Category Archives: Blog

London Transport Users Committee

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Roger Evans (Conservative member of my Transport Committee at the London Assembly, and the man who leads for me looking after the London Transport Users Committee, LTUC) and I had a meeting with LTUC today.

Unfortunately, they had presented a number of reports to the previous transport committee meeting which had run into a huge amount of flack from members.

This was the ‘sort out the way forward’ meeting. Emotions were running high – but I think we have a way forward. It isn’t a natural place for an independent voice for transport users to be placed by government legislation under the Assembly’s auspices. It is throwing up all sorts of difficulties which need sorting and which have skated along without proper rigour for the three years of the GLA to date.

Meeting with residents in Fortis Green

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The Lib Dem Fortis Green councillors had invited a variety of local residents to come and have a chat about local issues at Tetherdown Church in Haringey.

It was a good evening. We covered the development by Barnet of the library/Waitrose site where Barnet are consulting on options for a new library – but – they do not mention that the other half of the site may be the subject of a planning application for a Waitrose Store and on which the library depends (we think).

We roved over the progress with reopening Muswell Hill Police front counter. Last update from the local commander was that the costings for the physical work had been done and he was just trying to get the work funded. At which point – I think we will be able to consider this a goer.

And lots more to do with the general chaos around Haringey Councils traffic schemes, inability to keep the streets clean and so on.

Traffic troubles

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I went traffic trouble shooting around and about in Muswell Hill this morning, meeting two Haringey Council officers to take them to look at some of the nasty traffic situations in my patch.

I dragged them to Coldfall Primary school so that if and when their bid for resources is granted (hopefully) they can begin urgent work to bring in safety measures. The children there are not protected and it is downright dangerous at both entrances.

I took them to the completely unacceptable situation at the top of Muswell Hill itself – where trying to cross the road you take your life in your hands where they have now created three lanes out of two – directly against what had been agreed.

And we glanced through the rotten junction at the bottom of Cranley Gardens, the speeding on Priory Road now it is cleared of parked cars and so on.

Travel for NHS staff

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I met the travel-planning team at the Whittington Hospital, North London.

I am very keen on travel planning and Indi marketing. This is basically looking at an individual’s life and supplying them with a tailor-made plan of how to get around using mostly public transport.

This has had stunning results elsewhere in the world and I was instrumental in getting TfL to pilot it in this country. I’m very keen to encourage corporate bodies who are willing to take travel planning seriously.

Plus I knew nothing about the allegations about a senior royal – but all day various news media have now made me aware that the person involved is Prince Charles – and his staff say he is innocent. That has just left me wondering what he got up to! It may be common currency in the media and amongst the cognoscenti – but clearly I’ve been out the loop!

Stop and search

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This afternoon there was a session of the London Assembly’s Stop and Search Scrutiny, on which I am Vice Chair.

This session saw the Muslim Association for Human Rights give evidence, as did three Met officers from Lambeth. This is such an interesting scrutiny to be involved in – the coal face really of racism in the Met.

But what a difficult balance to get right … very good session.

Politics Show

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I appeared on the Politics Show on BBC1 today. My daughter came with me to see it filmed at City Hall – only so that I could take her on to Tate Modern to see the ‘Weather’ exhibit.

The subjects for the show were ‘Super Boroughs’ and speed humps.

Mayor Livingstone has said that he would like to get rid of the London Boroughs and replace them with five Super Boroughs. There were three Assembly Members there to argue the toss. My comment was that we should be wary when the Mayor wants Super Boroughs and that we have to ask ourselves – super for who?

You can be sure if the Mayor wants them it is because he is not getting on with the 32 boroughs we have already got.

Moreover, experience has showed me that the more you pull power into a centralised system – and the further away that is from where services are delivered on the street – the worse those services get.

On road humps – this has come up because I have put an investigation on the agenda for the Transport Committee at the Assembly, which I chair. I have long been interested in their efficacy – and no work has really been done on this across London.

I have called for evidence from many organisations across London and from individuals with tales to tell.

My hope is that we will find ways of retaining the benefits of reduced speed while removing the drawbacks of noise, pollution and the 500 deaths per year the ambulance service say result from having to slow down because of humps. So watch this space.

Southwood Lane bus route

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I met Nick Lewin and Steve Walker from Transport for London to walk the proposed length of the new, soon to be trialled, Muswell Hill to Swiss Cottage bus route.

This vital route is one I have campaigned on with others for six years and finally Mayor Livingstone bowed to public pressure and it is to be introduced in January for a 6 month trial of 4 buses a day at school peak hours.

But nothing is easy – and the residents of Southwood Lane, where the bus will be routed, are really worried that the road is too narrow and that congestion will increase. They are also worried that TfL will move back a retaining wall which will mean loss of trees and that the on-street parking will be taken away.

I walked the route with the two key managers of the route to put all the residents’ points two them. Most of the points were well answered – no removal of parking and no cut back of the retaining wall. However, I think there may well be congestion at the top of the road.

I have asked TfL to turn the bus right at Archway Road and bring it round a wider road – but the officers say the right turn would make traffic stack back up Southwood Lane even worse than now.

There is a meeting next week between the key objectors, myself and TfL. My own view is that the trial will show any problems – and TfL have promised to amend the route if necessary.

Racism in the police

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This morning’s meeting of the Met Police Authority (MPA) opened with a discussion on the Secret Policeman programme screened by the BBC. There was much breast beating, and to be fair – the Met and the MPA have been ‘determined’ to stamp out racism in the Met. But they have clearly failed judging by the revelations in the show.

I wasn’t hugely shocked by the programme myself. I have always believed that we are only a breath away from the uncivilised – and that racism runs deep in the Met. But I am hopeful that the voices are sincere and that recruits will be screened more thoroughly and that training and follow-through improves.

However, where I took my leave of the Met’s Sir John Stevens statement that the Met must be exemplar – and more so than any other body – was that whilst I do believe you may be able to screen out the worst of it, I don’t believe you can completely eradicate it.

What I do expect, is that the professional standards expected of our officers overrides any unacceptable underlying views, and that any overt racist behaviour or comment be absolutely unacceptable to any officer of the Met if he or she witnesses it.

A culture of acceptance or collusion must be expelled. It would never be accepted in the teaching profession. It would be reported and the individual sacked – so it should be in the police force.

Tube derailments

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Today I chaired an emergency London Assembly Transport Committee meeting about the Tube. In attendance were:

– ASLEF and RMT from the union,

– Tim O’Toole (the man in charge of the Tube for Transport for London) and Mike Streslecki (safety director for London Underground), and

– both the Chief Execs from the private consortia (Tubelines – Camden derailment and Metronet – Hammersmith derailment).

So all the key players were in the room.

The key concerns emerged quite clearly:

– all parties agreed that the maintenance done on both lines pre-accidents was up to the standard specified in the PPP contract. Therefore the conclusion drawn to in the room – subject to the results of the enquiry – are that the standards specified within the contract are inadequate.

– the unions angrily voiced that their staff often reported faults with track or equipment and were ignored. I found this a terrifying piece of information – as did clearly Tim O’Toole who promised to address this immediately.

– the inspection regime did not pick up any faults, therefore it is likely that this is also not of a standard required to ensure that faults are found.

– Bob Kiley went on the record just after the accident to say that he needed more information from Tubelines (who manage the infrastructure on the Northern Line). There was a terse response from Tubeline’s Chief Executive, Terry Morgan, that he was supplying all necessary information. So at the emergency summit, I put their dispute directly to Tim O’Toole (on Bob Kiley’s behalf) and Terry Morgan as they were in the room together. What transpired was that Bob Kiley was actually asking for more and different information from that which Tubelines were contracted to supply. I basically said that was unacceptable to traveling Londoners who, if the Commissioner of Transport said he needed more information to run the Tube, expected him to get it. Terry Morgan said he would address it and would supply it. And I asked for a report back on progress on this within a couple of weeks.

What all this points at particularly, I think, is the weakness of the contract regime sitting on top of a dilapidating infrastructure that will not be improved quickly enough within the PPP contracts.

You can’t blame Tubelines for not supplying requirements outside of the contract – that is the nature of a contract. However, who pays for what is needed over and above the PPP contract (and that is going to be a lot of different and large bills)?

My own personal view is that the Government should be legally liable as it was responsible for signing off a contract which was inadequate in terms of maintenance standards, inspections and supply of information – and that’s only what is showing itself so far.

However, Mayor Livingstone is politically responsible and accountable – and the onus is therefore on him to ensure that the standards of maintenance, inspection etc. are at a level where London can have confidence in the integrity of the infrastructure.

This doesn’t even touch on what the ambition for decent standards on the Tube should be.

Missing days

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Events dear boy! Sorry for gap – but the Camden Tube derailment and half-term…

I heard yesterday on the news about the Camden and Hammersmith Tube derailments – two within the space of 36 hours beggared belief – so I immediately summonsed the key players to an emergency meeting of the Transport Committee of the London Assembly, which I chair, on Thursday.