Government extends TfL funding for two weeks amid emergency bailout talks October 16, 2020 The government has extended its funding package for Transport for London (TfL) for two weeks, as the transport body scrambles to shore up emergency cash ahead of further lockdown restrictions in the capital. A spokesperson for TfL said: “We have today agreed with the government that our funding will be extended for two weeks so [...]
Railway bailout could cost taxpayer nearly £10bn this year October 16, 2020 It could cost the taxpayer almost £10bn to keep the railways running this year, Department for Transport (DfT) officials revealed today. Speaking to the Public Accounts Committee this morning, permanent secretary Bernadette Kelly said that thus far, the government had spent £4.3bn. For the rest of the financial year, she forecast that an additional £3bn [...]
Nine per cent of employees on furlough as scheme nears end October 15, 2020 Just over nine per cent of Britain’s workforce remain on furlough with less than a month to go before the scheme is replaced by less generous job support measures, a survey showed. Some 9.1 per cent of workers were furloughed during the two weeks to 4 October, according to a survey of businesses by the [...]
Tube journeys hit highest number since lockdown October 14, 2020 There were more journeys made on the Tube last week than at any point since the beginning of lockdown in March, despite the imminent prospect of new restrictions being imposed on the capital. According to data from Transport for London, there were 1.56m such journeys made last Friday, beating the previous high of 1.52m. That [...]
Exclusive: TfL set for crunch talks as London bosses call on Sunak to solve cash crisis October 14, 2020 Exclusive: TfL set for crunch talks to solve cash crisis as London bosses call on Sunak to step-up to save services
Eurostar may need state support as passenger numbers collapse October 11, 2020 The government may need to put its hands in its pockets to prop up the cross-Channel Eurostar service, the boss of the HS1 line has warned. Dyan Crowther, who runs the rail link between London and the Channel Tunnel, said that the operator had slashed the number of services it was running due to the [...]
Major Tory donor, head of Garden Bridge and Brexit advisers receive top gongs in Queen’s Birthday Honours list October 9, 2020 One of the largest Conservative party donors, the head of the failed £40m Garden Bridge and 10 Brexit advisers were among the senior figures to receive awards in this year’s Queen’s Birthday Honours list. Tony Gallagher, who has donated almost £4m to the Conservative party over the last 13 years, was awarded a knighthood for [...]
Tory mayoral candidate vows ‘mental health covenant’ for TfL staff October 9, 2020 Tory mayoral candidate Shaun Bailey has pledged to offer more mental health support to Transport for London (TfL) staff if elected mayor as figures show increasing levels of psychological distress among the workforce. Bailey told City A.M. that he would create a “mental health covenant” for TfL workers in a similar vein to existing programmes [...]
TfL boss that oversaw Crossrail and Garden Bridge fiascos set for an honour October 9, 2020 A controversial former TfL boss appears to be in line for an honour, after Sadiq Khan tweeted his congratulations before the tweet was hastily removed. The Queen’s birthday honours list will be be announced tonight, however it appears the mayor of London jumped the gun this morning by announcing that former TfL commissioner Mike Brown [...]
Stagecoach sees bus revenues at 60 per cent of pre-pandemic levels October 9, 2020 Bus operator Stagecoach said that revenue on its regional bus services had recovered to up to 60 per cent of pre-pandemic levels. However, due to the continued uncertainty over new coronavirus restrictions in the UK, it said that its full year outlook was unchanged from June. The announcement sent shares down four per cent in [...]