Fairness, functionality and the future – accessibility & inclusion in transport planning

It’s vital that all Londoners are able to make the journeys they need to.

Whether it is taking a child to school, caring for an elderly relative, going to work, socialising with friends or completing a weekly shop, using public transport is a vital part of daily life for many Londoners.

In 2023, an estimated 8.6 million public transport journeys took place in London every day on our world-leading transport network.¹ Yet, there are still some journeys which are too long, more difficult and less welcoming for some groups, as London’s transport network doesn’t fully consider the needs of the widest range of Londoners.

In its report released today, the London Assembly Transport Committee looked closely at how Transport for London (TfL) is building its understanding of how and why Londoner’s travel – its data-led approach.

Recommendations in the report ‘Accessibility & Inclusion in Transport Planning’ include:

• TfL should refresh its London Travel Demand Survey (LTDS) in order to collect more detailed data on the travel patterns and needs of different user groups.
• TfL should analyse and present the data it collects from the LTDS consistently each year in its Travel in London report. This includes publishing data disaggregated by different sociodemographic groups.
• The Mayor should require TfL to publish an equality assessment on its budget starting with the 2027/28 budget process. The Mayor should use his budget guidance to require TfL to pilot gender-responsive budgeting.
• TfL should establish new advisory panels to ensure it has diverse representation of different demographic groups across its advisory panels. 

Chair of the London Assembly Transport Committee, Elly Baker AM, said:

“Disabled Londoners, older Londoners, young Londoners, low-income Londoners, parents with young children and women; all these groups could currently face barriers to using London’s transport network.

“TfL collects a significant amount of data on its passengers, but this is lacking depth and nuance around issues concerning accessibility and inclusion and those people who are not using its services.

“Our investigation also examined TfL’s engagement with key stakeholders to understand their varied travel needs, and while the Committee welcomes TfL’s engagement with its advisory groups, we feel this is limited and TfL could do more to engage with more diverse voices.

“Inclusion is not only about fairness – it’s also about functionality and the future resilience of our city.”