While the Spending Review last week giveth with one hand, it taketh away with the other. With no funding for DLR and Bakerloo Line Extensions or the West London Orbital (remember when London’s top priority was Crossrail2 now of course Elizabeth line), that’s up to 150,000 fewer homes all three could have unlocked collectively. Surely any vague prospect of London getting close to the 88,000 new homes annually target died yesterday.

With at least a 4 year capital settlement  for TfL worth £2.2 billion between 2026-2030 will we now get the Bakerloo line carriages replaced? They were introduced in 1972 and now the oldest trains in daily passenger service anywhere in the UK. I went to school on them after “fares fair” initiative by the old GLC. 

There’s less certainty for other lines, though, with TfL saying only that the settlement will allow it to “progress discussions on new Bakerloo line trains”, though its separate announcement to investors does say the settlement will support “rolling stock upgrades” on the Bakerloo and Central lines.

But let’s be honest, this isn’t money for big, new shiny tube lines. It will hopefully finally replace 50-year-old worn out trains and antiquated signalling and prevent critical flyovers from collapsing in West Central. Also if the message is that London won’t be getting much capital monies for transport infrastructure then we need to pursue more devolution for the Mayor of London, to get on with these matters with new powers to raise finance. After all, the successful East Asia cities Mayor’s with world class transport infrastructure, certainly don’t have to go to their Central government for such works,  hand in cap!  Capturing the land value enhancement after transport infrastructure is built is the key to the matter. 

In the meantime, we need TfL to get on with getting rid of the grafitti. No other tube line has it internally, to the same extent!  It makes for an unpleasant tube trips particularly with in the heatwave……