O N N D G R O O L U P

N E W S E R No 28 SEPTEMBER 2016 L E T T

Our Newsletter is sent out to our members and other contacts. The group exists to campaign for sustainable transport solutions in London and to support the work of the Campaign nationally. If you have not already done so we would be pleased if you would also join our group and take part in our London What’s based activities. To contact the group write to Chris Barker, wrong Campaign for Better Transport, 46 Redston Road, London N8 7HJ. with HS2 - E-mail: chrisjbark- [email protected]: the CBT phone 020 8347 7684. Regular meetings of EUSTON the group are held in view STATION central London. The Newsletter is edited by Chris Barker. Contribu- New high speed rail lines can to Scotland and Wales are rope with regular commuters connection at Old Oak Com- tors are welcomed. be a means of providing extra unclear making it difficult to hit the hardest by annual mon must be given serious Opinions expressed capacity and freeing up space on see how HS2 will compete season ticket hikes. Passen- consideration urgently. are those of the au- thors and not neces- existing lines for increased with short-distance aviation. gers travelling on the existing Ongoing investment in There has been insufficient HS1 line pay a premium and if public transport is vital to the sarily those of the freight and local passenger Campaign for Better services. work on the options for using this formula is applied to HS2, success of our country so the the capacity on the existing many people could be ex- very substantial government Transport. Previous issues of However, there are currently lines released by HS2, and the cluded from using HS2 ser- and industry support already some major problems with the newsletter can potential benefits that this vices and it will become a committed to the rail network be found at the plans for the HS2 project capacity could bring by ena- railway for the rich. should be celebrated. New as they stand, not least for the http://bettertransport- bling lower carbon develop- But in London, there are lines can, if developed properly, london.org.uk. London end of it. First things ment based around the current particular problems. The be vital in helping increase first: the project proposals do rail network. Also crucially, plans for connections at Old capacity where it’s needed not form part of a coherent too many of the proposed Oak Common and Euston and enabling significant fur- national transport strategy. HS2 stations are in out of could not unreasonably be ther shift from private car use, At the same time as prom- town locations with only described as a mess. It is as- road freight and aviation to oting HS2 the Government is vague plans for connections tonishing that the plans can rail and connected sustaina- also embarking upon a major to other public transport. have got so far without some ble transport. That’s why programme of road building on HS2 could, if linked to other major operational issues we’re currently working to try the strategic road network, transport and planning policies, having been resolved. Even to get Parliament to amend promoting car-based develop- help spread economic activity the new Mayor has called on the High Speed Rail Bill, ment and reducing funds around the country, but pursued the Euston HS2 development which confers the powers to available for local authorities to in isolation, it could simply to be halted till a solution can construct the scheme and support important bus services. reinforce the imbalance be- be found. The construction of sets out the plans. We hope It is still unclear how HS2 tween London and the South the HS2 terminus there would that the Government will en- will connect with the rest of East and the rest of the UK. cause interminable disruption sure that HS2 will achieve the transport network and how Neither has the Government without apparently creating these aims long before any it will benefit areas of the yet set out its policy on HS2 a satisfactory connection to construction begins. country not directly connected fares. We already have some HS1 and other transport. Al- James MacColl to it. In particular, future links of the highest rail fares in Eu- ternatives for improving the CBT Head of Campaigns

WE HAVE A NEW WEBSITE AT: BETTERTRANSPORTLONDON.ORG.UK, AND A TWITTER ACCOUNT: @CBTransportLDN rural areas, many suburban areas education and health services. and towns where buses disappear Safer London streets that are fit in the evenings and on Sundays. for humans require a significant re- The wages Those without a car, the majority, duction in traffic says ‘Human are excluded from access to further Streets - The Mayors Vision for Cy- education, employment, access to cling three years on’. In Oslo, car- public and other services and free plans aim for ‘as little as possi- many aspects of public and social ble’ motorised traffic, including of pollution activity. They are in fact discrimi- electric cars, ‘they just take up too nated against. Those most affected much space’. come within the scope of the Of course minimising motorised The new Mayor of London Sadiq Equality Act and of much human traffic in London won’t make mon- Khan, who suffers from adult onset rights law. ey for the automobile industry but asthma, says he is determined to There should be a right to public then again you never see broccoli cut air pollution. He has an- transport. It is as important to the being advertised on TV! nounced the introduction of a Tox- majority of the population and to Rosalind Readhead and icity Charge which will charge a normal modern life as access to Margherita Rendel pre-Euro4 diesel vehicles (mostly registered before 2005) an addi- tional £10 to enter the Congestion zone by 2017. He is also bringing It has been nearly a year since forward and possibly expanding Volkswagen admitted they had the ULEZ to . Mean- intentionally programmed 