About Us

Our archives provide a history of organised transport in London throughout the centuries. They act as a reminder of how our organisation has changed, as well as giving us a better understanding of social history.

We take great care to preserve these archives for everyone’s use and enjoyment. TfL Corporate Archives is responsible for safeguarding this corporate memory of Transport for London and its predecessor companies. The Archives collects and preserves both modern and historic records from the business and holds over 163,000 physical items dating from the 16th century to the present day, and close to 26TB of digital records.

We collect records that document the principal business functions and actions of Transport for London, its predecessor and subsidiary companies, and their interactions with London’s citizens as well as with the physical and social environment.

The paper archives and portable storage media are held securely, according to British standards for storing archival materials, in a salt mine in Cheshire.

Our catalogue is available online.

The TfL Corporate Archives is open to the public for research, by prior appointment, at our reading room in east London.

As the reading room can become booked quite far in advance, and our material is not stored on site, it’s advisable to try and book an appointment as far in advance as possible.

Enquiries

We ask for all enquiries to be submitted in writing, via email or post.

Oral Histories

We are keen to expand our oral history archive, particularly in relation to the early days of public transport, using the Tube for sheltering during the Second World War, our LGBTQ+ staff past and present, and female members of staff. If you know of anyone of interest who would like to tell their story, please get in contact to discuss it further.