Mayor's Draft Transport Strategy
Response from Waltham Forest Council
The Council supports the general direction of the Mayor's Transport Strategy as set out in our previous key stakeholder response to the MTS Statement of Intent. The following comments are made in addition to the previous response in the light of the publication of the consultation draft. They are structured around the stakeholder questions listed at the end of the document.
Vision - views on the Mayor's vision for London's transport system
The Council welcomes the Mayor's ambition to create a cycling revolution in London, encourage a shift away from the private car and a focus on walking. In addition, we strongly support the Central London bike hire scheme, and, as an aspiring Biking Borough, look forward to this being extended to Outer London.
The Council notes the proposal to abandon the road user hierarchy. Although a complete `priority list' of road users may not be essential, the prioritising of vulnerable and low-carbon road users in preference to single occupancy car drivers is still useful.
Transport Proposals
Managing and enhancing the transport system
National Rail - The Council urgently needs to improve connectivity between Waltham Forest and the Stratford/Lower Lea Valley area to give residents better access to jobs and give employers better access to potential employees. Walthamstow and Chingford are located only a few miles north of Stratford but are not connected to it by rail. The alternative of a public transport journey by bus to Stratford is very slow indeed. The narrow, congested roads in the borough mean that a four mile journey from Walthamstow to Stratford at peak times typically takes 40 minutes. The eight mile journey from Chingford to Stratford takes over an hour. With few opportunities existing for the introduction of further bus priority measures on the routes to Stratford, this situation is unlikely to improve. It will get even worse if traffic congestion on the boroughs' north/south routes increases.
We are developing a proposal to introduce a Chingford to Stratford rail service by reinstating the Hall Farm Curve and reopening Lea Bridge station. This new service would greatly improve connectivity for the borough and help relieve congestion on the Victoria and Central Lines. The scheme could be implemented at a modest cost and would connect the borough to the important regeneration opportunities in the Lower Lea Valley. The station would also assist exploitation of the Middle Lea Valley area as an Opportunity Area.
A feasibility study was carried out between October and December 2009 to estimate the infrastructure costs and carry out an economic appraisal of the scheme. The results show that the Hall Farm Curve could be constructed for £20 million and the reopening of Lea Bridge station would cost £4 million. The economic appraisal shows an excellent Benefit/Cost ratio in excess of 3:1 assuming the service became operational from the year 2016. Waltham Forest Council therefore urges the Mayor to include the scheme in the final Mayor's Transport Strategy. It offers very good value for money and is consistent with the MTS goal of improving connectivity north of Stratford.
Crossrail - Although Waltham Forest has no direct access to, or stations on the line, the Council supports Crossrail as it will boost public transport capacity across London and help to achieve modal shift from the car. In addition, Crossrail could have potential benefits in terms of helping to facilitate the Council's aspiration for a Chingford to Stratford rail line.
Chelsea - Hackney line - We welcome the inclusion of the commitment to Chelsea Hackney Line and the commitment to improve orbital routes such as London Overground, particularly the fact that Walthamstow Central / Walthamstow Queens Road is classified as a strategic orbital interchange.
Overground - Although the significant improvements already achieved and planned on the Barking to Gospel Oak line are welcomed, there is a need for longer trains on the line to support growth in the Blackhorse Lane regeneration area. The Mayor's commitment to take forward the rail electrification of the Gospel Oak to Barking line is also welcomed; however we would urge a timescale for this to be stated.
London's bus network
The Council is aware of the current review of bus services and awaits the outcome of this review. We are very keen that the substantial gains made in London's bus services (improved frequencies, newer, cleaner vehicles, improved security and disabled access) over the last decade are not eroded. In addition, the recent increases in fares are a matter of great concern. Care should be taken that fare increases do not reduce the attractiveness of the bus relative to the private car. It is unfortunate that TfL's 3G Bus priority Programme has been withdrawn. This substantial investment in route 97, our primary north south route is a great loss.
Waltham Forest opposes the Mayors intentions to continue to increase bus fares and reduce total kms of the bus fleet/network (as per TfL Business Plan 2009/10 - 2017/18).
