London transport freedom passes for all – but at what cost? September 11, 2020 Earlier this week it was reported that senior London business figures were pressing the mayor and Transport for London (TfL) to offer free travel on public transport to encourage the public, in their guise as potential consumers, to venture into the city and make free with their hard-earned pounds. Ewan Venters, CEO of Fortnum and [...]
One in five Londoners will not go back to pre-Covid levels of Tube usage September 10, 2020 A little more than one in five Londoners do not believe they will use the Tube at the same frequency as they did prior to the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new survey. A newly released YouGov survey, seen exclusively by City A.M., showed that 22 per cent of Londoners expect their decreased use of [...]
Hammersmith Bridge: Government thinks TfL inflated £140m repair estimate September 9, 2020 The government is refusing to fund repairs for the closed Hammersmith Bridge because it believes the £140m price tag has been inflated by the local council and Transport for London (TfL), City A.M. can reveal. A source close to transport secretary Grant Shapps said the government wants to fund the restoration of the 133-year-old West [...]
Hammersmith Bridge: Sadiq Khan in fierce row with government over closure September 9, 2020 City Hall and the government have today locked horns over who is responsible for the closed Hammersmith Bridge in what is becoming a heated row. The government announced today it was creating a Hammersmith Bridge taskforce that will be responsible for getting the West London river crossing open again. The group, which will be led [...]
TfL commissioner Andy Byford: Getting the capital moving again September 8, 2020 Andy Byford, London’s transport commissioner, outlines what he has been doing to make TfL services ready for people to use them again. I started my career at London Underground in 1989, and through the last few decades I’ve worked for transport organisations all over the world – America, Australia, Canada. All different, but in each [...]
‘No time for a show of virility’: Sadiq Khan on getting London moving again September 7, 2020 One of the largest criticisms of Sadiq Khan over his first mayoral term has been that he is more concerned about his personal PR and with making political gestures than with his job of running the nation’s capital. The mayor of London has been beset by attacks that he has increased spending on City Hall [...]
Commuter numbers rise to highest level since end of lockdown September 3, 2020 The number of people travelling to work rose to its highest level since the end of lockdown, new data from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) showed today, as the government seeks to encourage workers back to the office. According to the ONS, the proportion of working adults who travelled to their place of work [...]
London Tories call for Waterloo and City Tube line to reopen September 3, 2020 A group of Conservative London MPs and London Assembly members have called for the Waterloo and City Tube line to reopen in a bid to boost the number of people returning to central London. The line – which travels directly between Bank and Waterloo stations – was closed when the country was put into the [...]
City workers slowly beginning to return to office after lockdown September 2, 2020 Commuters are slowly starting to return to London’s business districts after the coronavirus lockdowns, new data from Transport for London has shown. As of last Friday, 17,852 passengers entered and exited Bank tube station in the City, ten times more than the 1,800 who did so at the height of the pandemic. The figure is [...]
Crossrail opening delayed until 2022 and extra £1.1bn needed to finish project August 21, 2020 The opening of London’s new Crossrail underground line has been delayed until 2022 and an extra £1.1bn is needed to complete the project, Crossrail Ltd said today. Crossrail said the central section of the Elizabeth Line between Paddington and Abbey Wood will be ready to open in the first half of 2022. Crossrail has faced [...]