Caroline Pidgeon joined Sarah Ludford MEP, Tom Brake MP and Brian Paddick out and about campaigning in Croydon and Sutton on Saturday as part of a big action day in London. The team were joined by Liberal Youth and carried out a residents’ survey in areas such as Waddon.
“The sun shone and we had a really welcoming response form local residents,” commented Caroline.
Caroline has joined Liberal Democrats in Sutton, Paul Burstow MP, local Assembly candidate Abigail Lock and other candidates for the London elections out and about campaigning for a new councillor in Worcester Park.
“It has been great on my visits so far to talk about local issues such as the bid for town centre improvements and policing, as well as wider issues such as the Mayor’s increase in fares. Roger Roberts is a superb local candidate with all the experience needed to be a strong champion for Worcester Park” added Caroline.
Update: Liberal Democrat candidate Roger Roberts secured the seat in the Worcester Park ward with a total of 1367 votes, beating Conservative candidate Simon Densley who received 977 votes.
Caroline joined Sutton's Deputy Leader Cllr Ruth Dombey with local campaigner Roger Roberts to meet traders on London Road to discuss issues with short stay parking on the red route.
The bays by the shops are split between loading ones and 20 minutes parking. Many customers receive parking fines for parking in the wrong part by mistake and in fact local traders and residents would like to see all of the bays as joint loading and short term parking so that it is simple and clear for everyone.
Caroline has taken up these matters with Transport for London with a series of questions:
At long last, after work with local Lib Dem Councillors in Carshalton and Tom Brake MP, Transport for London has started work to replace the railings around Carshalton Ponds. Caroline saw the problems first hand when she visited Carshalton and looked at a number of transport issues last summer.
Initially Transport for London were refusing to put any temporary bus stops in place whilst the works were taking place, but have since agreed and installed temporary stops to help local people continue to use buses whilst these major works take place.
Caroline joined Brian Paddick, Tom Brake MP, Cllr Ruth Dombey and Lord Graham Tope out and about in Sutton on Friday 25th November.
The Lib Dem team met up with local residents and Councillors to campaign against the proposed changes to through trains on the Thameslink lines. This will affect many parts of Sutton and mean local residents will have to change at Blackfriars station to continue their journey northwards to St Pancras, the City and Luton.
The team then visited the fantastic BedZed development and heard about plans for a sustainable Hackbridge as well as looking at the area.
Writing for the London24 website, Caroline Pidgeon addresses what needs to be done to make cycling in London safe:
Firstly, we must recognise that the primary cause of cycle fatalities is lorries colliding with cyclists.
The Mayor has announced some limited proposals, including training advice for cyclists, but it is only a start.
The London Assembly Transport Committee has published a report in response to TfL’s new proposals on transport accessibility, showing that step-free access and other accessibility measures fall far short of the growing need for them, with half of bus stops, two thirds of rail stations, and three quarters of tube stations, not fully accessible to people with limited mobility.
The report argues for a range of measures, including low-cost steps such as allowing manual ramps, upgrading pedestrian crossings, providing better training for bus drivers, and improving online and paper maps.
Caroline Pidgeon, leader of the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Group, commenting on Boris Johnson’s fare proposals for 2012, which he confirmed today will be set at RPI plus 2 per cent, said:
“This is the fourth year of fare misery that Londoners will face under Boris Johnson.
“He has already hit Londoners hard by hiking up bus fares from 90 pence to £1.30 for a single fare since he arrived at City Hall. Today’s further rise will really hit hard many people, especially those on low incomes.
“Boris Johnson has failed to tackle effective action to tackle fare evasion or cut waste which is widespread throughout TfL. If the Mayor got on top of these issues there would be no need for such severe fare rises, especially for low income Londoners.
A Big Switch to electric buses and taxis can cut London’s appalling air pollution, dramatically reduce premature deaths and ill health, and help meet climate change targets. The London Assembly Liberal Democrats have put forward an ambitious programme to convert high mileage buses, taxis and light goods vehicles to electric power by 2020. The plan was launched with Caroline Pidgeon AM and Mike Tuffrey AM with support from the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, Rt Hon Chris Huhne MP.
Caroline Pidgeon joined Carshalton Lib Dem Councillors Hamish Pollock, Alan Salter, Jill Whitehead and Peter Fosdike along with local MP Tom Brake, and former Lib Dem Councillor and Sutton Seniors activist Chris Pennington, to look at a number of transport concerns in the Carshalton area on 19th July. Caroline walked around Carshalton Ponds and Carshalton High Street before attending a Carshalton Local Area Committee discussing a range of transport issues with local residents and councillors.