Caroline's news

Research by Caroline Pidgeon, Leader of the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Group, has revealed London Underground are planning to close ticket offices across the underground by 7458 hours every week.

Responding to London Underground’s defence of the reduced hours and their repeated claim that all tube stations with a ticket office will continue to have one, Caroline Pidgeon said:

“London Underground and the Mayor are playing with words when they keep peddling the claim that no ticket office will actually close. The harsh reality is that if you can’t access a ticket office for most hours of the day it is effectively closed.

“Ticket office staff carry out many tasks to help customers, with their duties going far beyond just serving tickets. If staff numbers are severely reduced at 9 out of 10 stations it will become far more difficult for staff to help disabled and vulnerable customers and other people who need assistance including visitors.

“London Underground's simplistic portrayal of many ticket offices being quiet places where few tickets are actually sold overlooks the vital service and safety that staffed ticket offices provide. If the plans were to allow ticket office staff to go in and out of the office, depending on the needs at a station, and without a reduction in staff numbers that would help to improve customer services. But to simply cut ticket office hours and take away so many frontline staff makes no sense. In the end it is passengers who will lose out.”

Caroline visited Earl’s Court in Kensington and Chelsea on 10th August to support local Liberal Democrats including Linda Wade, who is standing in a council by-election in Earl’s Court ward.

Caroline joined Linda and local representatives of residents’ groups to discuss a range of issues including transport plans for Volleyball which will be hosted at Earl’s Court, some dangerous pedestrian crossings and the poor location of the Mayor’s new bike hire scheme.

Moves by London Mayor Boris Johnson to rip out the traffic lights at three locations in Islington have been condemned by the Liberal Democrats.

As part of the Mayor’s plans to speed up traffic flows around the city, he has announced the removal of 145 sets of traffic lights across London with more set to follow. The plans are currently out for consultation. The locations in Islington are:

• Roman Way/Mackenzie Road (Holloway)

Caroline Pidgeon, Leader of the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Group and Deputy Chair of the London Assembly's Transport Committee, commenting on the publication today of July’s inflation rate which is used as the basis for setting fares on London's transport network for the next year, said:

“Although the slight easing in the UK inflation rate for July is welcome I am seriously concerned that the Mayor of London could use this figure to hike up fares on London transport next year.

In an article for the Liberal Democrat Voice website, Caroline Pidgeon warmly welcomes the new London bike hire scheme as a "tremendous idea", while pointing out that Boris Johnson and Ken Livingstone are eager to take more credit for it then they deserve:

Despite its launch being associated with quite a number of problems – including a highly complex registration process, and a number of cyclists being overcharged – no one can deny that the scheme is proving incredibly popular. And let’s be realistic, no major scheme ever starts without at least some minor teething problems. Of course I will be chasing hard until these glitches are resolved, and they certainly must be, but the bottom line is that the bike hire scheme is a tremendous idea. Especially if the scheme is expanded it has the potential to help reduce congestion and pollution as well as making it easier for Londoners, visitors and tourists to get around the capital at very little cost. Most significantly it could play a vital role in transforming the status of cycling...