every other part either replaced or improved. The floors are removed, new poles installed and new driving systems put in place. The wiring within the trains is also totally revamped, with new power sources and control systems alongside the two CCTV cameras that will be in each carriage. New lighting, improved doors and new seats complete the work.

TfL is working with more than 30 manufacturers from across the country to supply the parts for this programme. The trains will be worked on by a team of over 125 fitters based at Acton, with a number of apprentices also taking part over the lifetime of the project as part of TfL’s commitment to train the next generation.

There is an extensive network of more than 77,000 CCTV cameras operating across London’s transport network including more than 17,000 cameras across the Tube network. The introduction of CCTV will complement TfL’s existing work to ensure customers are safe on the network.