The Richmond and Twickenham Times newspaper is campaigning for Boris Johnson to meet disabled bus users from Richmond and hear from them at first hand about the inadequate public transport services they have to use.
Caroline Pidgeon is supporting the campaign and says:
I hope Boris Johnson, who is chairman of Transport for London (TfL), comes and hears at first hand about the appalling treatment facing Clare Watson and many other disabled people.
The Mayor must now take a lead on this issue and ensure that bus services across London really are accessible for everyone.
Caroline Pidgeon AM, Leader of the London Assembly Lib Dems, joined senior Lib Dems including Lynne Featherstone MP, Sarah Ludford MEP, and party president Ros Scott, at the Pride London 2010 event on Saturday 3rd July - the UK's largest annual LGBT event.
Caroline Pidgeon is backing a campaign by Vince Cable MP to reroute the 110 bus route through Whitton. Caroline has already received a huge petition of over 2000 signatures from local residents which she will present at Mayor's Question Time in May. In the meantime, she has also written to the Mayor urging him to consider extending the bus route.
Vince Cable has also this week met a delegation from Transport for London to persuade them of the case for the extended bus route.
Caroline Pidgeon has backed a High Court action launched by local authorities, green groups and residents' groups, challenging the government's decision to approve a third runway and sixth terminal at Heathrow Airport.
The coalition’s lawyers will be claiming in court that the consultation process was fundamentally flawed, that the decision to expand Heathrow is at odds with the UK’s overall climate change targets, and that the number of measures introduced to pass the plans through Parliament mean the expansion is fundamentally different to the proposals on which the Government consulted the public in 2007. The Transport Department’s lawyers are now claiming the new measures were not part of the decision to expand Heathrow.
If the coalition wins, the decision to proceed with the runway may be overturned.
As part of the London Liberal Democrats' Campaign For Better Stations, Caroline Pidgeon joined south-west London MPs Ed Davey, Tom Brake and Susan Kramer on a visit to Waterloo station.
The Waterloo International platforms, which Eurostar trains used until their move to St Pancras in 2007, are still completely unused - in such a congested station as Waterloo, this is a wasted resource which should be put to use to improve services for commuters from south-west London.
Across London, the Lib Dems have a 5-point plan for better rail stations:
The Hounslow Chronicle covers the story of the double red lines painted by mistake on Lower Mortlake Road in Richmond, and the efforts of Susan Kramer MP and Caroline Pidgeon AM in having them removed.
Caroline tabled a question on the issue to Boris Johnson, who admitted: "An error was made, resulting in TfL’s contractors installing double red lines in advance of a decision being made on the necessary traffic orders. ... Any red lines introduced prematurely and without a valid traffic order will not be enforced."
Liberal Democrat councils have the best record of any political party in supporting the growth in car clubs across London.
This week Transport for London granted £1 million of funding to support the growth of car clubs across London over the next years. Less than two thirds of London boroughs actually applied for funding (19 out of 33 boroughs), yet all seven Liberal Democrat councils in London rose to the challenge and successfully secured funding for their boroughs.
Commenting on the news that North Sheen rail station is to have its pedestrian footbridge restored by Network Rail so that it serves both sides of the Manor Road crossing, Assembly Member Caroline Pidgeon, the Liberal Democrat Transport spokesperson at the London Assembly, said:
"I am delighted to have been able to work with Susan Kramer and the local Lib Dem Councillors to get top rail people together in Richmond for a summit to thrash out the issues. This is great news for local people and will stop people risking their lives just to get a train.
London Liberal Democrats are demanding urgent action to ease traffic congestion at key level crossing bottlenecks in Richmond.
Following a “summit” meeting with Network Rail, South West Trains and London Overground at Richmond’s Civic Centre, Caroline Pidgeon AM, the Liberal Democrats’ transport spokesperson at the London Assembly, says: “Richmond residents and traders have had to put up with endless delays and traffic queues for far too long. We need new solutions which’ll balance the needs of the rail commuters, who need a frequent service and longer trains, with the need to keep traffic moving.”
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