Londoners will be forced to use nearly 70-year-old trains if the Government does not provide Transport for London extra funding, the Mayor said.

TfL was bailed out with a £1.9bn package earlier this year, after its passenger income reduced by 90% compared to last year at the peak of the pandemic.

Sadiq Khan claims that further funding is need to ensure sufficient services can run to enable social distancing and allow upgrades to "nationally important" ageing infrastructure.

Mr Khan, Mayor of London, said: “I need to be honest about what is at stake if the Government fails to provide TfL, which has played a vital role throughout the pandemic, with the appropriate funding it needs to function.

"Transport operators across the world have been hit harder than ever as a result of passengers following advice and staying home during the pandemic – TfL is no exception, and further borrowing is not a viable solution.

“The choice is stark: a safe and effective transport network that continues to deliver for Londoners and support jobs in the capital and across the UK, or a Government-led spiral of disinvestment that sees vital infrastructure age and fail – wasting hundreds of millions of pounds, stalling economic recovery, and taking us back to the deteriorated transport network of the 80s and 90s.

"I remember what it was like 20 years ago before the sustained investment we’ve seen over the last two decades – crumbling Tube lines, unreliable services, old-fashioned ticketing system and lack of coordination.

"We must not return to the bad old days.

“The Government must come to the right decision for the benefit of the capital and the country as a whole.”

TfL claims that £2bn will be required for the second half of 2020/21, and it is anticipated that a further £2.9bn will be required during 2021/22 to stabilise the network’s financial position.

Mr Khan further warned plans to upgrade the capital's roads and road structures, introduce new bike lanes and tackle pollution would also have to be shelved.

The Department of Transport's initial May bailout package included a series of caveats "to safeguard services in the future."

This included stopping free travel for children and only allowing people over 60 or with a disability to travel for free outside peak hours.

The department also announced that TfL will introduce above-inflation fare rises from next year.

Mr Khan said it was "not the deal I wanted but it was the only deal the Government put on the table".