Caroline Pidgeon AM joined local residents, staff from King’s College Hospital and politicians from all parties at a campaign rally on Friday 26 June at Denmark Hill Station to save the South London Line. This is the loop line that runs all day from Victoria to London Bridge. By 2012 Denmark Hill will have no direct trains to London Bridge and only 2 trains per hour to Victoria.
Caroline Pidgeon has tabled a question to Boris Johnson to ask why, during the engineering work disrupting the Jubilee line this summer, replacement buses from Canada Water are being directed to Bank rather than along the line's normal route to Waterloo.
"It seems extraordinary that TfL decide on where to route rail replacement buses without, it would appear, consulting the local community," says Caroline.
The Hounslow Chronicle covers the story of the double red lines painted by mistake on Lower Mortlake Road in Richmond, and the efforts of Susan Kramer MP and Caroline Pidgeon AM in having them removed.
Caroline tabled a question on the issue to Boris Johnson, who admitted: "An error was made, resulting in TfL’s contractors installing double red lines in advance of a decision being made on the necessary traffic orders. ... Any red lines introduced prematurely and without a valid traffic order will not be enforced."
Caroline's questions in June's Mayor's Question Time, and Boris Johnson's answers, are now on the London Assembly's website.
Caroline covered a number of topics, including:
The full questions and answers are here.
Caroline Pidgeon, Lib Dem chair of the London Assembly's Transport Committee, has visited the Tiger's Head junction between Bromley Road and Whitefoot Lane in Lewisham. In the video above, Caroline speaks about her campaign to have the Mayor and Transport for London act on junctions like this which put pedestrians in danger.
Caroline has also continued her support for a pedestrian crossing at the dangerous junction of Courthill Road and Lewisham High Street.
Caroline joined Lib Dem Councillors and campaigners and Nonsuch By-Election candidate Gerry Jerome at Worcester Park on Saturday 20th June to campaign to get Central Road moving!
Traffic engineers believe that changing the phasing of the traffic lights will see great improvements. However, despite much disturbance whilst the road was dug up and new cabling was installed, Transport for London have not made the necessary changes.
Caroline Pidgeon AM recently visited Harrow on the Hill to put her support behind the campaign by Harrow Observer to have the long-awaited lifts installed at the station. Caroline was joined by local Lib Dem Councillors Chris Noyce and Paul Scott.
Step-free access is vital at this station which sees around 10 million people use it every year. It is an important interchange between two branches of the Metropolitan line and the London Marylebone to Aylesbury overground rail service.
Caroline recently visited the junction of Tavistock Place and Marchmont Street with local campaigner Lee Baker and Local Residents’ Association Chair Ricci de Freitas, to look at how dangerous the road layout had become.
The junction had been redesigned by Transport for London, resulting in a very strange cycle lane, with arrows going in all directions at one point, and pedestrian crossings not where people actually cross the road.
Caroline has presented to Boris Johnson a petition supported by 620 Lewisham residents demanding a pedestrian crossing at the junction of Courthill Road and Lewisham High Street. The petition was organised by Lewisham Central Councillors, Dave Edgerton and Andrew Milton.
On Wednesday 10 June, Caroline spoke on behalf of the Liberal Democrat Group on a motion about the proposed super-prison in Dagenham.
The proposal came out of the blue for local residents who were led to believe that the London Riverside regeneration area would lead to new housing and local community facilities.
"It was unbelievable that the Government announced this site for a super prison, even though it had not even featured on a list of possible sites obtained under the Freedom of Information Act. The local community needs to be properly consulted on this and to decide if a prison should feature at all in the plans to regenerate this site owned by the London Development Agency," commented Caroline Pidgeon AM.