Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Proposed Wightman Road bus route - the Mayor speaks
Campaigners for a new bus route along Wightman Road will be disappointed at Boris Johnson's cavalier response to a question put forward by Labour GLA member Joanne McCartney.
The Mayor's answer is as follows:
"The vast majority of the area served by this suggested new route is within walking distance of high frequency services providing very similar journey opportunities. These routes include:
• The 29 which serves the other side of the “Harringay Ladder” which links Wood Green, Finsbury Park and Holloway;
• The W3 which links Stroud Green and New River Village to Wood Green and Finsbury Park, where other high frequency services facilitate interchange for those wishing to travel to Holloway; and
• The 91 which links Hornsey Road to Holloway and Crouch End where other high frequency services facilitate interchange for those wishing to travel to Wood Green.
The suggested route would therefore not increase passenger numbers sufficiently to justify the cost."
The Mayor has ignored the fact that the main interest in a proposed bus route along Wightman Road comes from residents of that road who find it difficult to climb the often steep roads which connect Green Lanes and Wightman Road and who are therefore impeded in their access to the bus network. The existence of bus routes along Priory Road and along Green Lanes does not address their concerns.
There may well be reasons for not introducing a bus route along Wightman Road. It is, after all, both narrow and residential, and I have yet to make up my own mind.
What I can say, though, is that the Mayor’s reason is not a good reason and that he has failed to look into the question properly.
Perhaps HoL subscribers should club together to buy the Mayor a topographical map.
David Schmitz
Liberal Democrat Chairman for Tottenham
The Mayor's answer is as follows:
"The vast majority of the area served by this suggested new route is within walking distance of high frequency services providing very similar journey opportunities. These routes include:
• The 29 which serves the other side of the “Harringay Ladder” which links Wood Green, Finsbury Park and Holloway;
• The W3 which links Stroud Green and New River Village to Wood Green and Finsbury Park, where other high frequency services facilitate interchange for those wishing to travel to Holloway; and
• The 91 which links Hornsey Road to Holloway and Crouch End where other high frequency services facilitate interchange for those wishing to travel to Wood Green.
The suggested route would therefore not increase passenger numbers sufficiently to justify the cost."
The Mayor has ignored the fact that the main interest in a proposed bus route along Wightman Road comes from residents of that road who find it difficult to climb the often steep roads which connect Green Lanes and Wightman Road and who are therefore impeded in their access to the bus network. The existence of bus routes along Priory Road and along Green Lanes does not address their concerns.
There may well be reasons for not introducing a bus route along Wightman Road. It is, after all, both narrow and residential, and I have yet to make up my own mind.
What I can say, though, is that the Mayor’s reason is not a good reason and that he has failed to look into the question properly.
Perhaps HoL subscribers should club together to buy the Mayor a topographical map.
David Schmitz
Liberal Democrat Chairman for Tottenham
Tags for Forum Posts: TfL, W1 Bus, Wightman Road, public transport
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by matt on
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.... our silence is due to John McM being on holiday
Arh, the mayor has pulled off a timely coup, striking whilst Mr McMullan is away. Borris must have realised John would have talked him to death with rapid fire argument and debate on the matter.
Why on earth is the mayor talking bus routes? Surely he has more important matters to attend to such as dining with foreign dignitaries.
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Permalink Reply by John D on
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He seems to be more hands-on than Ken ever was. Ken was too busy organising jollies for terrorists :-)
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Permalink Reply by StephenBln on
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Matt just one 'r' in his name - like the latin Boringus - :o)
The serious point is - Boris most probably doesn't even know where Wightman Road is.. or care, for that matter. But his advisors (cronies, luvvies, whatever you want to call them) have advised him that's no political advantage for him in a new bus route in N4 & N8.. Therefore no new route..
Matt, of course he has something to do with the buses - haven't you ever noticed? On every bus map it's stated quite clearly 'Mayor of London'. Boris inherited the whole fleet when he became Mayor.. to play with as his whim desires..
Instead of jollying off to Klosters, maybe he should try out the ladder on an icy/snowy day.. get to know what life is really like in 'his London'..
