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| TfL spends £600,000 advertising night tube – despite it having no launch date | TfL spends £600,000 advertising night tube – despite it having no launch date |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| Transport for London has spent more than £600,000 advertising the night tube, despite the service still having no set launch date. | Transport for London has spent more than £600,000 advertising the night tube, despite the service still having no set launch date. |
| As of 13 January, the combined production and distribution cost of advertising the night tube was £608,214, of which £461,045 was spent on placing ads across different channels. | As of 13 January, the combined production and distribution cost of advertising the night tube was £608,214, of which £461,045 was spent on placing ads across different channels. |
| Between the launch of the campaign in June last year and 13 January, TfL spent: | Between the launch of the campaign in June last year and 13 January, TfL spent: |
| Related: Tube strikes to be suspended after progress in talks | Related: Tube strikes to be suspended after progress in talks |
| The remaining £147,169 was spent on production and distribution costs including emails and postage. | The remaining £147,169 was spent on production and distribution costs including emails and postage. |
| In comparison, the first year of TfL’s “Catch Up with the Bicycle” campaign cost the authority just shy of £1m. However, TfL has spent money on the night tube without any agreed timetable for its introduction, with negotiations with the unions ongoing. | In comparison, the first year of TfL’s “Catch Up with the Bicycle” campaign cost the authority just shy of £1m. However, TfL has spent money on the night tube without any agreed timetable for its introduction, with negotiations with the unions ongoing. |
| On Thursday, unions representing London Underground staff put on hold three planned strikes following an improved offer from transport bosses. A decision on whether to accept the offer is expected on Monday. | On Thursday, unions representing London Underground staff put on hold three planned strikes following an improved offer from transport bosses. A decision on whether to accept the offer is expected on Monday. |
| Speaking prior to the strike suspension, Finn Brennan, Aslef’s organiser for London Underground tube drivers, said of the ad campaign: ‘That’s an awful lot of money to spend before a deal to deliver the night tube is in place – a waste of more than half a million pounds, many people will think. A bit previous, as they say! | Speaking prior to the strike suspension, Finn Brennan, Aslef’s organiser for London Underground tube drivers, said of the ad campaign: ‘That’s an awful lot of money to spend before a deal to deliver the night tube is in place – a waste of more than half a million pounds, many people will think. A bit previous, as they say! |
| “But that’s the way London Underground have gone about introducing this service. The whole thing has been exceptionally badly handled by LU management.” | “But that’s the way London Underground have gone about introducing this service. The whole thing has been exceptionally badly handled by LU management.” |
| A TfL spokesperson said that the advertising was approved on the expectation that the night tube would be in service by 12 September last year, but that as a result of the well-publicised action by the rail unions that expectation had not been fulfilled. The original launch date was deferred in August last year. | A TfL spokesperson said that the advertising was approved on the expectation that the night tube would be in service by 12 September last year, but that as a result of the well-publicised action by the rail unions that expectation had not been fulfilled. The original launch date was deferred in August last year. |
| The spokesman also said that the advertising spend was not simply to sell the concept of the night tube to the public, but to provide information on which lines and days the service would be in operation. | The spokesman also said that the advertising spend was not simply to sell the concept of the night tube to the public, but to provide information on which lines and days the service would be in operation. |
| A statement accompanying the figures, which were obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request to TfL, said that in August of last year 37% of Londoners were aware of the night tube. A year later that awareness had risen to 71%, a rise which TfL ascribes to the advertising campaign, though it is unclear how much of that awareness was actually driven by coverage of the strike action. | |
| Advertising within the underground network itself is licensed out to Exterion Media UK, which pays TfL an annual flat fee to operate on its properties. A separate TfL spokesman also confirmed that Exterion pays it an amount over that annual fee if it earns above a certain amount in revenue a year, suggesting that TfL recouped a small amount of money from that advertising spend. | Advertising within the underground network itself is licensed out to Exterion Media UK, which pays TfL an annual flat fee to operate on its properties. A separate TfL spokesman also confirmed that Exterion pays it an amount over that annual fee if it earns above a certain amount in revenue a year, suggesting that TfL recouped a small amount of money from that advertising spend. |