Urgently replace Bakerloo line trains to prevent travel delays

In 2025-26, the Bakerloo line had the worst performance figures of any Tube line, with the line relying on trains that have been in service since 1972 – nearly 20 years beyond their original design life.

The London Assembly has today agreed a motion, calling on the Mayor to confirm the timeline and any deadlines to add the Bakerloo line rolling stock to the existing Siemens contract.

It is also pressing the Government for the funding to secure the new trains to restore the frequency and reliability passengers used to enjoy.

Neil Garratt AM, who proposed the motion, said:

"The Bakerloo Line is crumbling, and this puts Londoners at risk of greater and greater delays to their journeys.

“We are very lucky that infrastructural decline has not yet carried more serious consequences, but I fear that if the Bakerloo line is allowed to degrade further then risks shall increase.

“I urge TfL and the Mayor to act."

The full text of the motion is:

This Assembly expresses deep concern at the declining frequency and reliability of services on the Bakerloo line, where passengers continue to suffer delays, cancellations and overcrowding while relying on trains that have been in service since 1972. The Assembly further notes that for 2025-26 the Bakerloo line had the worst performance figures of any Tube line. The key measure is the percentage of scheduled kilometres that actually ran and while this was around 97% in 2016-17, 2017-18, and 2018-19, it has fallen to around 88% for 2026-27 so far. This means that around 12% of the timetabled services did not run.

This Assembly further notes that even these falling performance figures are flattered by successive timetable changes which have reduced the scheduled number of trains per hour and the scheduled number of kilometres. Back in the 1980s, the Elephant and Castle to Queen's Park section promised passengers 20 trains per hour (TPH) during the weekday AM and PM peaks, and by 2013 this had risen to 22 in the morning and 21 in the evening. But this was officially cut back to 20 TPH in September 2023 and, without any announcement, cut again in spring 2026 to 18 TPH.

This Assembly therefore notes that measured against the level of service expected in the 2016 timetable, passengers today see just 75% of services operating, meaning that about 1 train in 4 does not run compared with what was promised. For a typical weekday, someone travelling in the morning and evening peak can expect 3 to 5 missing trains every hour compared with the 20 TPH timetable, creating gaps in service, overcrowded trains, and frustrating delays.

This Assembly also notes that the spring 2026 reduction in scheduled services on the Bakerloo line was not announced, leaving many passengers unaware that TfL is no longer even attempting to run the 20 trains per hour peak service that the last published timetable (working timetable 48), promises.

This Assembly finally notes previous statements from the Mayor that the deadline for TfL to add new Bakerloo line trains to the Deep Tube rolling stock contract with Siemens without an extended break in production is 1st November 2026.

This Assembly therefore believes the continued delay in replacing what is the UK’s oldest passenger train fleet, now nearly 20 years beyond its original design life, risks significant further deterioration in a service that carries 87 million passengers every year and urgent steps are needed to ensure replacement rolling stock is ordered.

This Assembly therefore calls on:

• The Mayor to confirm the timeline and any deadlines to add the Bakerloo line rolling stock to the Siemens contract, whether the option to add Bakerloo line has been exercised, and in any event to press the Government as a matter of urgency for the funding to secure the new trains the Bakerloo line needs to restore the frequency and reliability passengers used to enjoy,
• Transport for London to present the performance data for the Bakerloo line in a transparent way that clearly shows the degradation in performance against the longstanding 2016 timetable, not just against the current reduced timetable; and
• Transport for London to make a public statement regarding how long the spring 2026 reduced Bakerloo line timetable is expected to continue, with additional public announcements should further reduced timetables be in place for more than 4 weeks.

The meeting can also be viewed LIVE or later via webcast or YouTube.

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