Have you ever used a day travelcard to get around London?
The Day Travelcard has been saved!
Update 24 October 2023:
I am delighted that following our campaign, the Mayor of London has reversed his decision to abolish the Day Travelcard. I have no doubt that the volume of responses which were sent to the Mayor made a difference in him changing his mind. Hundreds of people shared their thoughts with me from right across Tonbridge, Edenbridge and Malling.
The Day Travelcard will now remain this place and an agreement has been reached between Transport for London (TfL) and train operators. This decision would have hit the poorest in our community the hardest and put off so many people from visiting London
We are still waiting to see the cost of the future travelcard, with TfL indicating that there may be a small increase in price. I will continue to closely follow this to make sure travel remains affordable for us to get to London. However, I’m sure that you will be as pleased as I am to see that we have managed to retain the ticket in some form.
Sadiq Khan, Labour Mayor of London may try this again in the future. Please leave your details with my by filling out the form on this page so I can keep updated if he tries this again.
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July 2023
On Friday 21 July, Labour’s Deputy Mayor for Transport in London notified the Government that the Mayor of London, will be pressing ahead with the withdrawal of the Day Travelcard.
In a move that will impact us all, turn people away from travelling to London and beyond, and hit the poorest families hardest. London’s Labour Mayor, Sadiq Khan is making it harder and more expensive for us to visit the capital.
In a statement which you can read here, the Mayor has now given six months notice of the withdrawal of the Day Travelcard.
The Travelcard allows a holder the opportunity of unlimited travel around the capital on public transport. Throughout many years it has proven to be a vital ticket for so many across Tonbridge and Malling. It allows us to buy our train and tube travel together. None of our stations are located in the Oyster Card area so we will be forced to buy train and tube tickets separately.
Of course we are limited in where we can travel to in London. Trains from Tonbridge and Hildenborough only serve Charing Cross, Cannon Street, Waterloo East, and London Bridge. There are no longer any direct services to Victoria via Redhill. Passengers on the Uckfield line from Edenbridge Town, Hever, and Cowden can only get to London Bridge. Passengers from East Malling, West Malling, and Borough Green can only get to Victoria, other than the new London Bridge and Charing Cross services, but they only run a specific times of the day.
Consequently many of us rely on the tube to get to where we want to go in the capital. There is a huge distance between London Bridge and Victoria, for example, and the reliability of the tube helps attract many of us to visit, and work in London.
Like many public transport operators, Covid-19 has hit the industry hard. That’s why I’m pleased the Government has agreed a new funding settlement with Transport for London. This totals £3.6bn. This funding is on top of the over £5bn the Government has provided TfL since the beginning of the pandemic.
Following the damaging decision to widen the Ultra-Low Emission Zone (ULEZ), this is just another step taken by Sadiq Kahn that sends out the message that if you don’t live in London then you aren’t welcome in London.
However, all is not lost just yet. The Mayor has made it clear that while he has triggered the six-month notice, he is open to reversing this. To send a message to Labour’s Mayor of London fill out the short form on this page. I will be sharing with him strength of feeling across Tonbridge, Edenbridge, and Malling as to how damaging this will be for anyone visiting London.
Please add your name to help keep day Travelcards available from Tonbridge, Edenbridge, and Malling.