Hospitality industry welcomes Night Tube, despite staff concerns

A survey of 530 London hospitality workers by The Change Group found that 87 per cent of business owners believe the service will have a positive impact on their employees.

Just over half of staff members currently use night buses to get home after a late night, and 66 per cent said they would rather use the Night Tube to save time and money.

Simon Prideaux, founder of 24-hour restaurant VQ, told BigHospitality the service would help grow the night-time economy.

“Two of our sites are on the Central line so we’re excited to see what sort of effect it has,” said Prideaux.

“It’s not just helpful for getting people to and from venues, it will be great for night-time workers, many of whom would struggle to get home. Hopefully it will a boost to late night restaurants, bars and nightclubs.”

Over 100,000 people used the Night Tube in its first 48-hours last weekend, and Transport for London expects the number to rise to 200,000 per weekend by the end of the year.

Brigid Simmonds, chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA), said the launch was ‘great news’ for over 100,000 people working in London’s pub industry.

Costa has also begun trialling 24-hour trading at its London Liverpool Street Mainline café, with a view to rolling out the service across the capital if successful.

Staff changes​

Around 40 per cent of respondents to the Change Group survey believe the Night Tube will lead to the creation of more jobs in hospitality as venues stay open later.

However, 83 per cent of staff surveyed were concerned the service could lead to them working longer hours.

Craig Allen, managing director of The Change Group, said: “Other issues may be that staff might not be compensated for working even later shifts, which is something the industry will have to combat.”