Caroline Pidgeon

On Thursday 10 June Caroline joined other Assembly Members on a visit to meet residents who live near City Airport to hear their concerns about noise and pollution. The members then went and visited City Airport to talk to their Chief Executive and team about their plans and ways they work with the community.

"It was interesting to see around City Airport and to talk to local people about the impact it has on their lives. It is clear that all noise from airplanes using different airports needs to be mapped together in one place so that we can really understand the noise impact of London's airports on different parts of the capital," commented Caroline Pidgeon.

The London Assembly Transport Committee has launched a new report, questioning the sums Londoners are paying for the Crossrail project, and criticising the way compulsory purchases of businesses and homes have been handled.

In the report, 'Light at the end of the tunnel', the Committee recognises the value of the £16bn rail link project, which will bring an extra 10% capacity on London’s overcrowded rail and Tube network, thousands of new jobs and a massive boost to the national economy.

However, it questions the fairness of Londoners contributing the majority of the funding, when 8 of the 37 stations are outside Greater London, and the project is expected to generate £22bn for central government over the next ten years. It also points out Crossrail's poor handling of displaced businesses and residents whose premises are compulsory purchased to make way for construction work, especially in Soho.

The Mayor of London will soon be hearing about access problems facing wheelchair users on Ilford buses following a recent visit to Ilford by Caroline Pidgeon, the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Transport Spokesperson and Chair of the London Assembly Transport Committee.

On Wednesday (16th December) Caroline took up an invitation from Councillor Shoaib Patel to visit Ilford and find out at first hand some of the specific problems facing wheelchair users in using local buses, with a detailed briefing provided to her by wheelchair user Max Reid.

The issues raised with Caroline Pidgeon and Councillor Patel included ramps frequently not working or being too steep and also the lack of space on some buses for wheelchair users. Caroline Pidgeon and Councillor Patel also heard about the unhelpful attitude of some drivers towards disabled bus passengers.

Following the visit Caroline Pidgeon has promised to raise all the issues raised in Ilford with Boris Johnson through a series of written questions at the next Mayor’s Question Time in January.

Caroline was the guest speaker at Leyton and Wanstead Liberal Democrats’ AGM in November.

The rise in bus fares of 20%, threats to the Freedom Pass and concerns about City Airport noise and expansion were just some of the issues discussed.