Tube passengers faced 6.5m hours of tube delays in 2010-11

A new report by the London Assembly’s transport committee analyses a recent 20 per cent increase in tube delays.

‘The State of the Underground’ report cites equipment failure as the main reason for the 6.5m hours delay on the four worst performing lines – the Jubilee, Victoria, District and Metropolitan.

The Committee calls on the Mayor and Transport for London (TfL) to address the poor levels of performance. It also recommends a review of industrial relations following the series of disruptive strikes over the last year.

The report found that in the last eight years passenger journeys increased by 17 per cent whilst service levels rose by just two per cent.

Graph depicting consumer hours spent on the tube

Caroline Pidgeon, chair of transport committee said that delays on the Underground might have fallen since 2003 but TfL must ensure that last year’s performance is not a disturbing sign for the future.

“There is no room for complacency when it comes to delivering value for money on Tube maintenance and upgrades. London is a world class city and it has a right to expect a standard of efficiency from TfL that compares favourably to other metro systems across the globe,” she said.

The report sets out the Committee’s target that for 2011/12 every London Underground line should at least match its best performance from the last eight years.

Passengers can look online to see how their line is performing and compare it to the performance of the rest of the network.

Recommendations of the report include:

In light of the impact of strikes on London Underground’s service in 2010/11 and the risks to the 2012 Games, it has been the recommended the Mayor review his and TfL’s approach to industrial relations over the next 12 months and beyond.
By December 2011, the Mayor and TfL should provide a written report to the Committee on the steps that have been taken to reduce delays and ensure that performance returns to record levels both across the Tube network and on each individual line. The report should include the actions taken to address the main asset-related causes of increased delays in 2010/11, namely:
By December 2011 the Mayor and TfL should report to the Committee on the steps that will be taken to manage crowding on the Tube between now and 2018.
By December 2011, TfL should publish a detailed breakdown of its plans to find savings on the Tube upgrade and maintenance programme. We expect this to demonstrate that its costs for the upgrades and ongoing maintenance are in line with the most efficient international metro systems.
By December 2011, TfL should provide a report to the Committee on the changes it has made to its organisational structure, processes and staffing to ensure successful delivery of the day-to-day Tube service and the entire Tube upgrade and maintenance programme.