Transport for London (TfL) and Twitter have begun piloting a service that will send alerts to customers of severe delays on key London Underground and TfL rail services, thereby helping them to avoid disruption.

The pilot will allow an individual who follows any of four existing TfL Twitter feeds, London Overground, TfL Rail, Central line and District line, to be able to avail instant alerts about disruptions.

Until now, in order to obtain live travel information through Twitter, customers have to visit the relevant account or search through their timeline for the latest tweets. However, this pilot will allow notifications to be sent straight to customers’ mobile devices while they are on the go, or direct to their computer. This service is free of charge.

Customers can avail this service by visiting http://tfl.gov.uk/twitter-alerts and selecting the lines from whereby they would prefer to receive information. They can also customise their notifications by selecting the time periods that they would like to receive alerts.

"Up to the minute information around severe disruption is a daily must-have for everyone, and the live nature of Twitter is the perfect companion for this."

After reviewing feedback from the pilot, this service could be extended to other TfL Twitter feeds and would be used to alert drivers of disruption on major road corridors.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said: "Like every Londoner I rely on public transport to get me around and this world-first service looks set to become an essential tool for millions of Tube passengers. It is an innovative way of providing people with live updates from the Underground and contributes to my goal of making it as easy as possible to get around the capital."

TfL head of online Phil Young said: "The reliability of TfL services is at a record high, but disruption does sometimes occur. Getting the latest travel information direct to customers when and where they want it is key to enabling them to avoid delays.

"Millions of Londoners use apps powered by our free open data, alongside our website, to check the Tube, find a bus or see how the roads are running and this world-first partnership with Twitter is a fantastic way of ensuring our data helps keep our customers informed."

Twitter UK managing director Dara Nasr said: "Twitter is used by millions of Londoners every day to get live travel updates. We’re incredibly excited to be partnering with TfL to make it more simple and convenient for commuters to receive important news about their journey.

"Up to the minute information around severe disruption is a daily must-have for everyone, and the live nature of Twitter is the perfect companion for this.

"Whether you’re on Twitter already or thinking about joining, we would urge you to try this new service out as it will prove essential in avoiding delays. We’re committed to continuing to make Twitter the simplest everyday utility to access key public information, be that transport or beyond."

This pilot is part of TfL’s wider plan to make information freely and openly available to developers to help them create better products and services more quickly.

The data is being provided through TfL’s Unified Application Programme Interface (API), which enables developers to secure the latest travel information about all TfL services, as well as additional information about road conditions, speed limits and collision data.

Around 8,200 developers are registered for TfL’s Unified API and more than 2,000 new developers have signed up to access live information in the last six months.

Given that the smartphone usage for travel information is surging, almost 500 apps are directly powered by this open data, thereby enabling users to secure up-to-the-minute information about public transport along with the road network.