The cost of living crisis ratcheted up this morning, as Londoners received the news of a 4.8 per cent rise in TfL fares. This represents the largest annual rise in a decade and will mean passengers paying an estimated £151 million more to travel this year.
For instance, pay-as-you-go Tube fares in Zone 1 are up 10p to £2.50, the hopper bus fare that allows multiple journeys within an hour increases by 10p to £1.65 and the daily “cap” on multiple pay-as-you-go Tube journeys rises by 3.8 per cent.
These fare increases are tied to the conditions imposed by the Government, which has demanded TfL break even by 2023 while also ruling out other revenue-raising suggestions from the Mayor such as a Greater London boundary charge or the devolution of Vehicle Excise Duty.
Britons across the country are coming to terms with soaring energy prices, interest rate rises and widespread inflationary pressures. But Londoners face the added burden of Tube and bus far rises, a £20 a year surcharge on their council tax, premium rates for Tube travel to Heathrow — on top of skyrocketing housing costs.
It is further evidence that TfL cannot continue to live hand-to-mouth. As we have consistently called for, there must be a long-term settlement to secure the viability of London’s transport network and avert any talk of managed decline, with the threat that poses to the capital’s economy.
