Overcrowding At Tube Stations Rises By 48% In One Year

12 August 2019, 16:05 | Updated: 12 August 2019, 17:07

City Hall reveals astonishing figures that show passengers were stopped from accessing platforms due to overcrowding 559 times in 2018-19.

The new overcrowding figure is up 48% from 378 times the previous year.

Highbury and Islington was the worst affected station, with 104 incidents last year, compared with 39 in 2017/18.

The station struggles to cope with the number of Tube passengers interchanging with London Overground services and suffers overcrowding during Arsenal home games.

Finsbury Park was second worst with 49 incidents. Expansion work, due to be completed by the end of the year, has resulted in the closure of a busy exit route.

Oxford Circus was third worst with 32, though this has fallen dramatically from the 120 two years ago.

London Assembly Tory member Keith Prince, who obtained the figures, said: “Make no mistake, these unacceptable delays are the price that Londoners are having to pay for Sadiq Khan’s catastrophic mismanagement of TfL’s finances."

Mr Prince attributed the banning of some food adverts on the Tube, "handing out free travel passes to the friends of TfL workers, failing to deliver Crossrail on time or his disingenuous partial fares freeze," he said the Mayor has consistently starved the transport budget of revenue while splurging cash on frivolous waste.

“This means that the Mayor simply hasn’t had the money for the infrastructure upgrades required to combat congestion and delays, and Londoners are now suffering as a result," he told LBC.

The Mayor's spokesperson said: “Sadiq is freezing all TfL fares for 4 years and has introduced the Hopper bus fare, despite huge Government cuts to TfL."

Capacity upgrades of Camden Town and Holborn stations have been delayed indefinitely, but Victoria has been expanded and Bank is midway through a major upgrade.

There were 25 at Stockwell, 23 at Euston, 21 at Canary Wharf and 18 at Green Park.

Incidents are recorded by TfL if they result in a delay of two minutes or more.