"Londoners risk tax raid as Sadiq Khan faces Tube funding crisis
Analysts predict passenger numbers will permanently fall by a fifth as the pandemic changes travel habits forever
Londoners are expected to face a massive tax raid as Sadiq Khan scrambles to protect the city's transport network from a long-term plunge in commuting.
Demand for buses, underground and rail services will never return to pre-pandemic levels, according to a bleak report from credit agency Moody's - a trend that risks crippling the finances of tube operator Transport for London (TfL).
Analysts have predicted that passenger numbers will permanently fall by a fifth as the pandemic changes travel habits forever and legions of commuters embrace home working. A leading transport academic said that Mr Khan, who is mayor of London and TfL’s chairman, is most likely to impose new taxes to fill the hole.
Meanwhile London's transport commissioner Andy Byford said that relying on fare income to fund the capital's public transport is "not sustainable".
TfL will be hit far worse financially from the change than its peers in New York, Paris and Vancouver, Moody’s said. The London authority is forecast to lose more than 12pc of its operating revenue. This compares with revenue falls of less than 8pc across the other three cities, despite a similar drop in passenger numbers."
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business...ers-shun-tube/
The only solution is to introduce new tax to deter people from avoiding using the Tube
Analysts predict passenger numbers will permanently fall by a fifth as the pandemic changes travel habits forever
Londoners are expected to face a massive tax raid as Sadiq Khan scrambles to protect the city's transport network from a long-term plunge in commuting.
Demand for buses, underground and rail services will never return to pre-pandemic levels, according to a bleak report from credit agency Moody's - a trend that risks crippling the finances of tube operator Transport for London (TfL).
Analysts have predicted that passenger numbers will permanently fall by a fifth as the pandemic changes travel habits forever and legions of commuters embrace home working. A leading transport academic said that Mr Khan, who is mayor of London and TfL’s chairman, is most likely to impose new taxes to fill the hole.
Meanwhile London's transport commissioner Andy Byford said that relying on fare income to fund the capital's public transport is "not sustainable".
TfL will be hit far worse financially from the change than its peers in New York, Paris and Vancouver, Moody’s said. The London authority is forecast to lose more than 12pc of its operating revenue. This compares with revenue falls of less than 8pc across the other three cities, despite a similar drop in passenger numbers."
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business...ers-shun-tube/
The only solution is to introduce new tax to deter people from avoiding using the Tube
Comment