The government has agreed a £1.6 billion funding and financing package for Transport for London to protect key services, helping people to stay safe during the pandemic and supporting the capital’s gradual recovery from COVID-19.

TfL operates services for around a billion passengers a year, serving a city of 10 million. More bus journeys were completed in London last year than across the rest of England put together, but the coronavirus pandemic has had an unprecedented impact on the tube and bus network.

In order to safeguard services on the network, the government has agreed a package consisting of a mixture of grants and loans based upon a series of conditions agreed by the mayor, Sadiq Khan. This agreement includes increasing service levels as soon as possible to ensure people can follow social distancing guidelines while on the network, making sure those who have no alternative to public transport can travel safely.

A London COVID-19 task force, comprising representatives of the government and TfL, has been established to oversee operational decisions during the crisis. The collective focus will be on taking all practicable steps to increase the number of services as quickly as possible to benefit passengers who have no alternative to public transport.

In order to safeguard services in the future, the package will see the reintroduction of fares on buses and reinstatement of the congestion charge. It will also focus on promoting traffic management and active travel to maximise the benefits of the government’s record £2 billion investment in cycling and walking. This will include efforts to push forward new segregated cycles lines, pavement extension and road closures to traffic, making it easier for people to chooser greener ways to travel.