IBM’s Watson supercomputer to solve the mobility problem in tie-up with Volkswagen’s SEAT February 26, 2019 IBM and Volkswagen's Spanish unit SEAT have unveiled a standalone app that hopes to predict what mode of transport and route is best for urban users through artificial intelligence (AI). The app, called Mobility Advisor, will utilise the power of IBM's Watson supercomputer to present commuters with the best way to navigate cities, whether that's [...]
Sadiq Khan gets green light to increase council tax and business rates to tackle violent crime February 25, 2019 The London Assembly has backed Sadiq Khan's budget which includes plans to give an extra £234m to policing and tackling violent crime through council tax and business rate hikes. Around £95m has already been announced for the Metropolitan police, which has to make £263m worth of cuts by 2022-23. The £95m announced last December will be funded mostly from [...]
Crossrail bosses hope to give estimate for new opening date ‘by April’ February 25, 2019 London mayor Sadiq Khan has said there is no date that Crossrail chief executive Mark Wild can give "with confidence" for when the delayed railway will open, but that he hopes to give an estimate by the end of this financial quarter. The £17.6bn Elizabeth Line, which will stretch from Shenfield in the east to Reading in the [...]
U-Lez Miserable? London’s small businesses need support on new emissions rules February 25, 2019 A week is a long time in politics, or so goes the famous adage by former Prime Minister Harold Wilson. And it is apparent that a week and a half will be a very long time indeed in the world of small businesses, between 29 March and 8 April. With our departure from the European [...]
Critics hit out at Sadiq Khan’s ‘blunt’ junk food advertising ban to tackle child obesity February 24, 2019 Sadiq Khan's advertising ban on junk food across London's transport networks has come into force today, as part of the mayor's bid to tackle child obesity in the capital. Junk food advertising will be banned on the London Underground and at bus stops across London following a public consultation in May which received 1,500 responses, with 82 [...]
Focus On Roehampton: Thinking of living in Wandsworth? Consider this leafy spot instead and you could save £100,000 February 22, 2019 The thing about university towns is they’re always full of students. This doesn’t just make them a great property investment for Revolution bars and Wetherspoons, but also for landlords who fear void periods, even if it means occasionally having to get Pot Noodle stains out of the carpet. The University of Roehampton – incidentally, the [...]
Everyone deserves to feel like they belong in our great city February 22, 2019 Division is not a new phenomenon. Historically, our city has in the past experienced unbearable, seemingly irreconcilable differences. Nevertheless, London’s unique history and success have always been built not just on free markets, but on the free movement of people and an openness to those who are different from us. That is as true now as [...]
Revealed: These are London’s most stressful Tube stations February 21, 2019 There’s nothing that Londoners love more than hating the Tube – and their local Tube station, in particular. But thanks to new research by web conferencing firm Powwownow we can officially name and shame the very worst of the worst. Read more: Citymapper launches contactless London travelcard for commuters Powwownow crossed Transport for London (TfL) 2017-18 data [...]
Rail and bus firm Go Ahead upgrades full-year outlook despite drop in profits February 21, 2019 Profits at rail and bus operator the Go Ahead Group dropped by more than 50 per cent in the second half of last year due to the scrapping of its London Midland franchise and poor financial performance for Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR). However, although rail operating profit fell from £40.3m to £17.6m in the six months ending [...]
Port of Tilbury £200m London project gets green light February 20, 2019 Authorities have given the green light for a £200m port project on the outskirts of London, in a bid to deal with rising demand from the construction, manufacturing and retail sectors. The Department for Transport (DfT) gave the project its blessing yesterday, meaning work on the second terminal at the Port of Tilbury in Thurrock [...]