The Council recognises the important of the countdown (ibus) system for bus passengers in that the system takes the uncertainty out of waiting for a bus, as passengers know exactly when their bus is due to arrive. We welcome the forthcoming new generation of countdown signs and look forward to seeing many of these installed at bus stops in Waltham Forest.
General Comment - Waltham Forest Council considers that the rail and bus services in our part of outer London need further development to enhance their use and achieve a higher modal share by public transport. In addition the Council considers that more emphasis should be placed on improving orbital transport links as well as enhancing capacity on radial routes. At present too many journeys simply have to be made by car in outer London due to the inadequacies of the public transport system. Improvements to the London Overground network (Barking to Gospel Oak line) and the reinstatement of the Hall Farm Curve would help to combat this.
Managing the road network
Smoothing traffic flow by rephrasing traffic signals, may benefit individual motorists (and, in some cases, air quality), but the Council will not support this initiative if it results in detriment to pedestrians in terms of increasing crossing and journey times. Furthermore, it may increase traffic speeds, with additional detrimental effects on vulnerable road users such as cyclists and pedestrians. We would welcome clarification as to how these two potentially conflicting objectives will be reconciled.
London's airports
Any expansion of airport capacity in London (whether at Heathrow or elsewhere) is inconsistent with achievement of the city's carbon reduction, air quality and noise objectives. We concur that before expansion is considered, better use needs to be made of existing capacity at Heathrow, and other London airports. (This could, for example, be achieved by introducing disincentives to short domestic flights that can easily be made by train). Waltham Forest is already concerned of the noise impacts of air travel on its residents from existing flight paths.
River Transport
The Council supports the Mayor's intention to develop London's river services to reach their full potential and better integrate river services into the overall transport network. The River Lea running along the western edge of Waltham Forest should be utilised as a transport corridor particularly for industrial traffic to help remove HGVs from the roads.
Encouraging more cycling and walking
Cycling
The Council welcomes the measures proposed to increase cycling, although the target of a 5% mode share for cycling by 2031 is insufficiently ambitious considering the Mayor's desire to effect a cycling “revolution”. By way of comparison, at the Velo City conference in Brussels in May 2009, over 25 European cities committed to increase the cycling mode share to 15% by 2020.
Specific targets should be set, to encourage underrepresented groups, such as women, children and older people to cycle. In Germany, Denmark and Holland women make up half of cyclists, while in London two thirds of cyclists are men. Women tend to prefer protected road space. There is strong evidence that this will have health and social benefits, and will promote increased equality of opportunity, as well as positively impacting on the environment and congestion.
The Council welcomes the introduction of cycle superhighways. Although there will be none in Waltham Forest itself, those passing through neighbouring boroughs and central London will be used by many of our residents. To encourage modal shift, particularly among underrepresented groups such as women and children, it will be important to keep these routes free of traffic and parked vehicles.
Walking
The Council agrees with the MTS that improvements in the public realm (including tree planting) are needed to make walking a more attractive option. An increase in walking could have economic benefits (as more people use local shops), as well as social and public health benefits. In addition, pedestrians need to have access to safe and convenient crossings, and wide, uncluttered pavements. We are concerned that “smoothing traffic flow” could disadvantage pedestrians, meaning that they wait longer at traffic lights. In addition, fast traffic can deter people from walking (due to noise, air quality and perceived safety). The Council would support the introduction of a default 20mph speed limit on all residential streets.
Improving safety and security
• Improving road safety
Proposals on road safety appear to be somewhat vague, although we welcome the Mayor's endorsement of the European Road Safety Charter. Traffic speeds are a key determinant of road safety and perceived safety and could be taken more seriously in the MTS.
TfL's own research has shown that the major barrier to cycling is fear of traffic and the perception that cycling is unsafe. If the Mayor is to effect a cycling revolution, and to make the roads physically safer for vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and cyclists, issues such as the enforcement of speed limits and the volume of traffic will need to be explicitly addressed. Road safety campaigns are helpful, but they will be insufficient if speed is not taken more seriously.
