2 December - Am I too easily amused?
One of my earliest post-Bonkers political memories was Teresa Pearce’s
campaign for a lift at Erith station. I had no idea that London bound passengers
who were not fully mobile had to get a train to Dartford and come back again.
She raised
the issue in Parliament which prompted me to go and take a look for myself.
Teresa’ֹs campaigning website.
News Shopper Report.
Fix My Transport.
There have been a few rejections of her step free campaign since then but last week Erith station was
looked on favourably by Network Rail along with Albany Park, Falconwood and Sidcup.
Bexley
Conservatives were of course quick to step in to claim the credit.
If you Google for Erith station, lifts, step free etc. there are several hits referring to Teresa’s efforts.
If you substitute Albany Park, Sidcup or Falconwood you get none.
A search for Bexley station lifts reveals James Brokenshire MP claiming to have
been in contact with Network Rail, but that’s your lot! (And Bexley is not on Network Rail’s new list.)
There is no mention anywhere of anyone at Bexley Council complaining about step
free access at any of these stations although I recall that the problems at
Erith were mentioned at a Transport User’s Sub-Committee meeting.
If Bexley Conservatives did any lobbying it was a well kept secret and only
Teresa Pearce spoke about the issues in Parliament.
Perhaps that explains why the only photograph Bexley Conservatives could find to
illustrate their somewhat bogus Twitter claim was one featuring Labour MP Teresa Pearce.
P.S. I later found this from 2008.
Maybe Bexley Tories should have used that picture on their Tweet. Odd that they did nothing for the intervening ten years.