In the early 2000s, London Underground was reorganised in a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) as part of a project to upgrade and modernise the system. Private infrastructure companies (infracos) would upgrade and maintain the railway, and London Underground would run the train service.
Operated by MTR Elizabeth line (MTREL), a 100% subsidiary of MTR Corporation, the Elizabeth line is part of the TfL network and has interchanges with the London Underground, DLR, London Overground and National Rail services.
As a result, roughly 40 per cent of the nearly £19bn cost has been paid for by London's businesses. This is not money that would have otherwise been spent in other ways, but new money on top of existing tax contributions, with the balance coming from London government, Network Rail and general government funds.
Since TfL was created in 2000, investment in the system has created a more reliable and safe system. For example, on London Underground reliability has improved significantly, with the excess journey time due to delays reduced by 40% since 2000.
The current operator, London Underground Limited (LUL), is a wholly owned subsidiary of Transport for London (TfL), the statutory corporation responsible for the transport network in London.
It was under Thatcher's successor John Major that the railways themselves were privatised, using the Railways Act 1993. The operations of the BRB were broken up and sold off, with various regulatory functions transferred to the newly created office of the Rail Regulator.
Andrew Lord (born 1970) is the Commissioner of Transport for London, London's most senior transport official. He was appointed on a permanent basis in June 2023, after holding the role on an interim basis from October 2022.
Average operating profits have been consistently higher in the largest metropolitan areas (former PTEs) outside of London than elsewhere. In the latest year available, operating profits in the former PTEs were 8.6%, compared to 6.1% in London and 6.9% elsewhere.