Caroline's news

Leyton & Wanstead Liberal Democrats last Friday hosted a public meeting about the expansion at which London LibDem MEP Baroness Sarah Ludford and London Assembly member Caroline Pidgeon spoke and a debate was held. Campaign groups 'Fight the Flights' and the Heathrow Association for the Control of Aircraft Noise (HACAN) were also represented.

Newham Council recently agreed a more than doubling of flights from London City Airport from the current level of 73,000 flights a year. They are permitting 120,000 by the end of this year and 170,000 by the end of 2010. It is in fact believed (by Fight the Flights) that a further bid for 217,000 flights is contemplated, which would be a tripling of present capacity.

Caroline Pidgeon, the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Transport Spokesperson, commenting on Boris Johnson’s speech at the Conservative Party Conference, said:

“Boris Johnson can try to peddle the line in Manchester that he is controlling costs and giving Londoners a good deal. However, there was one vital word missing from the Mayor’s speech – fares.

The Romford Recorder reports on the failure of TfL's Dial-a-Ride service to meet elderly and disabled residents' needs in Havering.

Caroline is quoted saying:

It is time that Boris Johnson stopped making excuses over Dial-a-Ride and instead honestly admit that its service falls a long way short of what is necessary for some of the most vulnerable people in London.

Disabled and elderly people across the whole of London have faced a growing number of refused trips from Transport for London’s Dial-a-Ride service.

Following extensive questioning by Caroline Pidgeon, the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Transport Spokesperson, the Mayor has been forced to release figures showing that over the last two years there has been more than a 50% increase in the number of trips refused to disabled and elderly people who rely on the Dial-a-Ride service.

Commenting on the figures, Caroline Pidgeon said:
“Three years ago Transport for London promised disabled Londoners a far better deal from Dial-a-Ride. They specifically promised that the number of refused trips would halve in just two years. Yet instead of falling the number of refused trips have actually gone up by more than 50%. It is simply appalling every day of the year more than 400 trips are now refused to Dial-a-Ride users.

Caroline Pidgeon joined other Assembly members from the Transport Committee for a tour around the congested shopping streets of Central London as part of a new investigation into Oxford Street congestion.

The investigation will be looking at the best ways to sort out the chronic traffic congestion that plagues the retail heart of London on Oxford Street, Regent Street and Bond Street. The Transport Committee is examining current initiatives aimed at reducing congestion and establish what further action could be taken.