Mayor of London Sadiq Khan announces first transport policy and statutory deputy mayor as Joanne McCartney

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Newly elected mayor of London Sadiq Khan has announced his first major policy.

The one hour bus "hopper" fare – which he pledged throughout his campaign – will start in September. 

Bus passengers who use Oyster cards or contactless payment will be able to take an extra bus within one hour and pay just one fare.

Khan said: "My dad drove the number 44 bus and transport in London has always been a big part of my life. The cost of a fare in London has risen for eight years in a row and now that I’m mayor I am determined to prevent the cost of travel from becoming a barrier to work.

"The "Hopper" fare will make life cheaper and easier for millions of Londoners, and will help ensure that everyone will be able to afford to travel around the city. It is just the start of my plan to ensure that travelling around London is affordable for everyone, a commitment that includes a freeze on Transport for London (TfL) fares for four years – benefiting millions of people."

The move was welcomed by one-time rival Caroline Pidgeon, a Liberal Democrat Assembly member.

"The Liberal Democrats have been campaigning for a One Hour Bus Ticket for the best part of a decade in London. I welcome our policy being adopted by London's new mayor and hope that he will go further and also implement our policy for half price travel for journeys on the transport network before 7.30am," Pidgeon said.

The new mayor also confirmed a key appointment within his senior team.

"I'm delighted to announce Joanne McCartney will be my statutory deputy mayor. I know she'll do a fantastic job," Khan tweeted this morning. 

McCartney has been the London Assembly member for Enfield and Haringey since 2004, as well having experience chairing the Assembly's police and crime committee.

Read more: Khan's successful pro-business campaign is heartening for us all

She also sat on the oversight committee and budget and performance committee, holding the mayor to account.

Khan was announced as mayor of London in the very early hours of Saturday morning, winning 1.3m votes across the capital.

As Khan himself said though, he's having a fantastic time on the job already: