24 March (Part 3) - Going Places : Sustainable Transport
Before the Places Committee moved on to Sustainable Transport,
Brian Bishop the Cabinet Member for NFDS said there was nothing in his
portfolio that was not absolutely perfect. Things were going very very well,
CCTV was much better, housing was performing absolutely excellently and the best
team in London “and there is nothing in my portfolio that needs Reform at all”.
Who will shake this man out of his complacency next May?
There was no news on when the deferred Belvedere and Slade Green CPZs might be
implemented. The replacement of refuse vehicles has been deferred to see how
technology is changing. The existing fleet is being refurbished by CountryStyle.
Sustainable Transport had been a Task and Finish Group project led by Councillor
Mabel Ogundayo (Labour, Thamesmead East) who was disappointed by what she may have seen
as a lack of
support for her initiative but Councillors Cheryl Bacon, Sue Gower and Cameron
Smith were generous in their praise for it.
It is difficult to see why there should have been a falling out
among only three Group members but it resulted in two reports. The so called Majority report,
which might be described as an extension of the Minority report, the latter
being less
inclined to criticise the Mayor. The Majority Report included tables of
statistics which the Minority Report did not. Maybe, despite the kind words from
Conservative Councillors, there was a political battle behind it all.
The Majority Report made the following recommendations…
• Bexley Council should continue to support and lobby for both the extension of the DLR
to Belvedere and the Elizabeth Line to Gravesend.
• Bexley Council should continue to lobby Transport for London to review the SL3 route and add a stop in Bexley Village.
• Bexley Council should support Southeastern’s bid to the Department for Transport to replace outdated Networker trains.
• Bexley Council should continue to lobby Transport for London for zero-emission buses on routes serving Bexley.
• Bexley Council should consult residents on what specific improvements would make it easier to walk and cycle in our borough.
• Bexley Council should continue to push the Metropolitan Police for more resources to tackle speeding and dangerous driving locally.
• Bexley Council should promote cycle training provision so more residents can take advantage of the scheme.
• Bexley Council should expand on street EV charging provision
• Bexley Council should promote the expansion of car club schemes
and the Minority…
• Implement a sustainable borough-wide communications campaign promoting sustainable transport benefits via the council’s social media, local events, and partnership with community groups.
• Improved way finding and signage to encourage walking and cycling.
• Expand on a borough-wide transport behaviour change programme targeting schools, businesses and residents.
During the discussion, Councillor John Davey, criticised TfL buses for never listening to anyone. They have ignored him on SL3 stopping points and the imposition of ULEZ caused perfectly good cars to be scrapped.
A vote was taken but the Chairman did not announce the result. One might safely guess it was the Majority Report.
What good did the Task and Finish Group do? Probably none at all, but at least
they finished their Task.
The last one did not; overtaken by developing circumstances.
NFDS: Nigel Farage Derangement Syndrome.