Tag Archives: ulez

Hina Bokhari writes…Cargo bikes are an important tool towards cleaner air

Over the last few months, a heated debate has been taking place over the expansion of the Ultra Low Emissions Zone (ULEZ) to outer London.

While this debate has continued to rage, we shouldn’t forget there are other ways in which we can reduce air pollution in London and other towns and cities across the UK.

One of the most interesting, but least reported methods for reducing air pollution in our cities is the use of cargo bikes.

Cargo bikes are bicycles that allow you to carry cargo (or heavy loads) easily, with electrically assisted models being able to carry loads of up to 250kg. The goal of their use in London has been to move freight and delivery transport away from polluting road vehicles and towards a more sustainable, clean air friendly and congestion free model – in many ways adapting the model pioneered by food delivery companies like Deliveroo for much larger goods.

This is important because freight vehicles (large goods vehicles and heavy goods vehicles), make up 17% of total miles in London, but have a disproportionate impact on emissions and air quality. This amounts to a quarter of the total carbon emissions from transport, and around a third of the total nitrogen oxides and particulate matter from road transport.

Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged , , , and | 13 Comments

Victory in ULEZ campaign

On the doorstep, and on social media, in the ward where I live there has been one main topic recently – ULEZ. And of course it hugely influenced the by-election result in Uxbridge, which should have been a pushover for Labour. Sadiq Khan’s rollout of the Ultra-Low Emission Zone (and a daily charge of £12.50) to the whole of Greater London at the end of this month has been greeted with anger and derision, not to mention conspiracy theories.

This has put Liberal Democrats in a position which is sometimes difficult to articulate in political soundbites. On the one hand we firmly support measures that reduce air pollution and prevent unnecessary deaths. On the other hand we recognise that the implementation of the scheme could cause real hardship to people already angry about the cost of living crisis. But there is some good news at last.

When ULEZ was first introduced in inner London it covered an area with excellent public transport. Few of us in the suburbs would think of driving into the centre anyway because the Congestion Charge already applied. And there was an 18 month period in which residents could prepare for the new charge.

This time the Greater London extension to ULEZ was announced only months before it was due to come into effect, and across an area with far greater reliance on cars, where the tentacles of London’s transport system spread more widely. Now some 90% of cars are already ULEZ complaint but there is a real issue with the remaining 10%, which are largely older vehicles. Those owners most affected are people who are least able to afford to change their cars, especially given that their old ones are going to be virtually unsellable. There have also been heartfelt pleas from sole traders whose livelihoods are dependent on their aging white vans.

Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged , , and | 32 Comments

495 Uxbridge voters tip the whole UK climate policy into madness

Embed from Getty Images

Labour’s vote at Uxbridge went down (by-election compared to last general election). Our vote at Frome went up in the same comparison.

Within that context, it is not fanciful to suggest that if Labour had bussed in an extra 10 helpers the day before the Uxbridge by-election, they could well have won it.

So, it is therefore incredibly frustrating to see Rishi Sunak’s behaviour since July 20th.

We have seen “global boiling”, in the words of the UN Secretary General, becoming normal in July. Rhodes burning, Europe melting. The UK, so far, getting off luckily with fresh weather.

Yet, it seems that just 495 voters in Uxbridge have tipped Rishi Sunak (and Keir Starmer) into climate madness.

Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged , and | 17 Comments

The battle hum of the internal combustion engine

The ballots are in, the votes have been tallied, and the defining issue of the next General Election has been determined by 495 voters in Uxbridge & South Ruislip.

Is it the Cost of Living, the NHS or the imminent breakdown of the global climate system? No. To paraphrase Clinton’s campaign strategist, James Carville (drum roll please): “It’s the automobile, stupid.”
Tories and Labour alike have rushed to endorse the new zeitgeist, the Tories because it distracts voters from those issues that really matter and Labour because they are timid and always let the Tories set the agenda.

As issues go for the …

Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged | 11 Comments

ULEZ victory for Lib Dem Assembly Members

It’s just seven months till London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone expands across all boroughs, making millions more of the capital’s residents liable for charges. For a small vehicle like a car, the daily charge is £12.50.

This week, London’s Liberal Democrat Assembly members passed an amendment to the scheme which aims to help residents with the impact, including providing more buses:

Our amendment would:

  •  double the scrappage scheme with an additional £100 million and to allow Blue Badge holders to apply
  •  invest £25 million in bus services in Outer London, including demand-responsive buses such as Go Sutton Bus

You can see Caroline Pidgeon’s speech proposing it here:

Posted in News | Also tagged , and | 17 Comments
Advert



Recent Comments

  • Simon R
    I'm also rather puzzled by Michael's post to me. In particular, I've said a couple of times that any job guarantee scheme would have to somehow provide for peop...
  • Simon R
    The ONS figures (https://uk.indeed.com/career-advice/pay-salary/average-uk-salary) show £38 600 was the mean gross salary for full-time workers in 2020....
  • Paul Holmes
    @Mick Taylor. What happened post 2010 is an entirely different matter. The best Target Seat campaign in the world would have made little difference to the self ...
  • Paul Holmes
    @Mick Taylor. Except that what you say is totally untrue of the period I referred to. From 1997 to 2001 to 2005 to 2010 the number of Target Seats grew at each ...
  • Mary Fulton
    Nonconformistradical I would define ready as having our candidates in place in all constituencies. I don’t know how far down the road we are on this across t...