Boris puts bus fares up by 20pc and Congestion Charge up 25pc

By Mike Brooke

BUS fares in London are going up by as much as 20 per cent, Boris Johnson announced today.

Oyster pay-as-you-go travel shoots up in the New Year from �1 to �1.20, while bus fares overall are up by almost 13 per cent.

Congestion tolls for motorists are up 25 per cent from �8 to �10 a day.

Underground Zone 1 fares are up by 20p, while the overall increase on the Tube is almost four per cent.

He blamed “huge financial pressures” caused by the collapse of Metronet as well as the recession and the previous Labour administration under Ken Livingstone.

“Nobody wants to make an announcement like this, especially feeling the effects of the recession,” Boris said in a statement.

“It is not a decision I have taken lightly. But the mistakes of the past and the current economic climate have conspired to present us with a huge challenge. That’s why I’m asking Londoners to accept this difficult decision.”

His shock announcement pinpoints comparable fare increases in 2005, under his Labour predecessor, when bus fares shot up by 12.7 per cent and Tube fares by four per cent, and then again in 2006 by almost 13 per cent on the buses and four per cent on the Underground.

But the Tory mayor pledged to safeguard fares for the elderly, youngsters and those on low incomes, who will continue getting free or concessionary travel, with the Freedom pass’ remaining valid 24 hours a day. Most Travelcard prices are also frozen.

HERE’S WHAT YOU WILL PAY:

- Oyster pay-as-you-go bus fare from �1 to �1.20

- Seven-day bus pass from �13.80 to �16.60

- Underground Zone 1 Oyster pay-as-you-go from �1.60 to �1.80

- Most other Oyster Tube fares up by 20p.

Motorists are hit by a whopping 25 per cent rise in the central London Congestion charge, from �8 to �10, but penalty charges could be scrapped through payment on account’ being introduced in the New Year.