Ken plans cheap Tube for under-18s

Ken Livingstone has unveiled a half-price travel scheme for under-18s in London.

At present only those under 16 pay reduced child fares and the Mayor is planning to spend extra cash to fund cheaper fares for under-18s, using money from his controversial congestion charging plan.

The scheme, which would cost about £35 million a year, would give under-18s half-price travel on both buses and Tubes.

Yesterday on BBC TV's Breakfast with Frost, Mr Livingstone said: "At the moment when you get to 16, you start paying adult fares.

"Most under-18s are in college now and that is a burden. At the same time you are trying to discourage parents driving their kids to school. You want to encourage them to use public transport. So that is at the top of the list."

He appears to have softened the plans he outlined to the Newham Asian Women's Project a fortnight ago. Then he said: "One of the things we are looking at is whether we can give the under-18s free travel in London."

He said it might cost between £60 million and £70 million, adding: "It may be we will have to do it in stages." Talking to a group of parents in Dagenham that same day, he said free travel could be the "carrot" which would soften the impact of congestion charging.

It is the clearest sign yet that campaigning for the next mayoral election is under way, with some of the £130 million potential proceeds from the congestion charge now at the centre of the battle. The congestion charge has also become a defining issue between the Mayor and Tony Banks, who last week announced he will seek the Labour nomination to challenge Mr Livingstone.

Yesterday Mr Banks stepped up his attack. "It is not a congestion charge. It is road taxing," he said. "It is saying if you can afford to come into London, you can carry on congesting the city but if you can't, tough.

"I think we are treating the symptom and not the causes and doing it in a way that penalises the poorer driver rather than the richer driver. I do not believe the congestion charge is the way of dealing with the problems of congestion."

He said Mr Livingstone's time in office has so far been a failure. "I am disappointed that we haven't made the progress in London that Londoners who voted for him want to see."

But Mr Livingstone hit back, saying Mr Banks had previously been silent on the issue of congestion charging, which should begin next February. "Of all the thousands of letters I had about congestion charging before I decided to go ahead, he was not one of those who made representations. I am surprised he has come out against it now."

Mr Livingstone's road pricing plans did, however, receive some backing. Transport Secretary Alistair Darling said the scheme "deserves a lot of credit".