Pub trade welcomes tube proposals

Proposals to extend the tube so that it runs for an hour later on Friday and Saturday evenings have been welcomed by the pub industry.

Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, announced last week that he is considering extending the operating hours of the tube to allow it to open until 1.30am at the weekend, but this would mean it would not start running again the following morning until an hour later than usual.

The news has been welcomed by the Westminster's Licensees Association (WLA), which said it was a step in the right direction towards providing central London with the 21st century transport system it so desperately needs.

Kate Nicholls, WLA spokeswoman said: "The West End is the entertainment capital of the UK and one of the pre-eminent entertainment districts in the world, but our ability to offer a high quality experience to visitors has been sadly let down by a transport infrastructure that falls woefully short of meeting customer needs and expectations.

"We believe that this is a crucial first step to providing London with the type of service it needs and will help to disperse visitors enjoying London's social and cultural life more quickly and easily."

However, the proposals will not go far enough to please customers. A survey carried out by the WLA last year found that just less than three quarters of those asked felt the tube should run to 3am on Friday and Saturday evenings.

Alex Salussolia, managing director of Glendola Leisure, which has a number of late night venues in London, said: "It's a start and hopefully we'll see the operators gain extra revenue which will encourage them to open even later in the future."

The proposals are now subject to public consultation and, if they do go ahead, they are unlikely to be in place until 2006.