A look at the Tube journey between Leicester Square and Covent Garden reveals surprising costs and time inefficiencies
London: The London Underground can feel like a bit of a puzzle. Some stations are super close, while others are miles apart. For example, Chalfont and Latimer and Chesham are a whopping 3.9 miles apart, making it the longest distance between any two Tube stations.
Then you have Leicester Square and Covent Garden on the Piccadilly line, which are just 0.2 miles apart. Seriously, it’s so close you might wonder why anyone would bother taking the Tube.
Google Maps says the Tube ride between these two is about a minute, but if you walk the 260 meters, it’ll take you around four minutes. Plus, the stairs at Covent Garden are no joke, so you might end up taking longer on the Tube than just walking.
At first, it seems like the Tube saves you time, but when you add in the time to get to and from the platforms, you might just break even. The Piccadilly line is the deepest, so getting to the platform can take as long as walking to the next station.
And don’t forget about waiting for the next train, which can take up to three minutes. So, if you take the Tube, you’re looking at around 10 minutes to get between the two stations—six minutes longer than walking.
Walking is free, but if you do decide to take the Tube, it’ll cost you £6.70 if you pay cash. Using an Oyster card is cheaper, at £2.80 during peak times and £2.70 off-peak.
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But really, why pay for a Tube ride that makes you late and involves just as much walking? You could just stroll to the next station and save enough cash for a nice coffee.
If four minutes feels too long to walk, you could always jog or cycle instead!
