London Mayor Sadiq Khan is freezing all fares on Transport for London services until 2025, City Hall announced this morning.
All aboard: London Mayor Sadiq Khan will pay for the TfL fares freeze out of business rates
Mayor Khan’s office says people could save up to £90 a year under the plans, part of a £123million investment in the capital’s transport services which also includes extra money used to resolve the long-running industrial dispute with Tube train drivers and their union ASLEF.
The London mayoral elections are on May 2.
It is the fifth time since Labour’s Khan has been London Mayor that he has frozen the capital’s fares, while tickets on national rail services under Government control continue to soar. TfL fares would be 14% higher had the freezes not been implemented.
Harrow hairdresser Susan Hall, who somehow has managed to get elected as an Assembly Member for the Conservatives, did not welcome the valuable help to all hard-working Londoners but opted to describe the fare freeze as a “fake, magic money tree promise”. Except it isn’t “fake”, because it is actually happening, and it will be using public money, from Londoner’s taxes, to keep fares low – a policy which has seen Khan elected as Mayor twice.
Standard issue: it is an election year in London
The Mayor’s announcement follows £250million funding from the government for 2024 to address the continuing, post-covid funding shortfall.
That spending package will be used by TfL for projects such as providing new Tube trains for the Piccadilly line. The fares freeze is likely to cost around £123million, and will be paid for from business rates.
After his predecessor, Boris Johnson, ended London’s transport subsidies received from central Government, Mayor Khan’s fare freezes from 2016 to 2021 were seen by some transport commentators as contributing to the transport authority’s financial predicament, when covid saw a near-complete collapse of fare income. Those first fare freezes cost around £640million over four years – money that could have been used elsewhere, such as on Croydon Tram extensions to Crystal Palace or Sutton.
Today, the Mayor said: “Not only will this put money back in people’s pockets, making transport more affordable for millions of Londoners, but will encourage people back on to our public transport network.
“While people across the country face another hike in their rail fares, I simply wasn’t prepared to stand by and see TfL customers face a similar hike.
“As we continue building a fairer, greener and more prosperous London for everyone, making public transport more affordable and appealing will continue to be a key part of my plan.”
‘Arse’: Neil Garratt
Neil “Father Jack” Garratt, the Assembly Member for Croydon and Sutton and the leader of the Tory rump at City Hall, said, “Feck! Arse! Drink!” Apparently.
But Caroline Pidgeon, of the LibDems, said: “Any fare freeze is obviously good news for those reliant on public transport in the midst of an inflationary crisis.
“However, major questions need to be answered on which pot of money the funding for this has been taken out of. With the inflationary crisis also hitting TfL, and staff calling for wage increases, we must ensure funding is sustainable.”
The voice of reason was sounded by Michael Roberts, the CEO of independent watchdog London TravelWatch, who said, “London’s public transport services are among some of the most expensive in the world, so the fares freeze will bring some welcome relief to hard-pressed passengers.
“We hope there will be continued focus on making public transport in the capital more affordable over time, especially for lower-income Londoners.”
According to analysis this morning from Tom Edwards, BBC London’s transport correspondent, “Mayor Khan’s opponents says he is just buying off voters with an election bribe, but he is focusing on the money it will save the average family.
“The aim may be to push the mayoral debate firmly towards the cost of living, like Mayor Khan’s other policies of free school meals and more money for ULEZ scrappage.”
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I think it’s unlikely that Mayor Khan will make this a cost of living election contest.
If he did so the debate would inevitably be drawn into his next 8.6% council tax increase and the over 70% council tax increase since his first election.
What was that that was said about Janet Street-Porter, a postage stamp and what she knows about newspapers? Tom Edwards and politics?
Can Michael Roberts be the only apolitical voice of sanity.?
Public Transport is expensive to build and maintain requiring eye watering sums to create. But when managed well that inital cost not only works out to less than a few per person per mile of travel but have hugh beneficial impacts on both the economy and the wealth of neighborhoods it serves. It also does this with a lower carbon footprint than most other forms of transport.
When interfered with politically or mismanaged then that can be quite a costly business and does impact detrimentally far in excess of the initial cost.
But the base accusations made against him above take Londones for blithering idiots and not the most canny of city dwellers in Europe.
London is a huge cosmopolitan city with so many cultures many integrated some with a way to go yet. But all are far from stupid irrespective of political leanings.
Mayor Khan is accused of trying to buy votes? Seriously? So he raised fares repeatedly during lockdowns and afterwards and only before the election froze the fares? I think not
Is that not exactly what this government did with taxation? Froze allowances and created an additional cost to taxpayers. Buggered the economy with trussenomic’s and fleeced the taxpayer to pay for their own profligacy and idiocy. In Croydon robbed us of funding and gave loans instead and then called in the debt when it was unpayable and raised taxation to 15% locally. Not so disimiler than a lpoan shark practice? They also robbed the NHS of funding but found it useful in an election year to screw the Junior Doctors, stiff the Consultants and drag out paying every other NHS employee a reasonable rate of pay, some are still not getting that yet But they dug in and shaved off 2% on NI in an election year? really just gave back what they increased in the first place – so really more like a temporary reduction perhaps, just like a charity hand out before an election to gain votes across the UK they are accusing Mr Khan of. Hark at pan calling kettle grimy ass!
That 2% perhaps might be better staying in place and going directly into providing care for disabled and elderly. It would be definitely better spent on providing equipment to St Georges instead of being reliant on charity and lottery funds.
It might be better going into a rise in tax free allowances where it will really benefit everyone AND prime the pumps of commerce where it is most desperatly required.
No that is not real Conservatism, that is codology perpetrated by arrogance by a few that has really no idea of how to manage let alone Govern a Nation.
The reality isLondons Mayor has actually frozen fares for some time not just the election year. Londons Mayor despite being the one Public tranport system not getting a Government subsidy – (One wonders why Mr Johnson? Expensively bought seat that did not stand the test of time?) yet he and Mr Byforn and no Mr Lord had enough acumen to continue with providing trains on the Piccadilly line and covering for this bunch under Johnson during repeated lockdowns getting people into and out of work as a fourth emergency service supporting all the key workers. Transport workers are actually also an unsung key worker.
Maybe Mr Khan is playing a game, but frankly I dont give a damn – as that game looks after all Londoners and for too long they have been fleeced of hard earned money on everything by the few occupying the Cabinet over the last decade.
If the conservative mangy rump rail keeps wagging the Conservative dog and treating the general population like fodder it might not just find the next election an eye opener for them but its likely that even when they are right and have good ideas not a soul will listen to them as their reputation has sunk into oblivion.
So that is where some of the money raised by expanding ULEZ to Outer London will be going!
Wrong.
Try reading the article.
The fares freeze is being funded from business rates.
No mention over bringing in Peak Time Travel for Freedom Pass or penionsiors as many require this to attend hospital appointments before 9am?