Future for the loss-making cable car must be as an integrated part of the network

As the London Loves Business website obtained figures suggesting the cable car from the Royal Docks to North Greenwich is consistently costing more to run than it collects in fares, Caroline Pidgeon has argued it makes no economic sense as a stand-alone project and will only bring benefit as an integrated part of the transport system:

"Despite TfL spending a fortune on advertising and promoting the cable car, the passenger figures and the income generated by the cable car remain dismal.

"After being in existence for three years it is clear that it has no future operating as a tourist attraction. The cable car has largely been funded by taxpayers from across London. It is time that the Mayor and TfL finally admitted that the only way to attract regular passengers onto the cable car is to treat it as an integral form of public transport.

"Only a sensible fare structure for all Londoners will ensure that the cable car starts to attract a reasonable number of passengers. If you have a Travelcard you should not have to pay to use it, and the standard fare for Oyster Pay As You Go passengers should be the same as a single bus fare."

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