The Council support the GLA's recent recommendation that funding should be made available to pilot borough-wide speed limit reductions (20 mph zones) on residential streets. The MTS should support default 20mph zones in residential areas throughout London, with enforcement via physical measures, average speed cameras and the police. Improving the management of speed would also contribute to achievement of the Mayor's quality of life, noise and air quality objectives, as well as creating a supportive environment for vulnerable road users such as cyclists and walkers.
We would welcome improved enforcement of the law relating to the use of hand held mobile phones while driving, as this also poses unacceptable risks to vulnerable road users.
Improving London's environment
• Improving air quality
In December 2009, the European Commission declined the UK's request for a time extension to meet health-based standards set out in the EU Air Quality Directive, due to Greater London's poor record on controlling NOx and particulates from road traffic. These have a range of serious impacts on human health, particularly respiratory and heart health and is estimated to have contributed to the deaths of 3000 people each year. London will now need to tackle air quality as a matter of urgency. Technology has delivered cleaner engines and fuels, and will continue to do so, but these improvements have been offset by the relentless increase in demand for road transport. The only realistic way to improve air quality will be to reduce road traffic by cutting unnecessary vehicle journeys.
Reducing transport's contribution to climate change and improving its resilience
Measures aimed at reducing the modal share of the private car in London, and more effective coordination of freight activities will help to reduce the contribution of transport in London to climate change. The MTS should set targets to actively reduce traffic (which will help the Mayor meet other linked targets, such as those for noise and air quality). The MTS should also establish interim targets for CO2 reduction to act as milestones towards the London target of 60% reduction on 1990 levels by 2025. This is particularly important because, while significant reductions in CO2 emissions have been achieved in other sectors, transport's share of CO2 is increasing.
Managing the demand for travel
• Smarter transport for both people and freight
TfL has shown leadership in promoting travel plans to organisations across London. However, in order to reach more businesses, the messages need to be simplified and linked more explicitly to environmental, CO2 reduction, health and CSR objectives in the private and public sectors. Via its procurement processes, the GLA family is in a position to promote effective travel plans more vigorously, and should do so.
• Parking and loading
Well-designed parking policies are one of the most effective tools in cutting shorter and unnecessary car journeys. We note that the standards proposed in the draft London Plan are more generous than those in the current London Plan. Car use is already high in Outer London, despite public transport provision which compares very well with that elsewhere in the UK. Increasing parking provision in Outer London will tend to increase the modal share for the car, making it more difficult to implement measures for walkers and cyclists (where the proportion of cyclists is already substantially lower than in Central London).
Road user charging for economic and environmental aims
The Council would like clarification of the Mayor's position on road pricing and a clearer framework in the MTS as to how those boroughs who wish to, could develop their own road pricing schemes.
Road pricing helps to allocate a limited resource and makes the wider economic, social and environmental costs of road use more transparent and is likely to make sustainable modes cheaper and thus more attractive. According to the RAC, the real cost of motoring has dropped 18% in the last 20 years, while the cost of public transport has increased. Road pricing would go some way to redressing the balance, with a range of positive spin offs in terms of congestion, air quality and reduced emissions.
The MTS makes several references to road charging “subject to technology enabling a fair scheme to be developed”. This technology already exists and is used successfully in London (and in Singapore). This has been successful in reducing congestion and supporting modal shift to public transport and cycling, and London is rightly admired by urban planners across the world for this scheme.
Priorities
Priority should be given to increasing cycling and walking and reducing road traffic in London. This would address a number of key challenges simultaneously: carbon reduction, air quality, noise impacts, quality of life, public health (physical inactivity, obesity, air and noise impacts from transport) and congestion.
Prioritising walking, cycling and public transport is an equitable and efficient use of limited road space. These modes require much less space per passenger kilometre, so more people can be moved at the same time. In addition, walking and cycling are affordable to all of the population, so measures promoting these modes will benefit more of London's citizens, providing them with access to jobs and services (chiming with the Mayor's objective to “improve transport opportunities for all Londoners”).
Those on low incomes are disproportionately affected by the negative impacts of road transport - noise, air pollution and accidents - as housing is cheaper closer to busy roads.