# TfL London Scraper — Live Transport Data (`ponderable_hydrometer/tfl-london-scraper`) Actor

Transport for London data — line status, live arrivals by line or stop, stop search and line stops across tube, bus, DLR, Overground and more. Free, no key needed.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/ponderable\_hydrometer/tfl-london-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [Ponderable Hydrometer](https://apify.com/ponderable_hydrometer) (community)
- **Categories:** Developer tools, Automation, SEO tools
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $2.00 / 1,000 results

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/platform/actors/running/actors-in-store#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.
Actors are written with capital "A".

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.

- **AI agents and MCP clients** — the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md) at `https://mcp.apify.com` (remote, streamable HTTP, OAuth on first use).
- **Agentic workflows and local Actor development** — [Agent Skills](https://apify.com/.well-known/agent-skills/index.json) with the [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): `npm install -g apify-cli`, then `apify login`.
- **JavaScript/TypeScript projects** — the official [JS/TS client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): `npm install apify-client`.
- **Python projects** — the official [Python client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): `pip install apify-client`.
- **Any other language** — the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).

For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.

For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).

# README

## TfL London Scraper — Live Transport Data

**London transport data from the official [TfL Unified API](https://api.tfl.gov.uk) in one actor —
live arrivals, line status & disruptions, routes and stops for Tube, bus, DLR, Overground,
Elizabeth line and tram.** Clean, flat, normalized JSON — no TfL `$type` envelope. Runs keyless.

Perfect for live departure boards, trip planners, disruption alerts, transport dashboards and datasets.

### Keyless (optional BYO key)

Runs **keyless** at TfL's standard rate — no key required. For a higher rate limit, register a
free app key at <https://api-portal.tfl.gov.uk/> and set it in the optional `appKey` input
(stored as a secret). It works fine without one.

### Modes

| Mode | What it returns |
|------|-----------------|
| `line-status` | Status / disruptions for a set of `modes` (tube, bus, dlr, …) |
| `arrivals-by-line` | Live arrivals for one or more `lines` (e.g. victoria, central, a bus route) |
| `arrivals-by-stop` | Live arrivals at one or more `stopIds` (NaPTAN, e.g. 940GZZLUOXC) |
| `stop-search` | Stops matching a `query` (name/place) — returns ids to use elsewhere |
| `line-stops` | All stop points on a `line` |

### What you get

- **Arrivals** — station, line, platform, direction, `towards`, `destinationName`, vehicle id,
  current location, `timeToStationSeconds`, `expectedArrival`
- **Line status** — line, mode, `statusSeverity`, `statusDescription`, disruption reason/category
  and validity window
- **Stop search** — id, name, lat/lon, modes, fare `zone`, ics id
- **Line stops** — NaPTAN id, name, stop type, lat/lon, modes, zone, lines served, WiFi flag

### Example inputs

**Tube status**

```json
{"mode":"line-status","modes":["tube"]}
```

**Live arrivals on lines**

```json
{"mode":"arrivals-by-line","lines":["victoria","central"]}
```

**Arrivals at a stop**

```json
{"mode":"arrivals-by-stop","stopIds":["940GZZLUOXC"]}
```

**Search a stop**

```json
{"mode":"stop-search","query":"Oxford"}
```

Typical flow: `stop-search` → grab a stop `id` → `arrivals-by-stop`.

### Output (one arrival)

Fields below are the real normalizer output:

```json
{
  "stationName": "Oxford Circus Underground Station",
  "naptanId": "940GZZLUOXC",
  "lineId": "victoria",
  "lineName": "Victoria",
  "platformName": "Northbound - Platform 3",
  "direction": "inbound",
  "towards": "Walthamstow Central",
  "destinationName": "Walthamstow Central",
  "vehicleId": "234",
  "currentLocation": "At Green Park",
  "timeToStationSeconds": 120,
  "expectedArrival": "2026-07-12T10:15:30Z",
  "timestamp": "2026-07-12T10:13:30Z",
  "modeName": "tube"
}
```

### Why this actor

- **All modes in one actor** — Tube, bus, DLR, Overground, Elizabeth line and tram.
- **Tidy schema** — flat normalized rows, no TfL `$type` noise or nested envelope.
- **Reliable** — requests retry with backoff on 429/5xx.

### Pricing

Pay per result — **$2.00 per 1,000 results** (one result = one arrival / status / stop / match).
No subscription or platform fees; runs keyless (bring a key only for higher throughput).

### Related actors

- **Transitland Scraper** — public transit worldwide (operators, routes, stops, departures).
- **Vienna Wiener Linien** — live Vienna departures & stops.

### Notes & limits

- Live arrival predictions and disruption status change constantly; treat each run as a snapshot.
- Independent tool sourcing the official TfL Unified API; not affiliated with or endorsed by
  Transport for London. Powered by TfL Open Data. You are responsible for compliant use.

# Actor input Schema

## `mode` (type: `string`):

What to fetch from the TfL Unified API.

## `lines` (type: `array`):

TfL line ids for arrivals-by-line / line-stops, e.g. \["victoria","central","elizabeth"] or a bus route like \["88"].

## `stopIds` (type: `array`):

StopPoint ids for arrivals-by-stop, e.g. \["940GZZLUOXC"] (Oxford Circus). Get ids from stop-search.

## `modes` (type: `array`):

Modes for line-status, e.g. \["tube"], \["bus"], \["dlr","overground","elizabeth-line","tram"].

## `query` (type: `string`):

For stop-search: place/station name, e.g. "Oxford", "Victoria", "King's Cross".

## `appKey` (type: `string`):

Optional free TfL API key for a higher rate limit. Works keyless without it. Register at https://api-portal.tfl.gov.uk/ .

## `maxResults` (type: `integer`):

Cap on number of rows returned.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "mode": "line-status",
  "lines": [
    "victoria"
  ],
  "modes": [
    "tube"
  ],
  "maxResults": 500
}
```

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "lines": [
        "victoria"
    ],
    "modes": [
        "tube"
    ]
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("ponderable_hydrometer/tfl-london-scraper").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {
    "lines": ["victoria"],
    "modes": ["tube"],
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("ponderable_hydrometer/tfl-london-scraper").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print("💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/" + run["defaultDatasetId"])
for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "lines": [
    "victoria"
  ],
  "modes": [
    "tube"
  ]
}' |
apify call ponderable_hydrometer/tfl-london-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "mcp-remote",
                "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=ponderable_hydrometer/tfl-london-scraper",
                "--header",
                "Authorization: Bearer <YOUR_API_TOKEN>"
            ]
        }
    }
}

```

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/EXjEPynueCEKWJC0w/builds/GcMgClWykDvYLvHSF/openapi.json