Post by Deleted on Sept 12, 2006 12:50:55 GMT
Good to see that Ken has kept his promise, not to raise fares by more than inflation. 
www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-13301604-details/Bus+and+Tube+fares+soar/article.do
(Cut n Paste the link)
And the official version:
www.tfl.gov.uk/tfl/press-centre/press-releases/press-releases-content.asp?prID=891
www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-13301604-details/Bus+and+Tube+fares+soar/article.do
(Cut n Paste the link)
Bus and Tube fares will soar in the New Year, it was announced today.
The price of taking a bus in the morning rush hour will increase by 20 per cent to £1.20 a journey in January. Tube passengers will also be hit by above-inflation rises.
The controversial move follows Ken Livingstone's promise not to increase fares over the rate of inflation for the next four years. It also comes on top of hefty rises last January.
The Mayor said the increases were necessary to fund improvements to London's transport network.
In an effort to encourage off-peak travel he has frozen Zone 1 Tube ticket prices and will offer new discounts for Underground journeys after 7pm and buses after 9.30am.
Overall, bus fares will increase by the rate of inflation plus 10 per cent, while Tube tickets will rise by the rate of inflation plus one per cent.
The new package is expected to raise about ?150 million to help fill a huge deficit in the Mayor's transport budget. It will fund a series of improvements to the network, including the extension of the East London line to boost London's 2012 Olympics bid.
Key changes in bus and Tube ticket prices include: bus fares up 20p to £1.20; Zone 1 Tube fares remaining at £2; weekly bus passes up from £9.50 to £11; bus fares down to 80p outside the 6.30am-9.30am peak; a £1.10 fare for Tube travel outside Zone 1 after 7pm; a £2 fare for a Tube journey including Zone 1 after 7pm.
But bus and Tube passengers were told by Mr Livingstone last year they would not see an increase in fares above the rate of inflation for the next four years. Travellers are already paying more after increases last January. Then Zone1 prices soared by 25 per cent. At the same time suburban bus fares went up by 43 per cent. Among the concessions in the new fares is under-16s travelling free on buses from next September with the exemption extending to under-18s in September 2006. At present, under-11s get free bus travel.
Discounts will continue to be offered to users of the Oyster smartcard, who will qualify for a £1 peak-hour bus fare.
Journeys to and from central London to Zone3 and Zone4 stay the same price. This will also be implemented for Zone5 and Zone6.
The new fares mean that Transport for London will earn 53p from every bus journey.
Jo Valentine of business group London First said bus fare increases were "overdue" but added: "It is already expensive to live in London and business is concerned about employees having to pay more. Business will only tolerate fare rises if there is a clear commitment to improving performance."
The price of taking a bus in the morning rush hour will increase by 20 per cent to £1.20 a journey in January. Tube passengers will also be hit by above-inflation rises.
The controversial move follows Ken Livingstone's promise not to increase fares over the rate of inflation for the next four years. It also comes on top of hefty rises last January.
The Mayor said the increases were necessary to fund improvements to London's transport network.
In an effort to encourage off-peak travel he has frozen Zone 1 Tube ticket prices and will offer new discounts for Underground journeys after 7pm and buses after 9.30am.
Overall, bus fares will increase by the rate of inflation plus 10 per cent, while Tube tickets will rise by the rate of inflation plus one per cent.
The new package is expected to raise about ?150 million to help fill a huge deficit in the Mayor's transport budget. It will fund a series of improvements to the network, including the extension of the East London line to boost London's 2012 Olympics bid.
Key changes in bus and Tube ticket prices include: bus fares up 20p to £1.20; Zone 1 Tube fares remaining at £2; weekly bus passes up from £9.50 to £11; bus fares down to 80p outside the 6.30am-9.30am peak; a £1.10 fare for Tube travel outside Zone 1 after 7pm; a £2 fare for a Tube journey including Zone 1 after 7pm.
But bus and Tube passengers were told by Mr Livingstone last year they would not see an increase in fares above the rate of inflation for the next four years. Travellers are already paying more after increases last January. Then Zone1 prices soared by 25 per cent. At the same time suburban bus fares went up by 43 per cent. Among the concessions in the new fares is under-16s travelling free on buses from next September with the exemption extending to under-18s in September 2006. At present, under-11s get free bus travel.
Discounts will continue to be offered to users of the Oyster smartcard, who will qualify for a £1 peak-hour bus fare.
