Evening Standard from London, Greater London, England • A21

NEWSEVENING STANDARD 21 Commuters think an ageing, clanky Underground line but a new BBC documentary is about to proclaim it as one of Seven wonders of London 1. St Cathedral Designed by Sir Christopher Wren and built between 1675 and 1710 after its predecessor was destroyed in the Great Fire of London. 2. Roman city walls Defensive barrier spanning two miles, 18ft tall and up to 9ft wide. Built and added to between the second and fourth centuries AD, remnants can be seen in the grounds of the Museum of London, in the Barbican Estate and around Tower Hill.

3. Park Known as the in the of the royal parks. The former farmland of Marylebone Park was developed into its current splendour in 1818 by architect and friend of the Prince Regent John Nash. He envisaged it as a 4. Metropolitan line First route in the Tube network, now extends from Aldgate in the east to Amersham and Uxbridge in the west.

Earliest version began running in 1863. 5. sewerage network More than 80 miles of subterranean sewers conceived by Sir Joseph Bazalgette in 1859. The brick tunnels, channeling waste to the east of the city, rescued London from the Great Stink the stench from the Thames that emanated during the cholera-ridden period. 6.

Midland Grand Hotel The Victorian Gothic hotel, designed by George Gilbert Scott and completed in 1877, sits in front of St Pancras railway station. 7. Tower Bridge Designed by architects Horace Jones and John Wolfe Barry and completed in 1894 after seven years, the bridge was built to cater for river and road traffic. A stunning cathedral, impregnable city walls and 80 miles of sewers TO those using the clanky Tube route every day, the Metropolitan line may not seem like much of a modern miracle. But now it has been proclaimed one of the seven man-made ders of The Metropolitan, which was the first underground railway when it opened in January 1863, is hailed as a example of how 21st-century London life would be unthinkable without 19th-century engineering It is among the engi- neering landmarks featured in a BBC2 documentary, Seven Man- Made Wonders Of London, to be screened next month with architect Maxwell Hutchinson as presenter.

The monuments were all voted for by BBC London listeners. They had to be built before 1900 and be what Londoners come to regard as First place went to St Cathedral, conceived by Sir Christopher Wren as a rival to the great churches of Rome. Second were the remains of Lon- two-mile-long Roman walls, ALEXA BARACAIA Media Correspondent which can still be seen around Tower Hill and the Barbican Estate. In third place was Park, described as having perfect combination of architecture and nestled into the rounding urban I a a Metropolitan line whose trains first ran from near Paddington to what is now Farringdon station. The line was gradually extended to create its current route, from Aldgate in the City to Amersham in Buckinghamshire, taking in Uxbridge, Watford and Chalfont, by 1932.

Coloured magenta on the Tube map, the Metropolitan now car- ries more than 58 million passen- gers a year. The final three were the 82 miles of sewers, George Gilbert Mid- land Grand Hotel and Tower Bridge, which took just seven years to build. Seven Man-Made Wonders Of London will be shown on BBC2 on 7 September at 7pm. Trailblazer: the Metropolitan line, opened in 1863, is said to be a shining example of how 21st-century London life would be without 19th-century engineering TRAIN drivers are being taught to save fuel by accelerating less leading to slower journeys for commuters. The Office of Rail Regulation has ordered rail companies to train their drivers to make their journeys energy-efficient, by cutting off the power at a certain point and coasting to the next station.

Data recorders will be installed in train cabs to check how much energy drivers have wasted by accelerating too quickly or for too long and then braking hard. The most fuel-inefficient drivers will then be sent for remedial training. The rail electricity costs have risen by 67 per cent to £154million over the past two years and are expected to rise further to £205million next year. Modern trains consume more energy because they are heavier, due to safety and disability regulations, and have air conditioning and electric doors. Other energy-saving measures proposed by the regulator include installing electricity meters on trains to find which journeys use the most power.

Michael Lee, director of industry analysis for the Office of Rail Regulation, said it may be necessary to change timetables to allow for slower journeys. But Anthony Smith, chief executive of rail consumer watchdog Passenger Focus, said passengers would rather pay higher fares than face longer travel. He said: is the greatest advantage of the railways and that should not be eroded by elongating Trains will slow down to save on fuel BO WILSON le.