Transport
for
London


says
the
number
of
passengers
travelling
on
the
Underground
was
4.05
million
on
23
November,
which
is
the
largest
daily
total
recorded
since
the
start
of
Covid
restrictions
in
March
2020.

The
Elizabeth
Line,
which
is
counted
separately,
carried
more
than
766,000
passengers
on
9
November,
setting
a
new
record
for
the
route.
More
than
720,000
daily
journeys
are
made
on
Tuesdays,
Wednesdays
and
Thursdays
each
week,
following
the
trend
since
Covid
for
commuting
to
be
more
concentrated
over
three
days.

TfL
added
that
midweek
ridership
on
the
Underground
is
now
regularly
above
3.7
million
daily,
and
up
by
around
6.5
per
cent
compared
to
last
year.
In
spite
of
the
change
in
commuting
habits,
ridership
on
Mondays
and
Fridays
is
also
regularly
above
3
million
journeys
a
day,
topping
3.6
million
on
recent
Fridays
because
of
additional
leisure
travellers.

Several
Underground
stations
in
central
London
are
already
close
to
or
exceeding
the
passenger
volumes
levels
seen
before
the
pandemic.
Ridership
on
the
Night
Tube
and
Night
Overground
services
is
also
up,
with
around
60,000
journeys
on
a
Friday
night
between
00.30
and
04.30,
and
close
to
70,000
journeys
on
a
Saturday
night
between
00.30
and
04.30.
London
Overground
and
the
Docklands
Light
Railway
are
also
increasingly
popular.

The
increases
have
strengthened
TfL’s
case
for
a
long
term
budget
settlement
with
the
Government.
One
proposed
economy
was
the
scrapping
of
Day
Travelcards,
but
this
was
abandoned
when
TfL
reached
a
new
agreement
with
the
Rail
Delivery
Group’s
London
area
National
Rail
operators
and
also
the
Department
for
Transport.

However,
TfL
said
there
was
no
commitment
in
the
Autumn
Statement
to
provide
longer-term
support,
and
that
the
situation
is
‘now
urgent’
if
TfL
is
going
to
be
able
to
continue
to
provide
reliable
services
that
can
support
the
most
recent
growth.

The
Mayor
of
London
Sadiq
Khan
said:
‘It’s
fantastic
to
see
London
truly
roaring
back
post-pandemic
–
this
impressive
boost
in
ridership
will
support
London’s
and
indeed
the
whole
UK’s
wider
economy
recovery.
There’s
no
doubt
that
as
Christmas
approaches
the
appeal
of
London’s
world-leading
shops,
restaurants
and
other
venues
is
as
strong
as
ever.

‘This
data
shows
that
people
are
returning
to
their
pre-pandemic
travel
patterns.
We
can’t
rest
on
our
laurels.
In
order
to
further
support
this
boom
and
deliver
the
world
class
transport
system
London
deserves
we
need
sustained
capital
investment
over
multiple
years
with
support
from
central
Government.
This
will
help
us
support
jobs
and
economic
growth
in
London
and
across
the
country,
and
build
a
better,
more
prosperous
London
for
all.’