Transport for London (TfL) has said it is looking to restore Night Tube services on some lines after its boss said the service could be out of action for a further year.
The transport authority acknowledged that the full service will not return ‘in the immediate future’.
This week London Transport Commissioner Andy Byford told the London Evening Standard that the Friday and Saturday all night services on the Victoria, Jubilee, Central, Northern and Piccadilly lines will be the last to return to normal after the pandemic.
He said: ‘We need the personnel to keep the day services going and frankly there isn’t the demand for it, so there are no immediate plans to restore the Night Tube within a year, and certainly not before 2022.’
In a subsequent statement, London Underground managing director Andy Lord said: ‘We are playing, and will continue to play, our full role in London’s recovery from the pandemic.
‘We are running as close to a full service as possible across all our services and the Tube continues to serve central London with last trains leaving around 01:00 and starting again at 05:30. Our extensive night bus network continues to operate.
‘We are continuing to review our options for when we might be able to reintroduce the full Friday and Saturday Night Tube in a safe and viable way and are exploring the feasibility of reintroducing some services on one or two lines more quickly.
‘The full introduction of Night Tube services is not possible in the immediate future due to a number of factors including the continuing need to use Night Tube drivers during the day to run as much service as possible when demand is at its highest. We are also planning to restart a weekday service on the Waterloo & City line from June.’
Register now for full access
Register just once to get unrestricted, real-time coverage of the issues and challenges facing UK transport and highways engineers.
Full website content includes the latest news, exclusive commentary from leading industry figures and detailed topical analysis of the highways, transportation, environment and place-shaping sectors.
Use the link below to register your details for full, free access.
Already a registered? Login
