All-night weekend Tube to launch next September

TfL said it expected the move to “play a vital role in opening up London's night-time economy to a host of new opportunities” and said it would boost the economy to the tune of £360m.

Late-night Tube travel has increased at double the rate of daytime trips and night bus usage has risen by 270% since 2000. The new service will see six trains per hour through central London on all-night Tube lines, including the Jubilee, Victoria and most of the Piccadilly, Central and Northern lines. On the Northern line, there will be eight trains per hour to meet demand at busy stations between Leicester Square and Camden Town.

Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said the move would bring London in line with other major international cities such as New York and Berlin.

He said: “London is a bustling, 24-hour global city and by this time next year we'll have a 24-hour Tube service to match. As well as creating vital new jobs and giving a huge boost to our economy, the night Tube will help millions of people to get around our city more easily and quickly. The evolution of the night Tube will without doubt make London an even better place to live, work, visit and invest.”

Mike Brow, the managing director of London Underground, said: “Already over half a million Londoners use the Tube after 10pm on Fridays and Saturdays, and the introduction of the night Tube, which will cut journey times and open up new possibilities across the night time economy, is a historic step in our modernisation of the underground.”

The first services will be in time for the Rugby World Cup, which starts at Twickenham on 18 September.