London is a dynamic and fast-paced city with many boroughs, sights and activities as well as various modes of transport available to get to those places. As a student, it’s crucial to understand the public transport system and the modes of travel that are suitable for you, whether you’re commuting to your university campus or exploring the city with friends.
The main transport provider in the city is Transport for London (TfL) which runs the famous red London buses, the London Underground Trains (the Tube) and Overground Trains. They also run boat services, cables and trams in London as well as the Santander bikes that you can hire.
London Buses
Buses are one of the most easy and affordable ways to travel and reach the entirety of Greater London, covering over 670 routes and can be boarded using either an oyster card or a contactless card. Each bus has a number and a route which is usually shown in the front and on the side of the bus.
All bus stops have signs showing the stop name, the route numbers which serve the stop and information about which directions the bus is heading towards to help guide you if ever lost.
London Buses also offer a Hopper fare which cost £1.75 for unlimited journeys within one hour. This means that if you tap into a bus and then catch another one and the same hour, you will only be charged £1.75 for that trip. In addition, all buses are low and zero emission which adds a sustainable benefit for using this mode of transport.
London Underground and Overground trains
The London Underground (Tube) network is divided into 9 zones starting in Central London as Zone 1 and ending in the Northwest outskirts with stations such as Amersham and Chesham as Zone 9.
The tube network runs across 11 lines and The London Overground covering 272 stations and each underground line is represented by a different colour, and each station corresponds with this colour.
The London Overground runs 6 routes over 100 miles of railway with 113 stations and 9 fare zones. Some of the lines run from Euston to Watford Junction, Gospel Oak to Barking Riverside and Romford to Upminster to name a few. In 2024 the names of the 6 lines were changed to make the network easier for customers to navigate whilst celebrating the city’s diverse culture and history.
The tube usually run between 5am to midnight and is an effective method of transport for some routes and can be quicker than a bus. However, fares depend on how far you travel, the time of day and the payment method you use.
Oyster cards (pay as you go) and contactless payments and travel cards are the cheapest ways to pay for your journeys.
Navigating Underground travel maps as a student living in London for the first time, particularly as an international student can be very overwhelming, as it’s a lot of information all at once. For easy navigation I would recommend either downloading free London travel maps and apps such as TfL Go, City mapper and Google maps; these apps work to simplify the public transport system, help you find the best routes to reach your destination and can be used to top up your pay as you go credit, buy travel cards and check your oyster card balance as well as provide disruption notifications and so much more, I recommend these apps for all students!
Cycling
Cycling is another affordable and sustainable mode of transport suitable for students; however, I would mainly recommend this mode of transport to be used for short-distance travels or taking a scenic route to explore around London.
If you have your own bike and it’s foldable you can bring this on all tube lines, buses and other methods of transports. Outside of peak times, non-folding bikes are allowed to be taken on a selection of tube lines and some section of the London Overground.
The TfL have a cycle hire system called Santander Cycles; offering bikes for rent 24 hours a day in and around Central London for £3.50 and £3 for a 30-minute e-bike single ride.
This scheme covers all areas of Greater London and includes more than 12,000 bikes at around 750 docking stations with an additional 1,440 e-bikes to the fleet. Other bike-sharing schemes in the capital are Lime bikes which rents out e-bikes and are known for their stand-out green baskets which you can rent for £1 and then 27p a minute for 29 minutes or £7.90 for a standard ride.
Walking
Walking is the most affordable and student-friendly mode of transport with the total cost being completely free!
Although it may be the longest mode of transport depending on the distance of your destination, it is the most cost-effective and the healthiest in helping to burn calories, strengthen bones and muscles and improve heart health. As a student it’s important to keep healthy and walking is one of the easiest ways to do so, aiming to walk 10,000 steps a day is a good way to incorporate fitness into your daily travel routine.
Victoria Coach Station
For traveling outside of the capital to different parts of the UK, choosing to take a coach is a much more affordable method than using the National Rail service as a student.
TfL offers Victoria Coach station as the main hub for long-distance coach travel and prices are varied depending on the time and destination you choose. To use coaches, you would need to purchase tickets either online or in-person.
Oyster/Contactless cards
As I touched on earlier many of these modes of transported can be accessed using an Oyster card or Contactless card which are the most cost-effective ways for navigating transport in London. In this section, I will provide an overview on how each payment method can be used to travel.
Oyster cards
Oyster Cards are electronic smart cards that are used to pay for public transport in London. Ways to top up your card can be done through pay as you go credit or getting a Travel card.
To use an Oyster card, you simply touch the card on the yellow reader at the gates of the tube as you enter and to end your journey. For buses and trams, you would only need to tap as you enter.
The most suitable Oyster cards for students would be an 18+ Oyster card, which is a photo card that provides discounted travel for anyone who is over 18, a student and living in a London borough during term time.
With an 18+ Oyster card you save 30% on adult-rate travel cards and Bus and Tram season tickets. In addition, if you choose to get a 16-25 Rail card or 26-30 Rail card, you save 1/3 on pay as you go off-peak fares and daily cups.
Contactless cards
Contactless cards are debit, credit or pre-paid cards which can be used to make quick and easy payments for everyday purchases. You don’t usually need a PIN or signature to make a contactless purchase.
When using contactless cards to travel around London, touch your card on the yellow card reader in the same way you would with an Oyster card at the start and end of your journey and again only on entrance using a bus or tram.
Benefits of using contactless cards are that you won’t run out of the credit and if you use the same card for all your journeys, your overall fares are automatically capped daily and weekly, so you always pay the cheapest fare.
Useful Travel tips
To finish this article, I will leave you with three travel tips for navigating the London public transport system as a student.
Plan your journeys ahead
Disruptions that could prolong your travel is sometimes inevitable, so learning how to plan your journey before you leave is a smart way to beat potential traffic.
Utilizing resources such as the apps mentioned above, ideally the night before or at least 2 hours before you plan to leave, helps you to know the most efficient route to your destination and any alternative routes that may also be available to take.
This helps to ensure you get to your destination on time and can also leave a bit earlier if they are any disruptions ahead.
Avoid traveling at peak times
Avoid traveling on the tube during morning and evening rush hours if you can (weekdays from 7am to 8:45 and 4:30pm to 6:45pm) this is to avoid paying higher fares for your journey.
Another mode of transport you can use during these times instead is buses, cycling or walking.
Choose to walk more often
If your destination is less than 30 minutes away, I would recommend walking as the most suitable mode of transport.
Not only does walking help you save money and regulates your health, but it also offers an opportunity to enjoy the sights of London whilst being sustainable in helping to reduce traffic on the road.
So that was our guide on London transport for students, we’ve provided the most suitable modes of transport, the cheapest payment methods and provided our top tips for navigating the public transport system. We hope you’ve taken away some valuable information and will be utilizing them on your next travel around London!
For more information, please visit the Transport for London website.