Mayor of London to freeze TfL fares in 2024

Credit: Transport for London

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has announced new action to freeze Transport for London (TfL) fares in 2024, to support Londoners who are struggling with the cost of living and London’s recovery from the pandemic.

The Mayor is proposing £123 million of additional funding to TfL – identified as part of the GLA budget setting process – to freeze fares for a whole year at a crucial time when Londoners are being hit by inflated food costs and soaring energy bills.    

New analysis shows that TfL fares set by the Mayor in 2024 will be 14% lower than if they had risen in line with National Rail fares, and 21% lower than if they’d risen in line with RPI since 2016.   

If TfL fares had increased in line with national rail fares, they would have increased by 4.9% in 2024 alone, but the Mayor’s decision to freeze TfL fares will put an estimated £123 million back into the pockets of Londoners.

The Mayor previously froze TfL fares from 2016 until 2021, before the restrictions imposed on TfL by the UK Government’s funding conditions during the pandemic. As London emerges from the pandemic, the Mayor is freezing TfL fares once again, to get even more people onto public transport and to offer a boost to London’s cultural, hospitality and leisure sectors. It will also make it more affordable for workers to commute back into the office more regularly. 

Record numbers of people are now using Pay-As-You-Go (PAYG) as an alternative to travelcards, with 80% of London Underground (Tube) journeys and 74% of bus journeys now made using PAYG. This means that the vast majority of Londoners will benefit from the Mayor’s decision to freeze fares again.   

Single and return paper fares on TfL services will also be frozen in 2024, to ensure that those who prefer to travel without using PAYG and use single/ return tickets are not excluded from the fares freeze.    

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “The cost-of-living crisis continues to hit Londoners hard. That’s why I’ve decided to step in again to freeze TfL fares. Not only will this put money back in people’s pockets, making transport more affordable for millions of Londoners, but will encourage people back onto our public transport network. This will help to boost London’s culture, retail and hospitality sectors.

“While people across the country face another hike in their rail fares, I simply wasn’t prepared to stand by and see TfL customers face a similar hike.  

“This is the fifth fares freeze I’ve done since becoming Mayor, making transport in our city 21% cheaper than it would have been had fares risen by inflation. This shows that whenever I can freeze fares, I do so.    

“As we continue building a fairer, greener and more prosperous London for everyone, making public transport more affordable and appealing will continue to be a key part of my plan,” he concluded.   

Shashi Verma, Chief Technology Officer at Transport for London, said: “Millions of people travel using bus, Tube and rail services across London and delivering the Mayor’s fares freeze will help encourage more people across London out of their cars and onto public transport. It will also support overall economic growth and improved social wellbeing across the city. Our latest figures show that pay as you go ticketing is now more popular than ever and we continue to work across London to help make travel more convenient for all.”