Former Tower Subway Northern Entrance

Tower Subway was small subway system in a 1.340 foot (450m) and 2ft 6in (762mm) circular tunnel under the River Thames. The tunnel was constructed in 1869. The tunnel went under the River Thames between Tower Hill (the north side) and Vine Lane (the south side).

The tunnel was used by a single track with a single carraige carrying a mimimum of 12 passengers. The Tower Subway became the frst ever underground train system in the world.

The track opened 2nd August 1870 and later closed in December 1870 due to it being unreliable and uneconomic. The company also went bankrupt.

The tunnel did however convert into a foot tunnel letting people use the tunnel to walk under the Thames. The steam engines and lift shafts were removed. The lift shafts were replaced with spiral staircases. Gas lights were also installed. However the actual rails where still there.

When Tower Bridge opened in 1894 less and less people used the tunnel. The tunnel closed in 1898, due to it running out of business.

What's left today:
The tunnel itself is still there today, but is being used for water mains. The northern entrance you see is not the orignial one, but was built in 1920 on the same site. The southern entrance was destroyed and demolished when a nearby warehouse caught fire and collapsed on top of the entrance.