No To Bus Lanes

By Ushma Mistry

ANGRY residents campaigning for the removal of bus lanes in Northolt took their fight to City Hall yesterday.

A 4,000-signature petition to axe bus lanes in Northolt, which have been blamed for causing congestion and misery for residents, was handed to London Mayor Ken Livingstone.

Ealing councillor Glenn Murphy, who is backing the residents, believes it is time for bus lanes to be removed as they have not worked.

He said: "The bus lanes in Northolt have been a complete failure. They were put in place in June last year and the congestion problems have just got worse and worse.

"Transport for London, which agreed the bus lanes, said they were part of an 18-month traffic order and will be removed if there are problems. This is clearly the case and we are asking for them to be removed now.".....

.......Linda Koupparis, chairman of the Danemead Grove Residents' Association said:....

.........."The quality of life for the people of Northolt since last June is zero. We hope this petition will make Ken listen. There have been accidents because of the bus lanes and because of all the congestion the pollution is higher than it has ever been."

Bernard Furzer, chairman of the Northolt Village Residents' Association, said: "What I want is sanity. This is crazy. We don't need bus lanes in Northolt. The traffic is caused because of them. This, we don't need."

The bus lanes, were put in place by Transport for London as part of Mr Livingstone's scheme to encourage more use of buses. But the measures have forced the traffic to squeeze into one lane causing a huge build up of traffic at peak times and residents being penalised for driving on a bus lane as they try to get in and out of their drives.......

............Richard Barnes, GLA member for Ealing, is also backing the residents.

He said: "The evidence is before us. It is a total congestion and pollution nightmare. There are minimal bus passengers and the bus lanes just make peoples lives hell around here.

"The trial has failed and Ken needs to recognise it has failed."

However, Mr Livingstone believes the bus lanes are working......:::::::0^0¬ ?!?!?

From:

http://www.ealingtimes.co.uk/news/localnews/display.var.393717.0.no_to_bus_lanes.php

 

My Emphasis

 

Lee Greenberg
The Ottawa Citizen

Bus Lane Cameras Will Only Be On Part Time  SIMON JOHNSON 16:00 - 17 July 2003

Aberdeen's new £500,000 bus lane cameras................. From: http://www.thisisnorthscotland.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=84106&command=displayContent&sourceNode=83936&contentPK=6399207

 

Jeez!

I hope that's not each!

 

I think we'll see more and more of this. The main road into Stockport centre (past the Peel centre) used to have a bus lane, which of course denied half the roadspace to car use. They recently re-surfaced the road and of course all the markings disappeared. Guess what? They've re-marked the road....without the bus lane! Has someone dropped a common-sense bomb in Stockport?

Just found this on the Sod-u-Ken site:

From The Grimsby Telegraph.

Traffic chaos in Grimsby could soon be eased if councilors agree to let motorists use bus lanes during quiet periods.
Many frustrated drivers supported a move to open the bus lanes to other vehicles on Cleethorpe Road, Scartho Road and Bargate outside peak times. Telegraph reporter Rob Burman spoke to motorists to find out their views on the potential traffic shake-up.

Martin Rylatt, a plumbing and heating engineer from Humberston, said traffic problems were costing him business.
He said: "It's about time the council did something about these bus lanes. At the moment they cause more problems than they solve.
"Every day you see huge tailbacks in the car lanes, yet the bus lane is completely empty.
"For self-employed people like myself I think it costs valuable time and money."

Sandra Butters, from Cleethorpes, said: "I think the lanes should be open to other vehicles. Although they don't really cause a huge nuisance for me, I know a lot of motorists do experience problems with them.
"However one of the advantages of the bus lane is the fact that it stops buses pulling out in front of you when you are driving."

Gary Oliver, who is from Waltham, said: "I fully agree with the council's proposal and think the lanes should have been open during quiet times since they were introduced.
"They are a real nuisance. Sometimes you go down Scartho Road and the traffic is just nose to nose.
"Whereas, before the lanes were introduced, the cars would flow down there easily."

Lee Bell, a motorist from Tetney, encouraged North East Lincolnshire councilors to make a positive decision for the drivers of Grimsby.
He said: "At last the council is thinking about doing something. It's a good idea and the sooner it is imposed the better.
"At the moment you see a lot of motorists using the bus lanes anyway during quiet times and that could be dangerous."

The Grimsby Telegraph is keen to hear what you think about the bus lane proposal.

Anyone with strong feelings for or against the plan should write to: Viewpoint, Grimsby Telegraph, 80 Cleethorpe Road, Grimsby, DN31 3EH or e-mail us on viewpoint@grimsbytelegraph.co.uk

End.
A step in the right direction.

Me: So there you are. If you regularly visit sick relatives or do charity work in the area, I'm sure you've found that traffic congestion has got much worse since the bus lanes were introduced. Why not let them know?