Bus passengers will bear the brunt of the fares rise announced by Mayor Sadiq Khan.
A single bus fare will increase by 10p to £1.65 – an increase of almost 6.5 per cent.
By the time season tickets and Travelcards are taken into account, Transport for London expects its bus revenue to increase on last year by 5.9 per cent – compared with an average rise of 4.4 per cent on the Tube.
Overall, the fares rises are expected to generate an additional £151m for TfL by the end of December 2022.
When will the fares increase?
The new fares will come into effect on Tuesday March 1 – just over a fortnight away. The average increase will be 4.8 per cent – the biggest annual rise in a decade.
Fares normally rise annually on the first working day of the New Year. Because of the pandemic, this is the second successive year that the rise has been delayed until March, primarily to tie in with the increase in national rail fares, itself delayed until next month.
Why are bus fares increasing so much?
Mr Khan has chosen to increase fares by 10p rather than repeat last year’s rise of 5p. Prior to last year, the cost of a single bus fare had not risen since 2014.
Because cash is no longer accepted on buses, the Mayor could theoretically have chosen to increase fares by 7p or 8p but it has always been tradition to use round numbers where possible.
But Mr Khan, as promised, has retained the Hopper ticket - which allows passengers to make multiple bus journeys within 60 minutes without having to pay again.
The fares have to rise by at least 3.8 per cent, under Government instructions that TfL mirrors the rise in national rail fares, also due to be implemented next month.
Mr Khan chose an overall 4.8 per cent hike to generate an extra £151m for TfL by the end of 2022, to ease the financial crisis it has suffered as a consequence of the pandemic, which sent its fares income plummeting.
How much more will it cost on the Tube?
It depends on how many zones you travel across. A single journey in zone 1 using an Oyster card or Contactless card or phone will cost an extra 10p, taking it to £2.50.
For many Londoners, the key figure will be the daily “cap” – the maximum amount paid for a number of journeys, for example to and from work and trips at lunchtime or after work. The cap increases by an average of 3.8 per cent.
The zones 1-2 daily cap increases by 30p a day to £7.70. The zones 1-3 cap rises by the same amount to £9. Zones 1-4 jumps 40p to £11. Zones 1-6 goes up 60p to £14.10.
How many people will be affected?
Many more Londoners will be affected by the bus fares rise than the Tube rise. Buses are regarded as the “workhorse” of the capital’s public transport network and have always carried more passengers than the Tube.
Pre-pandemic, there would be more than six million weekday bus journeys a day, compared with about four million on the Underground.
Last week TfL said that on February 3 there were 4.6m bus journeys, 74 per cent of pre-pandemic levels, compared with 2.43m Tube journeys, 59 per cent of normal.
Why is this politically difficult for Sadiq Khan?
As the son of a bus driver – a fact he never tires of repeating – Mr Khan is well aware that poorer Londoners depend on the bus.
Many low-paid workers either cannot afford the higher prices of the Tube or live in areas not served by the Underground – or both.
Mr Khan’s late father used to drive the 44 bus and his natural support comes from traditional Labour voters.
But the bus network is heavily subsidised – while the Tube makes a “profit” – and Mr Khan knows that he needs to increase revenue from bus fares, both for the wider benefit of TfL and also to protect bus routes themselves.
Since November, 25 routes have been unable to be re-tendered due to TfL’s financial crisis, meaning that new vehicles – like the electric 63 bus unveiled last week – cannot be introduced and there is a risk that entire routes could disappear.
Under the “managed decline” scenario, Mr Khan has said that 100 of the 700 bus routes may have to be axed and another 100 see frequencies reduced. Last week one of Mr Khan’s allies, Hackney mayor Phil Glanville, went public with a bid to save the 21 bus.
Are there any other increases?
Yes, the Emirates cable car will increase from £4 to £5 for a single trip across the Thames (for Oyster or Contactless payments) and from £5 to £6 for cash.
Fares on the Emirates cable car are being increased, despite it being a way to reach the new City Hall
Ross Lydall
The cable car is largely a tourist attraction but is one way to reach the new City Hall at the Royal Docks, which is otherwise poorly connected, at least until the Crossrail station at Custom House opens.
TfL has not announced whether the cost of hiring a Boris bike, or the annual £90 membership, will increase.