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Apparently Boris cycles to work .... just like that Dave fella.
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And you've never had a holiday ?
Of course he has advisers. You can't expect one man to know every street in London.
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Strangely, I do expect the Mayor of London to know London plus its idiosyncrasies well- If a taxi-driver can do it , well so 'by jove' can the Mayor.. I bet Ken knows a bit about Harringay and would be able to answer spontaneous questions on it. Difference is, he is a real Londoner and not just a Putney to Bank man... (with a knowledge of all the swish watering holes in between).
Boris hasn't delivered on his promise to get rid of Bendy-buses, won't produce a new RM and doesn't care a fig about public transport.. par for the course really - for a tory.
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A taxi driver knows only his own area - Central London or the outskirting area that he qualified on. And he is expected only to know how to get there - not that we need an extra pedestrian crossing on Endymion Rd.
When I used taxis a lot from Central London to Highbury Crescent, the black cab drivers invariably needed directions.
Funny really - I thought most on here, including yourself, were in favour of retaining articulated buses.? He couldn't have been listening to popular opinion could he? How unlike our Labour masters :-)
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Mayor of London Boris Johnson visited the Mandela Way bus depot on Friday ( 24 July ) to mark the end of bendy buses on the Waterloo-Victoria 507 route.
"Bendy buses on other routes are on borrowed time and I can confirm they will all have gone by 2011. Engineers will now scrape all traces of the capital from these first nine buses and next week they will be sent back to their spiritual home, an airfield in the Midlands."
The Mayor arrived on board one of the new 12 metre single deck buses which are replacing the bendy buses on the Wateroo-Victoria 507 route.
"This is an historic day London voted for," said the Mayor who added: "It's bad news for those who thought the bendy bus was the free bus. It will be more difficult to get on without paying."
How's that for delivery Stephen ?
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Wonderful.. he must be very proud of himself.
The 'Red Arrow' 507 is exactly the right sort of route for Bendy-Buses - It's a short hop 'commuter' route between Victoria & Waterloo stations and has worked for the last forty years with single deckers.. Most passengers only travel a few stops and having to tramp up and down stairs only causes delays.. I expect the bus managers are scratching their heads in exasperation, as well as sniggering behind the scenes..
This is what happens when politicians get their hands on Public Transport.. Wasting money to replace buses that are perfectly suited for the service.. I do agree, there is an argument for replacing these buses on some routes.. BUT, the only two currently to be replaced are ex Red Arrow routes 507 & 521, both need high capacity vehicles for very short journeys. The 38 replacement has been delayed.. no doubt because of it's cost..
Typical Tory Transport policy - making things worse for passengers - dogma before common sense..
Still, he's acheived exactly what he wanted with his non-public transport using followers - like yourself. Good for London, no of course not!
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If you read more carefully, you'll see that the replacements are single-deckers - so no tramping up and down stairs.
And why you would assume that I don't use public transport ... ? -
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Permalink Reply by Old-Age-Emporium(OAE) on
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John D, some of those terrorists are now very responsible ministers, even Deputy First Ministers, in power sharing administrations not a million miles from Wightman Road - thanks in some small part to politicians like Ken perceptive enough to see beyond immediate symptoms.
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Graham P, your points contra have already been put, rather more politely, by John D and others.
The question of annual subsidy has been mentioned to me months ago by sources from Metrolink and Arriva.
The question of an additional bus service is not 'my particular cause' and we are not talking of 'a handful of residents' - angry, resigned or otherwise.
I'm not sitting here imagining some 'conspiracy against me', though you're welcome to your opinion that our residents' signatures aren't going to achieve jackshit.
What I was reacting to in the above post was an apparent rush to pre-judgement by the Mayor and/or TfL, and their presumption of a 'cost-benefit' excuse prior to our requesting a cost-benefit analysis on the strength of our petition, signed up by what we see as a potential majority of our residents.
Rest assured, Graham, we are not so naive as to pin our hopes merely on petition signatures, whether door-to-door or online. That is just our first step, though a lengthy and necessary one.
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