Journeys to and from central London to Zone3 and Zone4 stay the same price. This will also be implemented for Zone5 and Zone6.
The new fares mean that Transport for London will earn 53p from every bus journey.
Jo Valentine of business group London First said bus fare increases were "overdue" but added: "It is already expensive to live in London and business is concerned about employees having to pay more. Business will only tolerate fare rises if there is a clear commitment to improving performance."
And the official version:
www.tfl.gov.uk/tfl/press-centre/press-releases/press-releases-content.asp?prID=891
Transport for London financial success allows planned bus fare increase to be cut by two thirds
This press release was originally issued by the Mayor of London's press office at the Greater London Authority.
I want to see every Londoner paying the lowest possible fares by switching to Oyster
Ken Livingstone
Mayor of London
Ken Livingstone, the Mayor of London, today announced the fares package for next year.
As in previous years the new fare proposals are designed to encourage people to switch from cash to the Oyster card in order to speed up buses and reduce ticket queues at Tube stations.
In many cases, Oyster pay-as-you-go bus and Tube fares will be half the cost of the same journey if you pay by cash. Cash use on buses has already halved over the last year.
Two years ago the Mayor announced that bus fares would rise by 10 per cent above inflation for three subsequent years to help fund the biggest investment programme on London transport since the war.
This year he has announced that the third increase has been reduced from 10 per cent to just 3.8 per cent above inflation. This is possible because Transport for London's (TfL's) finances have been boosted by better management and big efficiency savings, including new advertising contracts.
The fares proposals will also help families with free travel on buses for all under 18-year-olds in education, free Tube and DLR travel for under 11-year-olds from Easter 2007 and a 50p Oyster fare for all under-16s on the Tube.
Successful investment
Ken Livingstone said today: 'Two years ago I announced tough measures to ensure London's public transport system received the investment it required. This has been a success - bus ridership is now up two million a day on six years ago, Tube ridership is near record levels, investment in public transport has risen to the highest level for 50 years even before the big improvement programmes for the Olympic Games kick in. Surveys show passengers believe transport has been improving.
'But alongside that Transport for London has also been achieving financial success through major efficiency savings and greatly increased advertising revenue. Due to this I am pleased to announce that the original third 10 per cent fares increase needed to fund the investment programme can be cut by two thirds.
'We will also freeze Oyster single fares on the Tube and help families with free travel for all under 18-year-olds in education, free Tube and DLR travel for under 11-year-olds from Easter 2007 and a 50p Oyster fare for all under-16s on the Tube.
'At the same time, the big differential between cash and Oyster card fares is designed to speed up the system by getting people to switch from cash to Oyster. I want to see every Londoner paying the lowest possible fares by switching to Oyster.'
On the buses:
The Oyster peak single fare remains frozen at £1 - the Oyster one day cap is also frozen, which means Oyster users will never pay more than £3 regardless of how many trips they take each day
Passengers who choose not to use Oyster will now pay £2 in cash for the same journey
The Oyster off-peak fare will rise from 80p to £1
The One Day Bus Pass is frozen at £3.50 and the Weekly Bus Pass increases in line with inflation from £13.50 to £14.00
In the last year, cash use on buses has dropped from 10 per cent of all journeys to five per cent
The overall increase in bus fares equals RPI plus 3.8 per cent
On the Tube:
All Oyster single fares are frozen across London and the daily Oyster cap remains 50p below the One Day Travelcard price
The cash single fare for all journeys via Zone 1 will be £4 - this means passengers using Oyster pay-as-you-go for journeys into Zone 1 could save up to £2.50 per trip
Travelcards will rise by RPI + two per cent on average. There is no change to the cash fare for non Zone 1 journeys
Cash use on the Tube has halved from just under 15 per cent in 2005 to around six per cent
The overall package for the Tube is RPI + one per cent
Family friendly:
Under-16s able to travel on the Tube and DLR using Oyster pay-as-you-go for just 50p per ride with a maximum cost of just £1 using Oyster
Under-11s continue to travel free on the Tube and DLR
Sixteen and 17-year-olds in full-time education continue to travel free on the buses
There was also further good news on the progress of Oyster. In addition to the roll out of Oyster on the North London Railway once TfL take over in November 2007, the train operating companies now plan to introduce zonal fares from January 2007.
This will result in a single, transparent set of fares that will apply on all National Rail services in London. As well as simplifying fares for passengers, this paves the way for introducing Oyster pay-as you-go on rail London-wide.
