Transport for London (TfL)

Virtually everyone who visits, lives or works in London will use one of our services and every one of those journeys matters to us.

We are here to keep London working and growing, and to make life in the Capital better. But a rapidly growing population means achieving this goal is more challenging than ever.

Currently, 8.4 million people live in the Capital. This is expected to become 10 million in the 2030s. We must carry on supporting this growth if London's success is to continue.

We also have to balance delivering our services with one of the biggest savings and efficiency programmes in the public sector. Our success depends on Government support through grants and borrowing, our fare payers, developing our commercial income and achieving our efficiency targets.

How we work

Our Commissioner reports to our Board and leads a management team which is accountable for the daily running of the organisation and the work of more than 25,000 employees.

We gained most of our functions from our predecessor London Regional Transport, but only took over responsibility for the Underground in 2003.

How we are organised

There are three units, each with responsibility for different aspects of the organisation:

• Surface Transport
• Underground
• Crossrail

Surface Transport covers the following areas:

• Buses
• Overground
• Docklands Light Railway
• Roads
• Cycling
• River services
• Tram
• Emirates Air Line
• Victoria Coach Station
• Dial-a-Ride
• Taxi & private hire
• Walking

Underground covers the following areas:

• Underground
• TfL Rail

Crossrail

This is a joint venture between Transport for London and the Department for Transport to build a new railway linking Maidenhead and Heathrow in the west, to Shenfield and Abbey Wood in the east.

Construction is well under way, with the central section expected to be complete by the end of 2018, when the service will be launched as the Elizabeth line.

• 09/03 New ‘green woman’ traffic lights celebrate International Women’s Day
• 05/03 TfL and Siemens Mobility unveil design of new Piccadilly line trains
• 05/01 First passenger trains complete journey on new Northern Line Extension
• 13/06 TfL reminds Londoners of need for face coverings from 15th June
• 16/09 Five new safety innovations to be trialled on London buses
• 05/09 World-leading software to keep London’s roads moving
• 16/05 Work progresses on automatic braking system for London Trams
• 22/11 New generation of DLR trains en route
• 16/10 Brand new Tube signalling successfully tested
• 25/09 Licensing decision on Uber London Limited
• 13/09 Pilot shows how WiFi data can improve Tube journeys
• 06/09 TfL commences consultation on cashless trams in Croydon
• 14/08 Transport for London awards new cleaning contract to ABM UK
• 19/07 TfL makes it easier to top up Oyster cards while on the go
• 06/07 One billion journeys made by contactless payment on London’s transport network
• 22/06 The future of cross-London travel arrives
• 14/06 TfL launches new social media ‘TravelBot’
• 18/05 Transport for London begins search for supplier to build new generation of DLR trains
• 13/03 Award winning training centre to teach tunnelling and construction skills
• 10/03 Mayor launches first Low Emission Bus Zone to tackle toxic air‎
• 27/01 Cubic and Transport for London recognized for innovation at London First Awards
• 23/01 TfL upgrades key planning tool to help address London’s future transport challenges
• 28/11 Proposed changes to bus routes to improve reliability and reduce congestion
• 21/10 TfL trials new digital bus stop display sign
• 23/08 Over 50,000 journeys completed on London's first Night Tube services
• 19/08 Innovative new fan chiller to help customers beat the heat
• 17/08 TfL adds Night Tube data to open-data resource
• 15/08 Extra police to help keep Night Tube passengers safe
• 10/08 Real-time traffic updates to be displayed on buses
• 05/08 River passengers to benefit from two TfL pier extensions
• 13/07 Licencing London’s contactless ticketing system
• 30/06 TfL publishes latest bus safety statistics