Customers on London's Elizabeth line gained mobile coverage for the first time just before Christmas at four central stations.

The stations - Bond Street, Tottenham Court Road, Farringdon and Liverpool Street - are among the busiest in central London. All now have mobile coverage in ticket halls, corridors and platforms from the four major UK operators.

Tottenham Court Road is also now fully covered, with expansion to the Central line coming in 2024. By spring, the entire 73-mile Elizabeth line from Reading and Heathrow to Shenfield and Abbey Wood will have mobile connectivity.

The high-speed service allows customers to stay connected when travelling for shopping, nights out and entertainment in the West End. It provides reassurance for travellers to stay in touch and will also host the Emergency Services Network, giving first responders instant access to critical data.

In recent months, sections of the Jubilee, Northern and Central lines also gained 4G and 5G. Around 20% of underground stations now have mobile coverage, representing two thirds of the whole network.

By spring 2024, the first Bakerloo, Victoria and Piccadilly line stations will be connected, along with tunnels in central London. In total, around 40 underground stations and tunnels will have mobile coverage.

By summer 2024, sections of the Northern line's southern end will go live. Around 80% of all stations, including most of the Elizabeth line, are expected to have mobile coverage by end of 2024.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said: "I am delighted to see the promise I made of delivering 4G and 5G across our transport network continuing to progress, with four busy Elizabeth line stations - Bond Street, Tottenham Court Road, Farringdon and Liverpool Street joining an ever-growing network of lines and stations with full connectivity.

"The new mobile coverage at these stations will be a major boost for those travelling around London - connecting key business centres and some of the popular parts of Central London and the West End. It will help Londoners and visitors to the capital to better navigate the capital and stay connected underground. Growing numbers of underground Tube stations now have 4G and 5G services, with many more to come as we continue to build a better London for everyone."

Transport Commissioner Andy Lord said: "I'm delighted that the first stations on the Elizabeth line now have high-quality mobile coverage.

“This is a vital project for London, allowing customers to be more connected underground and get the latest travel information and news, as well as stay in contact with work, friends and families while travelling on our network.

“Our engineers will be working closely with Boldyn Networks over Christmas and throughout 2024 to expand coverage to more stations and tunnels across London, and we remain committed to having a significant proportion of the entire Tube network connected by the end of 2024."