London-wide + Richmond stories

Campaigning in Richmond against Heathrow expansion

Caroline spent a morning in Richmond town center, and at Kew station, on Easter Saturday getting signatures against a third runway at Heathrow and talking to local residents about transport tissues with Munira Wilson our local candidate and Brian Paddick, as well as other local activists such as Robin Meltzer, Shas Sheehan and Cllr Stephen Knight.

Paddick and Pidgeon launch One Hour Bus Ticket

The London Liberal Democrats toured a range of London boroughs on Wednesday 30th March in a campaign bus to launch their fares package for Londoners.

The Fairer Fares package proposes Six Ways To Save, one of which is a One Hour Bus Ticket that will allow people to hop-on and hop-off buses as many times as needed within one hour, paying only one single fare.

The scheme works successfully in several European cities ensuring that multiple journeys on one of the most popular forms of transport are kept as low as possible. From the moment an Oyster card is touched, or a paper ticket is printed, passengers would have 60 minutes in which to make additional journeys without any extra cost.

Campaigning on crime concerns in Richmond

Caroline Pidgeon joined Lib Dem mayoral candidate Brian Paddick and London Assembly candidate Munira Wilson in Richmond to talk to local residents about their concerns on crime, and campaign for the London Liberal Democrats' policy to build a community approach to policing, and recruit more Police Community Support Officers.

Good news on Waterloo ex-Eurostar platforms - but we need more

Speaking as the government announced that one of Waterloo's former Eurostar platforms can be used from May 2013 for commuter services, Caroline Pidgeon said:

"It is clearly good news that at least one platform is now to be brought back into use to help relieve overcrowding.

"We now need to see a timetable for when the other platforms will be open."

Read the South London Press's coverage here.

Reopening of former Eurostar platform at Waterloo is a welcome step

Caroline Pidgeon, Liberal Democrat London Assembly Transport spokesperson, today welcomed the announcement by Transport Secretary Justine Greening MP that passengers on some lines serving commuters on a number of the busiest rail routes from south west London into Waterloo are set to benefit from extra carriages to ease overcrowding, and that one platform at the former Waterloo International Station is to be reopened for commuter services.

Commenting on the decision, Caroline Pidgeon said:

River Thames is a great opportunity for transport

The River Thames is a forgotten highway, a tube line effectively, across the centre of London and yet under-resourced in terms of transport.

In January, the London Assembly Transport Committee is looking into river transport services - so Caroline and other Committee members spent a chilly morning in early December out and about on the river with Thames Clippers from Putney to Erith, looking at the challenges and opportunities to really expand river transport services for Londoners.

Accessibility of London's transport network still falls short

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.

Four years of fare misery under Boris Johnson

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.

The Big Switch – Lib Dems call for London’s buses and taxis to go electric

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.

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