Local residents in Haringey will have to wait an extra four months after a train company broke promises last week on introducing Oyster Pay As You Go (PAYG) on local trains. First Capital Connect (FCC), which runs the Overground train line north of Finsbury Park, recently agreed that train users would be able to use PAYG from September this year; but this has now been delayed until at least January 2010.
Higham Hill Lib Dem ward councillors Peter Woollcott, Patrick Smith and Sean Meiszner, have been campaigning for a new route between Highams Park station and Tottenham Hale for years.
They argue that as the area is one of the most deprived in the country, and more than a mile from Walthamstow Central Station, a route is desperately needed.
The group met with Lib Dem London Assembly Member Caroline Pidgeon on Thursday who will lobby the mayor and Transport for London (TfL).
Mr Woollcott said the route would bring much benefit to the area.
He said: “There are proposals to build 240 homes in Sutherland Road, 600 in Banbury Park, and the possible Walthamstow Stadium development, so we need facilities in place now.
Caroline Pidgeon, the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Transport Spokesperson, was joined by Tom Brake MP, councillors and campaigners from across London this morning at the launch of a Londonwide campaign to persuade the Mayor to introduce one hour bus tickets.
At the busy Vauxhall Bus Station, bus passengers were provided with information about the new campaign and invited to sign a petition.
Caroline Pidgeon said:
“You can already switch from tube to tube on the same ticket, so it makes real sense to allow people to do the same with buses. It really is unfair that people who use Oyster pay as you go have to pay a new fare every time they change buses.
Bus users on the Horn Park estate have been given an apology from Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London, following the intervention by Caroline Pidgeon, the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Transport Spokesperson.
Caroline Pidgeon raised the issue of the B15 bus service not actually serving Horn Park estate, after being briefed by Greenwich Councillor Paul Webbewood, who represents the estate.
Caroline Pidgeon said:
"It is disturbing that bus operators consider it acceptable to shorten a designated bus route and inconvenience residents on the Horn Park estate. The Mayor and Transport for London must ensure the contract with Arriva is fully enforced."
Lib Dem London Transport Spokesperson Caroline Pidgeon and Streatham Hill Cllr Ashley Lumsden have met managers from Transport for London and the Brixton Bus Garage on the corner of Wavertree Road and Streatham High Road to discuss serious concerns in the area for local residents.
Cllr Lumsden raised a number of serious issues with the bus garage operators which are making the area unsafe and causing problems for local residents going about their everyday lives.
Caroline Pidgeon, the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Transport Spokesperson, has welcomed Transport for London’s (TfL) decision to eventually back down over its plans to narrow a stretch of pavement on Streatham High Road.
As part of its latest phase of improvements to Streatham High Road it was proposed by TfL to restrict a stretch of the pavement between Becmead Avenue and Woodbourne Avenue by removing some of the pavement outside the former Woolworths store for loading bays.
Local Liberal Democrat councillors strongly objected to these proposals as they would have inconvenienced many pedestrians and local shoppers. To ensure TfL took notice of their concerns they also invited Caroline Pidgeon to support their campaign.
Pedestrians trying to cross the lethal Tiger's Head junction on Bromley Road were left facing yet more danger and uncertainty this week, when London Mayor Boris Johnson failed to give a timeframe for the introduction of pedestrian crossings. Local residents are forced to cross the four-lane junction, which is the site of numerous traffic accidents, without the help of pedestrian lights.
The Liberal Democrats' London Assembly Transport Spokesperson, Caroline Pidgeon, asked Boris Johnson why so little progress had been made to improve safety at the dangerous intersection of Bromley Road and Whitefoot Lane. In his reply, the Mayor failed to offer any timeframe for the urgently needed improvements, saying only that "investigations are on-going."
Road safety issues for bus passengers on Station Road were top of the agenda when Caroline Pidgeon, the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Transport Spokesperson, met Chingford residents outside Chingford bus and rail station earlier this week. Caroline Pidgeon visited the site after an invitation from Geoff Seeff, the prospective parliamentary candidate for Chingford and Woodford Green.
After the meeting, which was also attended by officers from Transport for London (TfL) Caroline commented:
"It is deeply worrying that passengers are required to get off the 97 and 179 buses on Station Road itself and then have to cross a busy road from between parked cars to get to the rail station. A serious accident is waiting to happen here. We need to find a way for buses to put down passengers safely in the bus station itself with proper provision for wheelchair users.
Islington councillors Laura Willoughby, Terry Stacy and John Gilbert presented a petition to GLA member Caroline Pidgeon this week in protest urging action to improve safety on the junction of Holloway Road, Fieldway Crescent and Madras Place. Caroline, the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Transport Spokesperson, formally presented the petition to Mayor of London Boris Johnson, asking him to take action.
The petition has been signed by around 300 Islington residents and was organised by the Liberal Democrat Councillors from Highbury East ward.
After presenting the petition on Wednesday morning Caroline said:
"I am delighted to be able to support this campaign. It is absolutely necessary to make the junction safer for both cyclists and pedestrians. I have already asked two questions to the Mayor over this issue and I hope this petition really forces Boris Johnson to ensure Transport for London sort out this problem."
Caroline Pidgeon AM has joined Brent Lib Dem MP Sarah Teather and the local Liberal Democrats to campaign for better buses for Stonebridge particularly along Brentfield Road. The 206 and PR2 services which currently serve the area don’t run very often and sometimes don’t even turn up at all. With lots of people coming from outside of Stonebridge to visit the shops such as Ikea and Tesco as well as the world famous Swaminarayan Temple the current links are simply not good enough for local residents and those who use the Temple.
Local Liberal Democrat MP for Brent East Sarah Teather said “So many local people have told me how unhappy they are with our bus services especially on Brentfield Road. That is why I am urging local people to sign my petition to Transport for London calling for a better bus service for our area.”
