Crossrail can be as good as Delhi Metro, says Ken

The Mayor believes the Indian capital's modern underground system is the perfect model for the £16 billion high-speed line that is due to open in 2017.

Mr Livingstone and transport commissioner Peter Hendy were impressed when they toured the Delhi Metro this morning as part of their week-long visit to India.

The system, which carries 600,000 passengers a day - compared with four million on the Tube - boasts air-conditioned trains, spacious stations, smart-card ticketing, security scanners, armed guards, CCTV cameras, 100 per cent punctuality and some of the cheapest fares in the world.

Banks of TV screens on station platforms continually show a one-minute security video containing footage of the 7 July and 11 September terror attacks and the Madrid train bombings.

Fares range from six to 22 rupees, around 7p to 27p, with trains every four minutes at peak times.

Mr Livingstone said: "This is exactly the model we would want for Crossrail - much bigger, wider trains running on really smooth surfaces. This is what we will see in London when we open Crossrail in 10 years. It's just so much more comfortable."

He contrasted the speed of construction of the Delhi Metro with the 30 years it had taken to convince government of the need for Crossrail, which will link Heathrow with the City, Canary Wharf and beyond.

However he said it was unlikely such tight security could ever be introduced in London. "This is in a society where most people don't have mobile phones, where most people are not carrying a bag or a backpack," he said.

Delhi's first stations opened in December 2002 and a major expansion will be completed in time for the arrival of the Commonwealth Games in 2010.

Mr Hendy denied it was embarrassing that experts from London had to travel to a Third World country to see a 21st-century public transport system in operation.

He said: "One of the lessons is that when we are building a modern system we should build it for growth. The Victoria line was built very cheaply. If we look at the Victoria line stations, they're already full of people.

"Look at the spaciousness of this. They have four-coach trains. It's built for a doubling to eight. Crossrail will be built not only to carry the load we expect it to have in 2017 but actually for future expansion."

To read Ross Lydall's blog about the Mayor's tour of India, click here