Sadiq Khan could make face coverings mandatory on London's Tubes and buses

Passengers could be prohibited from travelling on Tube trains and buses in London without face a covering, Sadiq Khan has announced.

The capital’s mayor revealed he hopes to persuade the Government to change its position on the issue , but he has the option to “make it mandatory in London only”.

Existing guidance from Transport for London only goes as far as advising passengers to wear face coverings, which is in line with nationwide policy.

Mr Khan told the London Assembly: “Next week I’ll be considering whether I need to use the option I’ve got to make it mandatory.”

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He said he will lobby the Government in a bid to “reach a sensible compromise”, as he noted that some train services in London are not under his control.

“We don’t want confusion,” he explained. “When there is a crisis, what’s important is to have message clarity.”

Mr Khan went on: “I leave the option available, which is to make it mandatory in London only.

“But I’m hoping we can persuade the Government to do the right thing.”

His comments come as underground travel in London is up to 25 per cent higher than a week ago, Downing Street said. It's after the Prime Minister’s call for people to return to work if they could.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said Tube use was down by 92 per cent to 93 per cent compared to 12 months ago.

“Tube travel is up this week compared to last week by around 20 per cent to 25 per cent but that’s obviously still very significantly lower than you would expect at this time of year,” the spokesman said.

Bus usage was around 86 per cent to 88 per cent lower than last year and rail passenger journeys were 95 per cent down on 2019 levels.

Earlier, the London mayor appeared on Radio 4's Today Programme where he said he remains “very cautious” about easing measures after the capital show a sharp drop in infection numbers.

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Research published last week suggested the rate of infection had fallen to just 24 new cases per day in the capital.

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