The following is a timeline of the history of London in the 21st century, the capital of England and the United Kingdom.
London's timeline in the 21st century.
Tramlink, previously Croydon Tramlink and presently branded as London Trams, is a light rail tram system serving Croydon and surrounding areas in South London, England. It is the first operational tram system serving the London region since 1952. Tramlink is presently managed by London Trams, a public body part of Transport for London (TfL), and has been operated by FirstGroup since 2017. It is one of two light rail networks in Greater London, the other being the Docklands Light Railway. Tramlink is the fourth-busiest light rail network in the UK behind the Docklands Light Railway, Manchester Metrolink and Tyne and Wear Metro.
The Docklands Light Railway (DLR) is an automated light metro system primarily serving the redeveloped Docklands area of London and providing a direct connection between London's two major financial districts, Canary Wharf and the City of London. First opened on 31 August 1987, the DLR has been extended multiple times, giving a total route length of 38 km. Lines now reach north to Stratford, south to Lewisham, west to Tower Gateway and Bank in the City of London financial district, and east to Beckton, London City Airport and Woolwich Arsenal. An extension to Thamesmead is currently being proposed.
The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent home counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England.
Transport for London (TfL) is a local government body responsible for most of the transport network in London, United Kingdom.
Crossrail is a completed railway project centred on London. It provides a high-frequency hybrid commuter rail and rapid transit system, known as the Elizabeth line, that crosses the capital from suburbs on the west to east and connects two major railway lines terminating in London: the Great Western Main Line and the Great Eastern Main Line. The project was approved in 2007, and construction began in 2009 on the central section and connections to existing lines that became part of the route, which has been named the Elizabeth line in honour of Queen Elizabeth II who opened the line on 17 May 2022 during her Platinum Jubilee. The central section of the line between Paddington and Abbey Wood opened on 24 May 2022, with 12 trains per hour running in each direction through the core section in Central London.
The Oyster card is a payment method for public transport in London, England, United Kingdom. A standard Oyster card is a blue credit-card-sized stored-value contactless smart card. It is promoted by Transport for London (TfL) and can be used on as part of London's integrated transport network on travel modes including London Buses, London Underground, the Docklands Light Railway (DLR), London Overground, Tramlink, some river boat services, and most National Rail services within the London fare zones. Since its introduction in June 2003, more than 86 million cards have been used.
London Overground is a suburban rail network serving London and its environs. Established in 2007 to take over Silverlink Metro routes, it now serves a large part of Greater London as well as Hertfordshire, with 113 stations on the six lines that make up the network.
London has an extensive and developed transport network which includes both public and private services. Journeys made on its integrated transport network account for 37% of London's journeys while private services accounted for 36% of journeys, walking 24% and cycling 2%, according to numbers from 2017. London's public transport network serves as the central hub for the United Kingdom in rail, air and road transport.
Crossrail 2 is a suspended proposal for a hybrid commuter rail and rapid transit route in South East England, running from nine stations in Surrey to three in Hertfordshire, providing a new North–South rail link across Greater London. It would connect the South West Main Line to the West Anglia Main Line, via Victoria and King's Cross St Pancras. The intent was to alleviate severe overcrowding that would otherwise occur on commuter rail routes into Central London. When first proposed, the hope was for construction to start around 2023, with the new line opening from the early 2030s. The project's cost has been estimated at £31.2 billion.
The Bakerloo line extension is a proposed extension of the London Underground Bakerloo line in South London from its current terminus at Elephant & Castle to Lewisham station.
The Docklands Light Railway extension to Dagenham Dock was a proposed extension of the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) to Dagenham Dock in East London, to serve the Barking Riverside development and the wider London Riverside part of the Thames Gateway.
The Northern line extension to Battersea is an extension of the London Underground from Kennington to Battersea in South West London, terminating at the redeveloped Battersea Power Station. The extension formed a continuation of the Northern line's Charing Cross branch and was built beginning in 2015; it opened in 2021.
The East London line extension (ELLX) project was a British railway engineering project in London, managed by Transport for London. The project involved extending the East London Line and making it part of the mainline London Overground network. This was done by re-opening sections of disused railway line and by converting track electrified by the third-rail system, signalling, lineside signage and communication systems, etc. to mainline standards. New rolling stock was introduced and four new stations built along the route, with a fifth scheduled to be added in the future at New Bermondsey.
The London cable car, also known as the Dangleway and officially as the IFS Cloud Cable Car for sponsorship reasons, is a cable car link across the River Thames in London, England. The line was built by Doppelmayr and the total cost was around £60 million. The service opened on 28 June 2012 and is operated by Transport for London (TfL). Since 20 October 2022, it has been sponsored by the technology firm IFS; prior to this, from its opening the line was sponsored by the airline Emirates, and known as the Emirates Air Line until 28 June 2022.
TfL Rail was the concession which operated commuter services on two separate railway lines in London, England and its environs whilst the Crossrail construction project linking these lines was underway. It ran from 2015 until May 2022, upon the opening of the Crossrail central section, when TfL Rail was rebranded as Elizabeth line and the name was discontinued.
Barking Riverside is a railway station in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, East London. The station serves the Barking Riverside regeneration area, and was built as part of a £327m extension of the Gospel Oak to Barking line to the area. It opened on 18 July 2022. It is served by London Overground, and provides interchange with the Uber Boat by Thames Clippers boat service from Barking Riverside Pier.
The Docklands Light Railway extension to Thamesmead is a proposed Docklands Light Railway (DLR) extension to serve the Beckton Riverside and Thamesmead redevelopment areas of East London.
The Elizabeth line is a high-frequency hybrid urban–suburban rail service in London and its suburbs. It runs services on dedicated infrastructure in central London from the Great Western Main Line west of Paddington station to Abbey Wood and via Whitechapel to the Great Eastern Main Line near Stratford; along the Great Western Main Line to Reading and Heathrow Airport in the west; and along the Great Eastern Main Line to Shenfield in the east. The service is named after Queen Elizabeth II, who officially opened the line on 17 May 2022 during her Platinum Jubilee year; passenger services started on 24 May 2022. Elizabeth line services are operated by MTR Elizabeth line under a concession from Transport for London (TfL). Despite being named under the same system as London Underground lines, and having sections which are underground, the Elizabeth line is not classified as a London Underground line.
The 2021 London mayoral election was held on 6 May 2021 to elect the mayor of London. It was held simultaneously with elections for the London Assembly, other local elections across England and Wales, and devolved elections in Scotland and Wales. The mayoral and Assembly elections were to be held on the 7th of May 2020, but in March 2020 the government announced the election would be postponed until 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The first case relating to the COVID-19 pandemic in London, England, was confirmed on 12 February 2020 in a woman who had recently arrived from China. By March 2020, there had been almost 500 confirmed cases in the city, and 23 deaths; a month later, the number of deaths had topped 4,000.
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: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)See also lists of works about London by period: Tudor London, Stuart London, 18th century, 19th century, 1900–1939, 1960s
IV. Population, Public Health, &c. & VII. Government