Transport for London, unwillingly, has been forced to admit it has no idea when the scheme – promised to have no cost to the taxpayer – would break even.
To help stem the losses, TfL has been mugging local councils for £2m each to fund the scheme’s expansion at the same time as they’re delivering spending cuts in line with Government plans to reduce the deficit.
In various guises, the taxpayer is carrying most of the £225m costs while Barclays derives almost all of the publicity benefits as it seeks to launder its reputation.
Meanwhile, City Hall have paid £27m in bank charges to Barclays over 3 years, mostly from TfL.
The discrepancy between the scheme’s actual costs and the multi-year drip-drip nature of Barclays’ contribution means that on any given day the bank is the recipient of taxpayer funded PR.
Even as scheme users face a doubling of fees, TfL continues to act against the public interest by refusing to confirm how much of the promised £50m the bank has actually paid.
It almost doesn’t matter anymore. In doubling the scheme’s fees, Boris has finally admitted just how cheap a deal the bank got.
