Mayor of London questions whether TfL’s taxi and private hire department are ‘fit for purpose’ following ‘unacceptable’ delays
- Perry Richardson
- Jun 20
- 2 min read
Transport for London (TfL) is under more renewed scrutiny after Elly Baker AM raised serious concerns during Mayor’s Question Time about continued licensing delays affecting taxi and private hire drivers.
The London Assembly Transport Committee Chair highlighted that nearly 500 driver licences have expired without any apparent reason linked to the applicants. She stated these cases were not held up due to criminal record checks or medical issues, but due to TfL’s failure to process them. The problems come months after TfL suffered a cyberattack in late 2023, which disrupted several internal systems.
According to Baker, TfL’s communication channels became overwhelmed, with tens of thousands of unanswered emails leading to inboxes shutting down entirely. She noted that driver representatives had emails bounced back and that her office is still dealing with unresolved cases dating back up to ten months.
The scale of the problem has become clearer only recently, with TfL releasing partial data under questioning at a Transport Committee meeting. Baker said drivers have had little to no way to confirm if TfL has received or is acting on their submitted information, creating uncertainty for workers who rely on their licences to earn a living.
Sadiq Khan responded by agreeing that the situation was “unacceptable”. He confirmed he is reviewing whether TfL’s taxi and private hire department is “fit for purpose”, pointing to the need for reform in how driver licensing is managed.
Licensing backlogs have been a growing concern since TfL’s systems were hit by the cyber incident in late 2023. Since then, drivers have reported long delays in licence renewals, new applications, and responses to queries. For many, these hold-ups directly affect their ability to work, as an expired or pending licence means they cannot legally operate.
TfL has said it is working to reduce the backlog and return to normal processing times, but Assembly Members and driver groups say progress has been too slow. Calls are growing for more transparency from TfL about the extent of delays and a clear plan for improvement.
Responding to Assembly Member Baker’s concerns the Mayor of London, responded: “So to answer your first point, it is unacceptable the way Assembly Members and drivers and representative groups have been treated.
“Secondly, you know, I'm looking at the issue whether this section of TfL is fit for purpose.”
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