People living in London are more likely to use public transport than those in any other region in Britain. Bus patronage increased in London by a massive 54 per cent over 10 years, growing from 1.16 billion passengers in 1994 to 1,782 million in 2004. London Underground has also been celebrating record numbers, carrying more passengers than ever before in 2004, with 976 million passengers. Nevertheless, with over 20,000 taxis, almost a third of all taxis in England are based in London; and since the licensing of private hire vehicles was introduced in 2001, the number of private hire vehicles in the city has grown to around 40,000. Peter Hendy, Managing Director of TfL's Surface Transport, declared: "This report confirms that people will leave their cars at home if they are provided with a clean, reliable, desirable alternative.

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