Tube delays drop by a third

Date: 14/9/2011

Improvements continue to be noticed on the Underground service, with delays found to have fallen by 35 per cent since 2003/04.

It was during this period that a programme of work designed to upgrade the tube system commenced, Transport for London (TfL) explains - adding that the network is now carrying a record number of passengers.

Last year, 1.1 billion people used the service and although a slight dip in performance was noted during the autumn and winter of 2010/11, action taken by London Underground to carry out incident recovery faster and boost reliability has rectified this.

In the last few months, numerous upgrades have been made to the network, including increasing the frequency of services on the Jubilee Line, rolling out new trains on the Victoria Line to boost capacity and adding air conditioned carriages to the Metropolitan Line.

Mike Brown, Managing Director of London Underground, called the project the "biggest upgrade" in the tube's 150-year history.

"This can't be achieved overnight and some disruption is inevitable as the work takes place. However, Londoners rightly expect reliable journeys and we are completely focused on making sure that we deliver that," he added.

In August, TfL announced that platforms have been lengthened, drainage installed and new track laid at High Street Kensington and Edgware Road Stations on the Circle and District Lines.

The work was carried out as part of an upgrade that finished several months ahead of schedule.

Posted by Mary Treen