The South London Press reports on remarks by the Mayor’s director of transport policy, Kulveer Ranger:
TRAM campaigners have been given fresh hope after the Mayor’s top transport advisor was reported as saying it would be “top of the list” when they next
lobbied for Government funding.
Hopes for a Cross River Tram (CRT), which would link Peckham and Brixton with King’s Cross north of the river, were dashed when Mayor Boris Johnson announced there was not enough cash for the project in November. But at a committee meeting, as part of the State of London debate on Saturday, Kulveer Ranger, the Mayor’s director of transport policy, told the audience Mr Johnson was “keen to see the CRT going forward and it would be top of his list” when he next asked the Government for funding.
London Assembly member Caroline Pidgeon, chairwoman of the transport committee, said: “I wrote it down because I thought ‘I can’t believe he just said that’.
“In response to a question, Kulveer Ranger said Boris would like to see the CRT going forward and it would be top of his list for lobbying the Government for funding.
“So I am writing to Boris and Kulveer to ask for clarification of what they mean by that, because it’s the first I have ever heard of it.
“But that’s what Kulveer said and he is Boris’s key transport advisor.”
Phil Bale, chairman of residents’ group Evolution Quarter Residents’ Association, who lobbied for the tram to come to Peckham, said: “It’s nice to hear some positive news about the tram for once, but we need some clarification of what Kulveer Ranger said.”
Hurrah! It was I who asked this question.
ReplyDeleteMuch of Kulveer Ranger's response was the usual "we are not supporting unfunded projects" line, but I too was surprised when he said that CRT was "top of the list".
In a way, it conflicts with what the Mayor was saying at the plenary about new projects, where he focused on south London tube extensions - ie Battersea (although this, to be fair to him, was in response to a question about those projects he would support were money no object).
Still, it's positive.
Exacly what I thought - the Mayor was banging on about all sorts of things in the plenary (where someone asked what he'd do if money wasn't a worry). Dagenham Dock DLR and Tramlink to Crystal Palace are the ones I remember there.
ReplyDeleteRanger was rather wayward and unimpressive, I thought, one moment lambasting Wolmar and co. for being old and out of touch, the next praising the congestion charge. You can't have it both ways, chummy.
Nearly forgot, one of the transport projects Boris mentioned (apart from the Blackwall Third Crossing) was the Thames Tideway Tunnel. Since this is designed to carry, er, sewage, I think someone needs to have a word with the old boy.
ReplyDeleteYes - and the way he was criticising transport planners for having a hierarchical approach to separating public space between different modes - and then in the next sentence praising the new "cycle highways" (which could have that precise criticism levelled against them) - seemed contradictory.
ReplyDeleteAh! So *that's* what the Tideway Tunnel is - I was perplexed by that one!
A lot of 'Borisism' becomes clearer when you realise the aim is to perplex you sufficiently that you only realise why it doesn't make sense after he's stopped taking questions and preferably after he's left the building.
ReplyDeleteHopefully (because I support the CRT) Boris' advisers are aware of the realpolitik maxim which says "do a sideshow for your core support, do a warm-up show for your peripheral support, and do the main act for your opposition's peripheral support"
ReplyDeleteI suppose there will come a point however when Boris is deep into his second term when it will become obvious that due to his cuts in planning, there will be no forthcoming transport projects.
ReplyDeleteThis in turn will reflect very badly on Boris (who may have further ambitions) and on whoever the tories line up to run for mayor post-Boris. Bearing in mind that the economy by this stage will be in recovery and transport will once again be stretched.
He must be aware that short-termism is fatal in running a large city; and he is keenly aware of his political future. So I would imagine that he will want to back and see at least some way to fruition a transport project that he gave the 'green light' to rather than just opening something that Ken started.
As such I would have thought that one of the cheaper infrastructure projects would get a go ahead. One of the tram projects perhaps?
The key question is:- is anyone actively working on these projects?
ReplyDeleteIf you have even one person working on a project, it can come out of the drawer when funding is available. If there's no-one working on it, no-one will shout for it when funding is available.
Guano
"I suppose there will come a point however when Boris is deep into his second term"
ReplyDeleteNot if I can help it there won't!
Anyone would have thought that the right hand didn't know what the left hand was doing in the Johnson administration...
ReplyDeleteWait till you kids see the Cycle Highway stuff that TfL has recently been showing off. It is a clear demonstration that no one in TfL has any idea about any thing or any experience in the tasks they are undertaking.
ReplyDeleteSorry - but only a teaser for now. I'm Boris will announce something totally untrue about the project shortly. I can't begin to comprehend how much of a pain he must be to manage.
Glad to see that everyone's so enthusiastic about Boris!
ReplyDeleteAt least lobbying for funding for a high-profile and (comparatively) cheap project like CRT would, I agree, be sensible. More so than for South London tube extensions (the need for which might be partially offset by CRT, in any case).
And, I suppose, Boris can claim one project that he's green lit - ELLX phase 2... although I'm not sure that this really counts.
I am intrigued by all this "cycle highway" stuff - is this similar to the segregated cycle facilities that Camden Council put in place around Bloomsbury / Tottenham Court Road about eight, ten years ago?