Forget speed bumps and cycle lanes: Why Britain’s roads should be more like ice rinks January 26, 2016 Over the festive period, many of you would have ventured to Somerset House or Winter Wonderland to ice-skate. Taking to the rink, you would have seen children skating for the first time while clasping their parent’s hand, as other adults whizzed round at high speed. Each individual, including you, moved at their own speed, judging [...]
How we can mobilise public sector land to build the homes London needs January 26, 2016 In 1941, under tremendous pressure to increase food production, the war cabinet commissioned a National Farm Survey. It sought to identify uncultivated agricultural land, as well as new land to support the dig for victory. It resulted in 36,000 maps and was nicknamed the “Second Domesday Book”. Under pressure to identify land for new homes [...]
Tube strike 2016: RMT has called off action scheduled for 26 January at 11th hour – but February’s strikes could still be on January 25, 2016 Update: The UK's largest transport union RMT has called off this week's Tube strike, after receiving a new pay deal from Transport for London. The Tube strike was due to start at 9.15pm on Tuesday 26 January and run until the same time on Wednesday 27 January. This was then to be followed by two further 24 hour strikes [...]
Why TfL running London trains is actually a terrible idea for the capital January 21, 2016 Whenever something does not work properly, we demand a “fat controller” to sort it out – especially when it comes to trains. Sure, there are many aspects of our transport system that are grossly unsatisfactory, but, certain facts do stand out and they do not point in the direction of more state control of the [...]
London trains turning Overground orange will revolutionise the capital and commuters’ journeys January 21, 2016 The London Underground map is a design classic. But it has one major problem: there’s not enough orange – the colour of London Overground. And there’s not enough south London, which is a foreign land to most of the tube network. London’s suburban rail users – particularly in south London – are faced with a [...]
Everyone agrees TfL running London’s trains like the Overground is a brilliant idea January 21, 2016 It's pretty difficult to bring together political parties and several different parts of government and get them to agree, but now there's one thing that has – an apparent shared dislike of commuter trains into London. Nothing brings people together like a collective resentment towards train companies such as Southeastern, Southern and Thameslink, and now plans to [...]
London trains are about to become the Overground: Transport for London will take over running of commuter trains into capital from Southeastern, Southern, Thameslink and Great Northern January 21, 2016 London's rail services will be taken over by Transport for London (TfL) in an effort to improve services into the capital. The news comes after another evening of commuter misery which left thousands of commuters stranded at Liverpool Street Station. Trains operating within greater London will come under the control of TfL when the franchises [...]
London mayoral election 2016: Conservative candidate Zac Goldsmith says he’s secured tighter rules for future Tube strikes January 21, 2016 Conservative candidate for mayor of London Zac Goldsmith today revealed that he has secured tighter rules to limit future Tube strikes. Goldsmith said that under new strike laws, all Transport for London (TfL) services will be considered “essential” and therefore require the support of 40 per cent of all eligible voters in a strike ballot. Goldsmith [...]
Tube strike 2016: Train drivers’ action over Night Tube set to be suspended January 20, 2016 Planned strikes by London Underground (LU) train drivers are set to be suspended, after progress was made in talks today between LU and the drivers' unions. Industrial action had been planned to begin on the evening of Tuesday 26 January, with further strikes to take place on Monday 15 February and Wednesday 17 February. Discussions between the parties [...]
London Liverpool Street Station in chaos as TfL rail and Greater Anglia services are suspended after a man was hit by a train near Bow January 20, 2016 Train services from London's Liverpool Street station were cancelled this evening, after a man was hit by a train near Bow. Thousands of passengers were left stranded, unable to return home, when TfL rail and all Greater Anglia services were cancelled while the emergency services were at work. Two of the four lines have reopened now, with Greater [...]