11 while he is lobbying the Govern- ment for a new Clean Air Act which million cars to cheat emissions will control pollution from traffic. testing. Experts say diesel will have to be VW had invested heavily in flawed banned from the streets of London diesel technology and wanted to to realistically bring air quality to max out its investment. Cheating WHO safe limits. allowed them to market fraudulent Electric vehicles are often re- ‘clean diesel’ passenger cars as the ferred to as ‘zero-emission vehi- way forward. Tax incentives and cles’ . However in 2010 a Renault encouragement by Government to advert claiming its Electric vehicles go ‘green’ contributed to London were ‘zero-emission’ was banned licenced diesel vehicles reaching a by the Advertising Standards Au- record 774,513 in 2015. Diesel fuel thority. It was pointed out that a is responsible for 40% of air vehicle charged using energy pollution in London. sourced from the UK national grid Cars are even now responsible would be majority coal and gas for more than half, 53 per cent, of powered as renewables only make all transport generated green- up a very small proportion of the Pedestrianising Oxford house gas emissions including par- Electric Grid, so just polluting ticulates and the production of en- somewhere else. There is also ad- ergy (oil refineries and power ditional non-tailpipe air pollution Street by 2020 stations) for transport (DECC stats). caused by brake and tyre wear and In comparison, public transport Following Sadiq Khan’s manifesto commitment that he would ‘work production. As Jenny Bates of with Westminster council, local businesses, and produces only 6.7 per cent. Any in- Friends of the Earth has comment- taxis, to pedestrianise Oxford Street, Deputy Mayor Val Shawcross has crease in the production of green- ed, ‘There is no such thing as a lost no time in announcing that Oxford Street will be pedestrianised by house gases from cars increases clean car’. 2020. Joe Irvin, CEO of Living Streets, which has been in the forefront of the existing damage occurring A University of Leeds report fore- the campaign said: ‘This is a brilliant start to transforming London into from climate change such as casts that driverless cars will lead a world-leading walking city, improving the health of those living and floods and droughts throughout to a substantial mode shift from working in it.’ the world leading to the destruc- public transport to cars. As the re- At a recent meeting of the GLA Transport Committee there was general tion of livelihoods and migration. port acknowledges, this would agreement that the present environment in Oxford Street is unaccept- There are 1.1 million people in lead to an increase in the use of able citing congestion, safety and air quality. However many objections London who suffer from respiratory energy despite improvements in were raised to full pedestrianisation. Alex Williams, TfL’s planning conditions and are vulnerable to the design of vehicles. Apart from director, referred to the difficulties for finding terminating space for unhealthy air pollution levels, ac- the creation of more pollution and buses at each end of the street and suggested that there was a need to cording to the British Lung Founda- health problems there is also a look at the entire bus network in central London. He suggested that tion. High spikes in air pollution consequence for people who don’t would make a reduction in bus numbers possible. can also trigger heart attacks and drive. Richard Masset, chair of the Licensed Taxi Drivers Association, was permanently stunt the growth of 60 per cent of people in this concerned that the inability to use Oxford Street would inconvenience children’s lungs by up to 20 per country do not have a car often be- many people, particularly making it difficult for disabled people. Sir cent. cause they cannot afford one. Peter Rogers, chairman of the New West End Company was concerned Last year Kings College published More women, members of BME about congestion and air quality but did not favour full pedestrianisa- a paper entitled ‘Health Impacts of groups, disabled, young and old tion. He wanted a 20 per cent per year reduction in bus numbers air pollution’ which suggests and poor people are disadvan- together with zero emission buses. 9,400 may have died prematurely taged as a result wherever and So whilst this commitment is welcome there is clearly a long way to go in 2010 from exposure to Nitrogen whenever public transport is lack- before a satisfactory solution to the present nightmare of Oxford Street Dioxide and PM2.5 particulates, ing or inadequate. Public transport is resolved. primarily from diesel emissions. is lacking or inadequate in most

2 doors have had to be guarded by an additional member of staff Putting South London whose jobs it is to defeat John- son’s intention to allow passen- on the gers to jump on and off. It is now For over 70 years there have been announced that these additional various proposals to extend the Bakerloo members of staff will be dispensed line from its existing southern terminus with and, in future, the rear doors will remain closed except when at the Elephant and Castle to . the bus is standing at a stop, just This proposal has never materialised, in like any other bus. It is notewor- part because of difficulties in tunnel- thy that no other operator has ling through South London’s clay and shown any interest in buying sandy soils, higher priority being given these expensive red elephants. to other projects such as the Victoria The Emirates Airline cable car Line and more recently the extension across the Thames is another of the to Battersea problematic project. Originally Power Station. However, the need to intended to be entirely funded regenerate Peckham, along with other by private finance, it finally cost parts of South London, is self-evident. £60m of which Emirates con- With the