TfL goes ahead with closure of Olympia Tube weekday service

Kensington Olympia Tube station will be closed on weekdays from December.

Transport for London's decision to end the District line service from Earl's Court comes despite strong resistance from event organisers who said the move would "seriously undermine" the exhibitions and events industry in west London.

The Association of Event Organisers accused Mayor Boris Johnson of favouring east London to bolster the Capital's post-Olympic legacy.

More than 800,000 people a year use the District line to get to Olympia - 73 per cent of its visitors.

Event organisers fear that closing the Tube station would discourage people from visiting exhibitions. Karim Halwagi, chief executive of the AEO, said: "We are very angry and don't feel that Boris Johnson has given the issue the proper consideration it merits. Many of my members are asking me if this is part of a wider plan to favour a post-Olympic legacy in the east."

TfL said the closure will allow an extra 4,000 passengers to travel every morning on the Wimbledon branch and 800 more on Ealing Broadway services during the evening peak.