A new Institute for Fiscal Studies briefing paper on ‘Getting people back into work’ says that, particularly in London where public transport use is highest, Government should consider raising the price of peak time travel on bus and rail.

The current suspension of the capital’s congestion charge scheme should also continue for drivers once lockdown is lifted, it suggests, and adds that businesses will need to allow workers to spread their commutes more throughout the day to reduce the risk of infections.

“Achieving greater dispersion of commute times is one way to reduce the public health consequences of a given amount of commuting,” the report says. This may complement further measures such as enforcing minimum distances between people on public transport.

“The crisis has turned normal assessments of the social desirability of different forms of transport on their head,” it adds. “Travel on crowded public transport – particularly at peak times – now comes with obvious negative externalities, given the risk of spreading illness.”

The paper emphasises that, as lockdown is eased, making sure those who can work from home are doing so should remain a policy priority. This may be especially necessary in the capital, it says, where just over half of workers commuted via bus or train before the crisis, compared to around one in eight in the rest of the UK.

However, it adds, London residents are also disproportionately likely to work in occupations considered amenable to home working. Almost two thirds of London residents who used to rely on public transport could work from home, the report estimates. In contrast, in Wales and the North West and Merseyside this figure drops below 40%.

Institute for Fiscal Studies deputy director Robert Joyce commented: “The economy is in uncharted territory and steering a safe and prosperous path out of lockdown will be difficult.” Government, he continued, “needs to adjust policy to incentivise newly desirable behaviours like home working and avoiding public transport at peak hours”.

The paper comes after Transport Secretary Grant Shapps hinted that the Government may expand the number of trains and buses operating to ensure social distancing when people start going back to work.

He also told BBC One’s The Andrew Marr Show on Sunday that he expects active travel to play a more prominent role in the transport mix.

A new paper produced by consultant Atkins also emphasises that the requirement for social distancing will cause ‘profound changes’ in people’s travel choices and says local authorities must plan for operating under a ‘new normal’.

Effective use of data will be important to understand what has happened to travel demand during the lockdown, it says, and urges the repurposing of public spaces where demand has changed.

Rapid planning of measures to support safe walking and cycling is also encouraged alongside plans to manage the safe movement of people through stations and on trains and buses to rebuild confidence in public transport. “Most importantly, local authorities must not lose sight of the importance of decarbonising the transport system and addressing the climate emergency,” it says.

(Photograph: Aleksey Boyko - Shutterstock)