Since the last fares announcement in September 2005, TfL's investment programme has delivered a number of major improvements including better bus services, the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) City Airport extension, 17 per cent extra capacity on the Jubilee line, a re-built Wembley Park station, new ticket halls at King's Cross station and the start of work on the East London line extension.
This press release was originally issued by the Mayor of London's press office at the Greater London Authority.
I want to see every Londoner paying the lowest possible fares by switching to Oyster
Ken Livingstone
Mayor of London
Ken Livingstone, the Mayor of London, today announced the fares package for next year.
As in previous years the new fare proposals are designed to encourage people to switch from cash to the Oyster card in order to speed up buses and reduce ticket queues at Tube stations.
In many cases, Oyster pay-as-you-go bus and Tube fares will be half the cost of the same journey if you pay by cash. Cash use on buses has already halved over the last year.
Two years ago the Mayor announced that bus fares would rise by 10 per cent above inflation for three subsequent years to help fund the biggest investment programme on London transport since the war.
This year he has announced that the third increase has been reduced from 10 per cent to just 3.8 per cent above inflation. This is possible because Transport for London's (TfL's) finances have been boosted by better management and big efficiency savings, including new advertising contracts.
The fares proposals will also help families with free travel on buses for all under 18-year-olds in education, free Tube and DLR travel for under 11-year-olds from Easter 2007 and a 50p Oyster fare for all under-16s on the Tube.
Successful investment
Ken Livingstone said today: 'Two years ago I announced tough measures to ensure London's public transport system received the investment it required. This has been a success - bus ridership is now up two million a day on six years ago, Tube ridership is near record levels, investment in public transport has risen to the highest level for 50 years even before the big improvement programmes for the Olympic Games kick in. Surveys show passengers believe transport has been improving.
'But alongside that Transport for London has also been achieving financial success through major efficiency savings and greatly increased advertising revenue. Due to this I am pleased to announce that the original third 10 per cent fares increase needed to fund the investment programme can be cut by two thirds.
'We will also freeze Oyster single fares on the Tube and help families with free travel for all under 18-year-olds in education, free Tube and DLR travel for under 11-year-olds from Easter 2007 and a 50p Oyster fare for all under-16s on the Tube.
'At the same time, the big differential between cash and Oyster card fares is designed to speed up the system by getting people to switch from cash to Oyster. I want to see every Londoner paying the lowest possible fares by switching to Oyster.'
On the buses:
The Oyster peak single fare remains frozen at £1 - the Oyster one day cap is also frozen, which means Oyster users will never pay more than £3 regardless of how many trips they take each day
Passengers who choose not to use Oyster will now pay £2 in cash for the same journey
The Oyster off-peak fare will rise from 80p to £1
The One Day Bus Pass is frozen at £3.50 and the Weekly Bus Pass increases in line with inflation from £13.50 to £14.00
In the last year, cash use on buses has dropped from 10 per cent of all journeys to five per cent
The overall increase in bus fares equals RPI plus 3.8 per cent
On the Tube:
All Oyster single fares are frozen across London and the daily Oyster cap remains 50p below the One Day Travelcard price
The cash single fare for all journeys via Zone 1 will be £4 - this means passengers using Oyster pay-as-you-go for journeys into Zone 1 could save up to £2.50 per trip
Travelcards will rise by RPI + two per cent on average. There is no change to the cash fare for non Zone 1 journeys
Cash use on the Tube has halved from just under 15 per cent in 2005 to around six per cent
The overall package for the Tube is RPI + one per cent
Family friendly:
Under-16s able to travel on the Tube and DLR using Oyster pay-as-you-go for just 50p per ride with a maximum cost of just £1 using Oyster
Under-11s continue to travel free on the Tube and DLR
Sixteen and 17-year-olds in full-time education continue to travel free on the buses
There was also further good news on the progress of Oyster. In addition to the roll out of Oyster on the North London Railway once TfL take over in November 2007, the train operating companies now plan to introduce zonal fares from January 2007.
This will result in a single, transparent set of fares that will apply on all National Rail services in London. As well as simplifying fares for passengers, this paves the way for introducing Oyster pay-as you-go on rail London-wide.
Since the last fares announcement in September 2005, TfL's investment programme has delivered a number of major improvements including better bus services, the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) City Airport extension, 17 per cent extra capacity on the Jubilee line, a re-built Wembley Park station, new ticket halls at King's Cross station and the start of work on the East London line extension.
