Last Updated on July 19, 2026
All Change! What to look forward to before LTM turns 50
As the London Transport Museum’s 50th Anniversary approaches, London Unattached caught up with its CEO, Elizabeth McKay, who gave us an insight into what’s in store for this Covent Garden Stalwart.
In the 46 years since the London Transport Museum opened its doors in the sight of London’s first flower market in Covent Garden, much has changed for the area. This was only the start of the area’s redevelopment as a luxury shopping and culture destination; the fruit market having been moved to Nine Elms only 4 years earlier. Of course, now, even Nine Elms has been snaffled up by developers surrounding the US embassy.
The LTM building itself almost became a car park before public outcry. Former markets are now popular destinations for museums. The Museum of London will reopen this year, now housed in the former Smithfield market. Since then, the LTM has welcomed over 10 million visitors, young and old, who can enjoy an interactive telling of the history of London’s transport network, the oldest and largest integrated transport system in the world, along with the taxis, trams, buses and trolleybuses that came along with it.
In the approach of their 50th Anniversary in 2030, the London Transport Museum invited press and stakeholders to share their plans to have the museum renovated in time for the celebration. This included a new piazza entrance, 500 square metres of additional space, 4 new galleries and a new learning and exhibition space for children.
In addition, they will use this opportunity to overhaul their heating and cooling systems, something abundantly clear is needed after this summer, as well as roof repairs and new washroom facilities. The whole project is projected to cost £26 million, half of which has already been funded with a combination of museum reserves, a tidy lump sum of £12 million from Transport for London, LTM’s owners, and just under a million for the roof from Arts Council England.
Despite these extensive works, the museum intends to stay open throughout, and as we discovered, there is plenty to enjoy coming up from the London Transport Museum.
With that in mind, we got to chat with Elizabeth McKay, who has been with the Museum for the last eight years and CEO for the last three, following positions at Historic Royal Palaces and the BBC. She was keen to share what visitors who were maybe already in the area to visit the Royal Ballet and Opera House might enjoy.
‘Number one, look around our permanent gallery for poster art. A lot of people think about the museum for engineering, big things with wheels, trains and buses, but we’re an incredible collection of Art and Design and social history.’
The London Underground has long been a patron of good design, from the iconic roundel logo to the tube schematic diagram. Many a millennial’s front room will also be adorned with a reproduction of a vintage underground poster, the originals of which are exhibited extensively in the museum, along with copies available for sale in the shop. Next year, the gallery will host its first single-artist show. ‘We’re really mature enough as an organisation to be at that point now’ suggests McKay. The museum has also commissioned contemporary artist Eliza Southwood to continue the legacy of underground posters advertising the locations that can be visited on the underground, including London Zoo, Dulwich Picture Gallery and the LTM itself.
‘You have to feed current artists, current musicians, current performers: that’s also part of why we’re doing this initiative.’
There is plenty more to discover at the London Transport Museum, past visual art, and they are in the second year of commissioning young musical artists from conservatories. ‘These are the next brilliant stars of the future. They are absolutely top-notch, and we give them an opportunity to perform, to build their career and get ready before they’re heading out into their professional career.’ There will also be more classical ensemble music performed at the venue following an initial event as part of their wider ticketed programme.
The museum also houses a 110-seater theatre projection space, which has hosted a play about Harry Beck, who designed the tube map, with more shows on the way. Of course, the London Transport Museum does not exclusively exist in Covent Garden, with its Acton Depot open regularly for open days to see the 1,000s of artefacts and working vintage stock being restored, as well as LTM’s Hidden London Tours, which give members of the public a chance to see the stations and parts of the network travellers don’t.
‘My ideal is 2030 will just be a big year of celebration,’ finished McKay, but it seems there will be plenty to look forward to in Covent Garden and beyond before then also.
Find out more about the London Transport Museum and book your ticket here.
London Transport Museum
Covent Garden Piazza
London
WC2E 7BB
Call +44 (0)343 222 5000
Every day 10:00 – 18:00
Last entry 17:00
Museum cafe open 10:00 – 17:00
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