| Summary : The Victoria Line, the first deep-level Underground line to be built across central London since the "tube boom" of 1905-1907, links Walthamstow in north east London with Brixton in south London. It was so badly needed to distribute the growing traffic from and to the main-line terminals at Kings Cross, St Pancras, Euston, and Victoria, with interchange to all existing Underground lines. At its north-eastern end it served Finsbury Park, Tottenham, and Walthamstow; southwards it provided a new under-river crossing at Vauxhall and was projected to Brixton. The main section was authorized in 1955 but delays in obtaining funds meant that construction work did not start until 1962. It eventually opened in 1968-9; with the Brixton extension in 1971, this made a mileage of 14. Improved methods of tunnel excavation and lining were used, including concrete segemnts, where suitable, in place of cast iron. |