Boris Johnson sketches out plan for elevated cycle paths running alongside London's main railway lines

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step-hent wrote:

At least it's a bit of innovative thinking - one of the problems with creating better cyclign infrastructure in London is space. Before anyone starts, yes, I know there'd be plenty of space on the roads if we banned all the cars - but that isn't going to happen because the general public would never support it.

So at least this idea addresses that issue - it identifies space, which is available, and in many cases there are direct routes in to town which simply wouldn't be feasible on the roads (look, for example, at Elephant and Castle - the best possible place to be there is nowhere near the road). Instead of slating the idea and claiming it will never happen (and therefore adding to the likelihood that it won't), perhaps people could get behind it, be a bit constructive, point out some of the difficulties to the Mayor and suggest ways around them?

Mr. Step-Hent,

I am afraid you don't understand the situation.

Boris Johnson has absolutely no intention whatsoever of doing anything to improve cycling and this idea is just that. And an idea that he has absolutly zero intention of moving forward with.

Moreover, he cares not a whiff about cyclists who die on roadways. To a Tory, cycling deaths are simply acceptable damage because to them its the risk you've chosen to take when you get on a bicycle. Roads are for cars in their mind and in the mind of their general constituency.

Labour politicians don't care and Tory's certainly don't care about the common man.

Boris Johnson is merely a puppet of the banking industry and other financial elite. As are most politicians these days be they Lib Dem, