London Tube to start 24-hour weekend service this summer, new mayor Sadiq Khan announces

Could London soon challenge New York’s status as the city that never sleeps?

The British capital will launch a 24-hour subway service starting in August, London’s new mayor, Sadiq Khan, announced Monday.

London has the oldest subway system in the world, a vast spaghetti network of lines that ferry more than 4 million people across the city every day. But until now it has not joined the small club of cities such as New York and Copenhagen that have round-the-clock weekend services.

The Night Tube will launch on the Central and Victoria lines on August 19, with trains running about every 10 minutes between 12.30am and 5.30am on Saturdays and Sundays. Currently, the subway closes shortly after midnight. Three other lines - Piccadilly, Jubilee and Northern - will follow with all-night services in the fall.

Khan, who replaced Boris Johnson as mayor this month, said, “I have made getting the Night Tube up and running a priority, and London Underground has now confirmed that services on the first two lines will launch on 19 August.”

The Night Tube was expected to open last September, but it was dogged by delays after the London Underground clashed with unions over pay and safety conditions, prompting several 24-hour strikes.