London Transport Museum Depot — Attraction in London

London Transport Museum Depot – A Hidden Treasure for Transport Lovers

Tucked away in the quiet backstreets of Acton lies one of London’s best-kept secrets: the London Transport Museum Depot. While the main museum in Covent Garden dazzles with polished displays, the Depot offers something arguably even more special—a raw, behind-the-scenes journey through the capital’s transport history.

Housing over 320,000 objects, the Depot is a working storehouse rarely open to the public, accessible only on select open days or via guided tours. This infrequency gives it a sense of exclusivity, and for those lucky enough to visit, it delivers in spades.

The collection is staggering. From gleaming vintage Tube carriages and classic red Routemasters to intricate engineering models, antique ticket machines and mid-century signage, the Depot captures not just the technical evolution of transport, but its cultural and artistic story too. Design fans will appreciate original posters and moquettes, while children will love the hands-on activities often laid on during family-focused events.

Part of the charm lies in its informality. This isn’t a polished gallery—it’s a living archive. Objects are arranged with practical purpose more than presentation, lending the space an authenticity you rarely find in traditional museums. Staff and volunteers are passionate, knowledgeable, and always keen to share stories that bring even the most obscure artefacts to life.

There are some caveats. Its Acton location isn’t as central as Covent Garden, and public opening times are limited, so visits need a bit of forward planning. But these are minor quibbles.

The London Transport Museum Depot is a delight—an atmospheric, surprising, and deeply rewarding place to explore. Whether you’re a lifelong trainspotter, a design aficionado, or simply curious about how London moves, this depot offers a unique and...

Visited this weekend and booked our ticket in advance. We always wanted to visit but it’s only open few times a year so we always struggled to visit. We finally got the time to do it this April.

The museum is very interesting with a lot of historical objects, old trains, buses or taxis... You can’t enter inside everyone of them but the doors are often open so you can have a view of the inside.

Some trains were open to visit but it was too busy to be enjoyable. Also so many staff members inside which can be hard to move around.

I had a nice time there and learned many things. I much prefer the museum in Covent Garden but it’s a different experience.

It was really busy during our visit so we had to queue sometimes which was a bit tiring. It was a bit of a stressful experience so keep this in mind.

But if you love old vehicles and the history of London transports then you need to visit! I would say it’s a place for older...

Haven't been to the LT Museum Depot at Acton for several years and it was good to go back.

The renovated and partially renovated tube trains and buses stirred memories for me. My husband remembered the trolley buses especially when they went round corners causing the wands to come off the wires forcing the conductors to get off and use a stick to hook them back on again. He also remembered seeing the last trolley bus on the Harrow Road when he was about 6 or 7.

The museum has fun educational activities and the exhibits are attractive for children - but possibly not the very young.

The shop is well stocked and we came away with five posters and a card game.

Catering is a mobile unit so choice is limited to sandwiches, cakes and sausage rolls. Coffee was good as was the flapjack.

It's been even longer since we went to the Covent Garden museum which has a larger stock - but we'll be planning a...