Caroline Pidgeon, the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Transport Spokesperson and Chair of the London Assembly Transport Committee, commenting on today’s July inflation figures, which are used as the basis of future fare rises said:
“With prices falling by minus 1.4% in July the Mayor should not hesitate to announce that bus, tube and tram fares will at least be frozen in 2010.
Boris Johnson's Transport for London bureaucrats have gone bonkers over Islington's hanging flower baskets and ordered that some of them must come down – for health and safety reasons.
In an extraordinary bit of red tape, Transport for London bosses have told Islington Council that the baskets pose a risk to pedestrians, buses and cars. The Council has had to check each lamp-post to see if it can take the "strain".
Council staff have now taken down ten of the offending baskets along Upper Street and Holloway Road.
Islington's Liberal Democrat council has put up a record number of flower baskets this year – over 1000 across the borough. Islington is representing London and the South East in this year's "Britain in Bloom" competition, so TfL's intervention is particularly unwelcome. TfL have a long history of supporting "Britain in Bloom" and were former sponsors.
The Evening Standard has covered the story of TfL commissioner Peter Hendy's decision to accept only 45% of his annual bonus.
Caroline Pidgeon told the Standard:
I welcome Peter's decision and would welcome the Mayor to review TfL's bonus policy in general. He has been critical of the bonuses bankers have received.
The BBC website covers the Mayor's failure to guarantee that when passengers are able to use Oyster pay-as-you-go on suburban rail services, they can be confident of paying no more than they would for the same journey by Tube.
Caroline Pidgeon described this as "a bitter blow to rail travellers in London".
The full story is here.
Caroline Pidgeon, the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Transport Spokesperson, commenting on the temporary extension of Oyster Pay as You Go to most train services across London, said:
“If Oyster Pay As You Go can cover most train services in London for 48 hours, why not everyday? Londoners have today been given a glimpse of what should already be a reality each and every day of the year.
Caroline took the London Liberal Democrats' campaign for a one-hour bus ticket to Islington last week. She joined Lib Dem Parliamentary campaigner Bridget Fox to talk to local residents about the campaign, and to ask them to sign a petition to the Mayor.
Caroline also joined Sarah Ludford MEP and Lib Dem campaigners from Holborn & St Pancras, meeting voters in Camden and collecting signatures for the petition.
In his first year of office Boris Johnson has broken numerous promises he made to Londoners to improve rail services and has overseen huge delays in extending Oyster to overground train services, says Caroline Pidgeon, the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Transport Spokesperson.
Commenting further, Caroline said:
"A year ago Boris Johnson promised to champion the cause of rail passengers by negotiating with Train Operating Companies (TOCs) and delivering Oyster to all overground stations within a year.
Finally, work has begun to improve the junction between Pentonville Road and Penton Rise, a notorious accident blackspot. This work begins eight months after Lib Dem Councillor George Allan and Lib Dem Assembly member Caroline Pidgeon handed a petition to the Major of London last year calling for vital improvements to the roads around the King's Cross area, including Penton Rise.
Originally, work was due to begin in January 2009, but was delayed by TfL three times, causing growing frustration and growing Lib Dem pressure on the London Mayor to act. Since the last deadline set by TfL for April 2009 there have been a further three accidents. Lib Dem Parliamentary spokesperson Bridget Fox responded to these collisions stating: 'Boris talks a lot about safety, but what we need at Penton Rise is action!'
Caroline Pidgeon, the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Transport Spokesperson, has revealed that one in five pedestrian crossings in London do not give people enough time to cross the road.
The figures, which had to be obtained by a Freedom of Information inquiry, show 472 crossings do not comply with the minimum timings guidelines from the Department of Transport. These crossings do not provide enough time between the green man light disappearing and the amber light appearing for motorists.
Watch Caroline Pidgeon and Tom Brake launching the Lib Dems' One Hour Bus Ticket campaign.