Caroline Pidgeon, Liberal Democrat London Assembly Member, commenting on the Mayor’s announcement that he has appointed Dame Margaret Hodge to conduct a review into the Garden Bridge said:
“I welcome this latest review into the Garden Bridge which I hope will pick up from the excellent inquiry undertaken by the London Assembly. However the Mayor cannot hide behind this latest review as an excuse for not taking any action.
Caroline Pidgeon, Liberal Democrat London Assembly Member, commenting on the publication of the consultation results on proposals to improve air quality in London, said:
“The Mayor must now listen to the very strong message that Londoners have sent over the urgent need to tackle air pollution in London.
“The Mayor needs to not just proceed with his air pollution proposals but also ensure they go further.
The London Assembly Transport Committee has written to the Mayor asking him to prioritise the changes needed to make Oxford Street pedestrianised - including innovative changes to bus routes and service patterns.
The committee has met with representatives of local businesses, residents, road users, Transport for London (TfL) and Westminster City Council, and will go on to produce a full report on congestion issues in the capital later in the year.
The letter suggests:
Commenting on the introduction of a one hour "Hopper" bus ticket starting from Monday 12th September, Caroline Pidgeon, Liberal Democrat London Assembly Member said:
"I have been campaigning for a One Hour Bus Ticket for the best part of a decade in London so very much welcome its final introduction from next week. Imitation sometimes is the greatest form of flattery.
Caroline Pidgeon, Liberal Democrat London Assembly transport spokesperson, commenting on today’s announcement that the bus routes 507 and 521 will become the first in central London to exclusively run all-electric buses by the end of the year, said:
"I very much welcome the adoption of more electric buses in London.
“However, the Mayor and TfL should refrain from making boastful claims about the adoption of electric buses, especially as today’s announcement is merely confirming a decision made over a year ago.
The London Assembly has backed the Guide Dogs for the Blind campaign to ensure that there are far more effective sanctions against private hire drivers who refuse access to assistance dogs.
The Assembly agreed a unanimous motion calling for this to be penalised with a level 4 fine, in keeping with offences such as ticket touting.
Caroline Pidgeon MBE AM, who proposed the motion, said:
“Although the law is crystal clear that it is a criminal offence for taxi and private hire drivers to refuse access to disabled people with assistance dogs, it is sadly the case that such discrimination takes place far too often, especially in relation to private hire drivers.
As the Mayor revealed figures showing that £1.5m has been spent in maintaining fire stations that were closed down in 2014, Caroline Pidgeon commented:
"This waste of public money is a further insult to everyone who fought against the closure of these stations.”
Read the full story at the Evening Standard.
Speaking to the Guardian about the the five-month delay by the Garden Bridge Trust in publishing its accounts, Caroline Pidgeon said:
“I suspect that the Garden Bridge Trust is using administrative tidiness as a desperate excuse to postpone publishing their accounts.
Caroline Pidgeon, Liberal Democrat London Assembly Member, commenting ahead of the Mayor’s launch of proposals to clean up London’s toxic air which are being announced on the 60th anniversary of the 1956 Clean Air Act said:
“Radical measures to tackle air pollution cannot come soon enough in London.”
Caroline Pidgeon, Liberal Democrat London Assembly Member, commenting on Sadiq Khan’s speech today calling on the capital to be given more powers over how it spends the money it makes said:
“I stand shoulder to shoulder with the Mayor in his call for more devolution of powers to London and most importantly greater say over how taxes raised in the capital are spent.
