Sadiq Khan, mayoral hopeful, says he’ll freeze transport fares in his first term

Sadiq Khan, mayoral hopeful, has announced that he would freeze fares in his first term in office.

The MP for Tooting has said that if was elected mayor next year this freeze would begin on his first day in office (the election result will be announced on 5th May 2016) and continue through to 2020. It would apply to tube and train fares – as well as the Mayor’s Cycle Hire scheme charges.

Khan says that this would be a binding, non-negotiable commitment. To pay for this, he explains that he would use existing Transport for London (TfL) funds, as the transport body hasn’t yet made efficiency savings that the rest of the public sector have signed up to over the past five years.

He also said that as Mayor he would reduce the cost of bus fares and aim to change the way ticketing for buses works, so that a single journey ticket is valid for a full hour – even if a passenger changes buses.

Khan explained that the reasoning behind this announcement:

“Londoners have been led up the garden path in recent years when it came to fares – They’ve been promised no rise only to find that their fares have gone up. I want to be crystal  clear – no ifs, no buts – what you’ll pay if I’m elected Mayor in May 2016 is what you’ll pay at the end of my 4 years in office.

For millions of workers in London, the cost of travel is a huge part of their annual salary. With spiralling housing costs, the Mayor has the ability to help ease the financial burden for commuters and I will deliver for them.”