Green Assembly Member Darren Johnson has criticised Mayor Boris Johnson’s transport policies following the publication of a report by TfL showing congestion on London’s roads has risen for the first time in 13 years.
Darren Johnson, centre right, has called for better provision for pedestrians and cyclists on Abbey Road and across TfL’s network
The report, which is due to be presented by Transport For London’s Commissioner on 3rd July, found that the volume of traffic observed across all London roads increased by 1.8 per cent over 2013/14. On main roads maintained by TfL, morning rush hour congestion rose by as much as 3-4%.
The rise in traffic volume has led to ballooning delays on London’s roads, reported by TfL as a “deterioration in Journey Time Reliability”.
The Green Party’s Darren Johnson, an elected member of the London Assembly which was set up to scrutinise the Mayor’s decision making, said the increase in delays was a result of Boris Johnson’s transport policy:
“Longer traffic jams and delays is the opposite of what the Mayor promised Londoners, but it is the inevitable consequence of high fares and giving priority to cars. The Mayor needs to reverse the policies that are clogging up London’s streets, by lowering fares and lifting his freeze on expanding the bus fleet. We need positive initiatives that get people out of their cars and encourage public transport, bikes and walking.”
“The Mayor has tried changing the traffic signals to speed up the traffic, but in the long term this has the opposite effect, as it encouraging more cars to join the traffic jam. The Mayor should focus on safer roads for cyclists and pedestrians who take up far less space than cars. We have had a lot of promises about cycle lanes and safer junctions but hardly any delivery.”