completion of Crossrail 1 The Boris legacy tributed £36m. To boost its dis- (the Elizabeth line) within the next few appointing patronage it is now years there will be significant spare ca- After eight years of Boris Johnson at Hackney Wick. suggested that it be turned into pacity on the across its we can look back on his influence It could be said that Johnson a night club in the air. central section – Paddington to Ele- on London’s transport. What’s he had then redeemed himself by Finally there is the Garden phant and Castle. This will be the only done right and what’s he done championing cycling. He took Bridge with a design won with- existing tube line in central London wrong? over Livingstone’s bike hire out competition by Thomas with significant spare capacity and this One of Johnson’s first acts when scheme to be financed through Heatherwick, coincidentally the fact focuses attention on the need to he took office was to abolish the an advertising deal with Barclays same architect who won the de- extend the Bakerloo line into South western extension of the conges- Bank. TfL estimated that the sign for the Boris bus. The con- London as a priority. tion charge zone and scrap the scheme would cost taxpayers cept is mired in controversy. A At present planners are looking at plan to pedestrianise Parliament £225m by 2015/16. Of this, Bar- critical objection is that, although an extension of the Bakerloo line from Square. It seemed that these acts clays was due to contribute £12m open to the public, it will remain the Elephant and Castle to Lewisham signified the ending of restraints but in the event got away with a private space subject to any and possibly over the line on the private car, characteristic just £5m. But his most visible rules which the owner cares to to Hayes although a branch towards of the Livingstone era, and legacy is the network of cycle su- impose. Although private, £60m Peckham and Crystal Palace could also indeed Johnson followed it up by perhighways which is due to be worth of public money has been be considered. Conventional deep level abolishing the hierarchy of continued under Sadiq Khan. allocated to it; £30m from the tunnelling is both highly expensive and transport modes which put the Other Johnson schemes might GLA by courtesy of Johnson and takes a considerable time to construct use of the private car at the best be described as vanity proj- £30m from the treasury. Whilst but new methods have resolved many bottom. ects, expensive and quirky. First not formally opposing the bridge issues. It should be possible to use up Johnson’s love for motor traffic is the ‘Boris bus’. Johnson looked Sadiq Khan has ruled that no to date cut and cover construction for seems confirmed by his champi- back with nostalgia at the time more public money should be the majority of the route, running main- oning of new roads, tunnels and when it was possible to jump on spent pending a review. ly through publicly owned land with bridges. New Lower Thames and off buses at traffic lights or This is a period when positive negligible disturbance to existing crossings are a continuation of even when moving, as one could steps need to be taken to wean buildings and businesses. Other parts Livingstone’s proposals but a do with the iconic Routemaster. people off cars. Apart from the could exploit the remarkable legacy of number of new tunnels includes The new ones cost almost cycle schemes Johnson has not abandoned Victorian infrastructure an 18 kilometre tunnel linking twice as much as a conventional contributed to this project. across South London such as has been the A40 at Park Royal to the A12 double decker. Their open rear Chris Barker instrumental in creating such schemes as the Docklands Light Railway, the highly successful Overground network and, currently, the re-routing via the Croxley link, to Watford Junction. Major redevelopment opportunities Better interchanges for housing and economic growth On 2nd June London TravelWatch held a seminar on transport inter- across South London would be facili- changes. The issue had been addressed in a TravelWatch report in July tated by improvements in the transport 2015. Three themes were highlighted: network. Indeed, with the improvements to connectivity these opportunities will • That passengers can change seamlessly from one mode of transport to another, there is level access from bus to street to platform to train spread much further across the South floor; navigating within and around the station is easy to do; and there East and in addition reduce the in- is sufficient room for movement even in the busiest periods of the day, creasing pressure on the current over stretched national rail services Where signs are needed, they are of good quality, in the right places, • provided by South Eastern and South- clearly visible, ern services. They are all achievable Passengers feel safe in and around the interchange. on a cost-effective basis, and would • The seminar included a contribution from Natalie Doig from the enhance the overall effectiveness of RNIB who stressed the importance of considering the needs of blind and the transport infrastructure in South partially sighted people in the designs of stations and interchanges. She London. also said that there should be a greater availability of tactile maps. Peter Cox and Alastair Hanton

3 NEWS ROUNDUP

