A FAIR DEAL FOR THE MOTORIST

		NO, BORIS, NO!!! - IT’S DAYLIGHT ROBBERY!
This campaign for a fair deal for the motorist saw action in London in 2009/10 as part of the wider campaigning front. (The issue was then the Mayor’s Transport Strategy, which has come back to haunt drivers).

· In July 2013, a long set of documents was released under the heading Mayor’s Roads Task Force (RTF) reports (The key document proposing action is the TFL Response).

This page is being developed to cover the worst proposals.

· ANTI-MOTORIST POSSIBILITIES

There are four pages outlining the proposals in more detail.

The first covers:

• Extending the Congestion Charge (road pricing)
• Measures towards discouraging car use (‘demand management’).

The second covers:

• Measures towards discouraging car use
• Measures to reallocate road space away from drivers
• Road closures, using flimsy excuses
• Measures that will actually endanger road safety

The third covers.

• Gratuitous restrictions on parking space provision
• Banning current vehicles from Central London
• Depressed speed limits
• An expansion of lucrative box junction and speed cameras
• Big Brother technology in cars (codenamed ‘ITS’)

In the interests of fairness, we cover some potentially positive proposals on a fourth page, although these need to be qualified; the balance is sadly very anti-motorist.

TFL seem to have practically accepted the proposals from a task force loaded with vested interests (such as IBM, promoters of congestion charging and ‘smart cities’, road pricing lobbyists ‘London First’ [sic] and CILT; ‘green’ lobbyists, etc.

Drivers were apparently ‘represented’ by David Quarmby of the pro-road pricing RAC Foundation (RACF) and a former RACF man AA President Edmund King.

Where were the objections from the latter pair?, It is interesting that they are the former and current Chairmen of the DFT Motorists’ Forum that is supposed to champion drivers’ interests!.

· PROPAGANDA WATCH

On balance, TFL’s response is of concern, given the persistent anti-car flavour. Their commitment to conduct customer satisfaction and attitude surveys to further improve service sounds rather hollow when related to drivers.

During 2013, TFL will be working closely with boroughs and other stakeholders to run a communications campaign. The aim is to ensure that their overall approach gains widespread acceptance in London.

TFL hint at “changing the processes by which decisions are made and how people are involved in these decisions”. This needs explaining, and could be an opportunity or a threat.

MANY THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT

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