Most visitors and even plenty of locals treat the Underground as the only way to cross London. But when there is a strike, a signal failure, or simply a closed line on a Sunday, the bus network quietly carries on doing the heavy lifting. Learning to lean on it makes the city feel far less stressful.

The first thing to know is that London buses no longer accept cash. You tap on with a contactless card, a phone, or an Oyster card, and that is the whole transaction. There is no need to tap off, which catches a few people out who expect Tube-style gates at both ends.

Why the bus often wins

Buses follow the streets, so you actually see where you are going, which makes them far easier to navigate than a tunnel map. They are also cheaper. A single bus fare is a flat rate regardless of distance, and the Hopper fare lets you take a second bus within an hour at no extra cost.

• Sit on the top deck at the front for the best free tour of the city you will ever get.
• Use Citymapper or the TfL Go app to compare a bus route against a delayed train in real time.
• Night buses, marked with an N before the number, run when the Tube has long closed.

The one trade-off is traffic. Central routes through the West End can crawl during rush hour and on event days. If you are in a genuine hurry across town, the Tube usually still wins. But for short hops, river crossings, and late nights, the humble red bus remains one of the best-value ways to move around the capital.