Prescott boards the Tube

Prescott Goes Public on Transport

His grasp of commuting on the Underground was in question though, as an official bought him an expensive six-zone ticket for the one-zone journey between Westminster and South Kensington.

Mr Prescott's destination was the Royal Geographical Society to deliver a speech on the need for an integrated policy on transport -- one of his cabinet responsibilities.

Asking passengers for their views

Other passengers looked on as Mr Prescott and an entourage of photographers, reporters and cameramen forced their way onto the train at lunchtime. One traveller, Linda Liversidge, told him: "I am pleased to see you are using the Underground."

He insisted he was committed to public transport in general and the Tube in particular. "It should become our showroom for the world," he said.

Mr Prescott said passengers want reliability from public transport. "That does not necessarily mean building more roads but should mean giving a higher priority to rationing road space", he said.