Bus users or cyclists Floating bus stops A report from bus lobby group How can cyclists get around bus Greener Journeys documents stops? One solution is to route the recent deterioration in bus cycle lane around the back of the speeds in London. This is due, bus stop, effectively making the says author David Begg, to a bus stop an island between the number of factors including road and the cycle lane. This economic recovery, roadworks, successfully keeps cyclists away the rising number of delivery from the traffic but, Transport for vans and private hire vehicles – All claims, creates a hazard for driven by Uber – and the pedestrians, particularly pedestri- construction of the cycle super ans with disabilities, who have to highways. cross the cycle lane when Begg is critical of former may- accessing the stop or alighting or, Boris Johnson, for going from a bus. ahead with the cycle super high- Transport for All is asking TfL to ways without at the same time monitor the six sites where float- taking steps to reduce traffic vol- ing bus stops are in use and to umes. The resulting congestion stop building more bus stop by- particularly hits bus users. He passes till the results of this are suggests that this bias is a result known. They are particularly con- of a powerful, white, middle class cerned about a proposed floating cycling lobby skewing investment bus stop outside St Thomas’s Hos- in their favour against predomi- pital and on 28th June organised nantly poorer bus passengers. a protest to mark the launch of le- Sadiq Khan has said he will gal action against TfL’s proposals. ‘learn from previous [cycling] LISTEN to passengers. Alongside schemes’ when making decisions Dealing with London’s toxic air a senior manager from Southern Terminating on those schemes which have and a Union official, attend a Pas- not yet been implemented. Simon Birkett, director of Clean HS2 at Old Air London has praised Sadiq senger Assembly we will organise, and answer questions directly! Second thoughts Khan for his action plan to battle FREEZE FARES for Southern cus- Oak Common on London’s toxic air. His plan, says tomers from January for one year. Birkett, ‘contrasts strongly with Sustainable transport campaigner About 47 percent of national COMPENSATE Southern custom- Boris Johnson’s who bought us Stephen Plowden argues that the rail passengers transfer to ers to make up for the15% de- 1,000 “vanity buses”, champi- or crease in services. case against Old Oak Common as a Docklands Light Railway services oned “car is king” policies and terminal for HS2 has not been on arrival at their central London was found guilty of public health Investigation into traffic properly evaluated. rail terminus. So says the March fraud on an industrial scale’. congestion He says: The present plan is for the report of the National Infrastruc- Birkett is, however, concerned The London Assembly’s Transport HS2 London terminus to be at Euston that Khan is proposing to charge ture Commission, Review of the Committee has held an investiga- with a stop at Old Oak Common, (and not ban) diesel vehicles and Case for Large scale Transport tion into traffic congestion in where there will also be a Crossrail may not make the so-called ultra Investment in London. Taking its London, examining what the connection providing very quick low emission zone (ULEZ) bigger cue from the Paris RER system, Mayor and Transport for London access to central London and Canary until September 2020. He says the report suggests that more can do to reduce congestion. Wharf. If the terminus were changed ‘that it is mathematically impossi- main line trains should be The Assembly says that ‘Following to Old Oak Common, those ble for London to comply with diverted from their termini and a long period of relative stability, travellers for whom Euston would WHO guidelines for nitrogen diox- linked across London. Already St London’s roads have been getting be a more convenient interchange ide (NO2) until 2025 or beyond Pancras is linked with Blackfriars busier and more congested for at would suffer a time penalty. The unless all diesel vehicles are through and soon least the last two years. Average number of these travellers has banned from the most-polluted Liverpool Street will be linked traffic speed has fallen, as has been exaggerated, and for most of places’. with Paddington through journey time reliability on Lon- them the penalty would be small. He also calls for toxic pollution don’s main roads. Excess waiting Crossrail. This leaves a number of No attempt has been made to from private hire vehicles (PHVs) times for buses has increased.’ termini untouched. compare these penalties to the and licensed taxis to be tackled. The consequences include harm Two suggestions might make net savings in costs of all kinds (re- the regional concept of Crossrail He wants the exemption from the to London’s economy, increasing air pollution and a threat to road sources, social and environmental) 2 redundant. One is to extend congestion charge for all PHVs to safety. that would be achieved by not the Northern City line be scrapped in 2017 since they do They list some of the causes of bringing the line east of Old Oak via Cannon Street to Waterloo not guarantee accessibility as tax- these trends. There have been in- Common, but there is every reason using a proposed fifth track be- is do. He wants all taxis to be zero creases in the number of delivery to think that these savings would tween Waterloo and Clapham emission by 2018. vans and minicabs whilst at the be much greater, even allowing for Junction. Another is to extend an Protest against Southern same time capacity has been real- the extra costs that would be in- enhanced Lea Valley line via curred at Old Oak Common to On 10th August CBT teamed up located to pedestrians and cy- Stratford and the Isle of Dogs to make it the terminus rather than a with the Association of British clists. Construction work has con- join the . stop. The argument that the Cross- Commuters to organise a march strained space further across the Crossrail 2, it is suggested, might rail connection from Old Oak Com- from Victoria to the Department road network. then revert to being a metro line mon to central London would not of Transport to make three The closing date for contribut- linking Wimbledon with New have enough capacity cannot be demands on Southern Railway: ing to the investigation was 2nd Southgate. September. substantiated. 4