Hackney Labour Party

Working hard for you

Fare Deal

Hackney Council has passed a motion condemning the above inflation increases in bus, tube and train fares that hit London passengers at the beginning of the year.



This was the 4th successive year of fare increases under Boris Johnson, the Conservative Mayor of London. This now means:

    •    a weekly Zone 1-2 travelcard has increased by £1.60 this year meaning commuters are now over £83 a year worse off as a result
    •    A single bus fare on Oyster is now up 50% under Boris Johnson – from 90p in 2008 to £1.35 in 2012
    •    The cost of an Oyster pay as you go overground or tube journey from Hackney into Central London has increased from £2.50 in 2011 to £2.70 in 2012 - an 8 % increase

Hackney has comparatively low car ownership, and rises in public transport fares affect Hackney residents disproportionately.

Cllr Tom Ebbutt from De Beauvoir ward, who introduced the motion said:
 "This motion says loud and clear - we – as a Council – say to Boris Johnson his fare hikes are unfair, unnecessary and just plain wrong. Bikes for the suited city gent, drivers in the richest parts of London continuing to cruise the roads without touching their wallets, whilst the poorest commuters in the capital have seen the cost of their travel go up by 50%. This can't go on."

Labour campaigners across Hackney have been out highlighting Ken Livingstone, the Labour candidate for Mayor's Fare Deal plan:

    •    In the first year - cutting  fares across the board by 7%
    •    In the second year - freezing fares completely
    •    After that - no above-inflation rises

This plan uses TfL’s operating surplus to help people in this borough by putting money back in their pockets, and thereby also help provide a desperately needed boost to London’s economy.