Green dismay at London transport rises
London Greens have reacted with dismay to the news that tube fares in London are likely to rise.
In a radio interview yesterday, the London Mayor, Ken Livingstone, said that prices for the tubes, buses and congestion charge would have to rise – potentially above the rate of inflation – to fund investment for the future.
No exact details about the price rises have yet been revealed.
The news was greeted with dismay from the Greens, who called for any increase in fares to be matched by an increase in the congestion charge and a doubling of the charge for larger vehicles such as 4x4s.
Assembly member Jenny Jones, said: “The reason we are having fare rises in London is that Government is spending billions of pounds on widening motorways and building new roads, rather than backing public transport.
“London’s successful expansion of the buses has shown that we can get people out of their cars if there is an efficient, fairly cheap alternative.”
Transport spokesman Darren Johnson stressed he would back increased car taxes, saying: “Four wheel drives are more polluting and dangerous than regular cars and have no place in central London. Most people who drive them in London are just making a very expensive, gas guzzling, fashion statement.”
The Conservatives were also angry at the news – though for entirely different reasons. Their ire focuses on the likely increased to the congestion charge, which they claimed would decimate small business.
Assembly member Angie Bray, said: “The £5 congestion charge is a tax that has decimated small business within the existing zone. Imagine what a higher charge will do to businesses within the expanded zone the Mayor is planning!
“Ken is like a spoilt child in a sweet shop, he has no comprehension of money and insists on buying everything at once. Faced with a £1bn funding gap for the plans he wants to implement, he needs not just to raise taxes but decide which of his projects are really necessary. He must learn to prioritise because Londoners can’t keep being bled dry.”
