London's Tube network will come under the control of the capital's mayor from midnight on Tuesday.

The move follows years of wrangling in the courts between Ken Livingstone and the government over the controversial public private partnership policy.

Under the scheme two private consortia, Metronet and Tube Lines, are responsible for maintaining the infrastructure of the underground, and are paid according to their performance.

On Tuesday, London Regional Transport will be wound up, with all property, rights and liabilities transferred to Transport for London.

Responsibility for the proposed Crossrail route will go to Cross London Rail Links Limited, a subsidiary of Transport for London and the Strategic Rail Authority.

"This is an important day for the Underground," said transport secretary Alistair Darling.

"£16 billion will be spent upgrading and maintaining the Tube over the next 15 years.

"The public private partnership is a substantial programme to deliver a modern service that Londoners rightly expect and deserve.

"It is now for the mayor and Transport for London to deliver this."

The move was welcomed by Ken Livingstone.

"I am delighted London Underground is finally transferring to the control of London's democratically elected government. The Tube, the backbone of the capital's transport system, will now be directly accountable to the city it serves," he said.

"Major improvements cannot be delivered overnight and the privatisation of Tube maintenance under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) imposed by the Government will make the management and improvement of the system more difficult.

"But I have brought the best transport managers in the world to London and am confident that Bob Kiley [London Transport commissioner] and Tim O'Toole [managing director] will deliver the best possible service for London."