Tube Fares Rise

Boris couldn't have picked a better to day to announce the annual London Underground and bus fare rises. Yesterday while the public spending review was hogging the headlines, Mayor Boris announced "I am able to confirm an average fares increase at the level we declared it would be last year, the absolute minimum required to secure vital investment in London's transport network and protect frontline services."

The fares will increase in January 2011. Based on July's RPI figures of 4.8%, it represents an average 6.8% fare increase across TfL services and Oyster pay as you go. The Zone 1 Oyster tube fare rises 5.5% which takes it to £1.90.


Mmm, so a increase of inflation + 2% might not seem too high. But delve a bit deeper and you'll see that certain one day travel cards are being scrapped. The zone 2-6 card is being withdrawn. So travellers who bought that card and never had the need to come into zone one, will have to buy a 1-6 card instead. That's a jump from £8.60 to £15 during peak times or an increase of 74%. Even if you buy it off-peak, it's a rise from £5.10 to £8.00 – a jump of 57%.

Caroline Pidgeon, Vice Chair of the London Assembly Transport Committee and Lib Dem Assembly member said today:

"The Mayor was insulting Londoners by burying bad news like this on the day the Comprehensive Spending Review was announced. Boris Johnson was elected promising to stand up for outer London. He specifically promised to make orbital journeys far easier. In practice the Mayor is hitting hardest the people who travel around, rather than into London.

People living in outer London will be badly hit by the scrapping of the Zone 2-6 travelcard. It will force people off public transport and back in to using their cars, just adding to the congestion on our roads."

For more blogger reactions see - 853 and Adam Bienkov.