Sunak must nurture British business with fair taxes and smart reforms September 27, 2021 London’s famous vibrancy has returned. City streets once again teem with activity, pent up for so long but now unleashed. Yet it would be a mistake to assume the journey ahead is an easy one. London – like the rest of the UK – stands at a crossroads. And the path we choose will decide [...]
ONS: Seven in 10 workers are back in the office as September surge acclerates September 24, 2021 Seven in 10 workers in the UK are back in the office as the September surge back to pre-pandemic working practices accelerates, according to official figures. 70.1 per cent of workers are back at their normal place of work, research from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows. The figures come as usage of Transport [...]
Lucrative Covid-19 contracts drive profits at outsourcer Mitie September 24, 2021 Outsourcer Mitie has lifted its profit guidance due to a string of Covid-linked contracts, which saw it clean Heathrow and Manchester airport, alongside Transport for London (TfL). It now expects operating profit before other items to hit between £145m and £155m, the company said in its half year update. “In our first quarter trading update [...]
TfL sanctions for bare-faced commuters slump September 23, 2021 Transport for London (TfL) slapped six non-mask wearing commuters per day with fines in July in the run-up to “Freedom Day” as policing of Covid-19 prevention measures on the capital’s transport network waned. TfL imposed 123 fines on commuters for not wearing a mask in July, a 79 per cent drop from June’s 590 fines. [...]
“It’s existential”: TfL boss says Government failure on long-term funding deal would be “betrayal” of London September 22, 2021 THE man in charge of the capital’s creaking transport network has said that it will be a “betrayal” of London if TfL does not get a long-term funding deal this year. Commissioner Andy Byford warned that if the government did not agree a multi-year package with the operator it would set back the UK’s recovery [...]
Editorial: Transport for London needs a funding model fit for a modern capital September 22, 2021 On the tube, mind the gap is supposed to be a cautionary warning for absent-minded tourists. Alas over the course of the pandemic it’s become something rather more serious – a constant, if pithy, reminder of the black hole at the heart of Transport for London’s finances. London is a great global city, but the [...]
Mind the funding gap: Can the TfL boss secure London’s Tube network’s future? September 21, 2021 It’s only September, but one date is very much etched in the mind of Transport for London (TfL) Commissioner Andy Byford: 11 December. That’s when TfL’s latest £1bn funding package runs out, the third short-term deal the government has bestowed on the capital’s transport network, despite repeated pleas for a multi-year settlement instead. And although [...]
Lime: The e-scooter firm looking to make the car obsolete September 21, 2021 London has seen many changes over the last 18 months. Some of these may not last long, now that life is heading back to normality, but others feel like they could be set to stay. Perhaps the most obvious of these have been the changes made to the very fabric of the capital, which has [...]
London Underground extension: Two new Northern line opened this morning September 20, 2021 London Underground’s first major expansion this century has opened this morning. Two new Northern line stations opened in south London following a £1.1bn project. The first train on the new route departed from Battersea Power Station at 5.28am this morning. It called at the other new station, Nine Elms, before reaching the existing station of [...]
People falling off escalators over fear of catching Covid-19 sends TfL injuries up September 17, 2021 London Underground bosses have warned that people falling off escalators due to not holding on to the handrail over fears of catching Covid-19 is one of the biggest safety risks facing the network. Since the lifting of lockdown restrictions earlier this year the number of accidents of this type has soared due to the “perception [...]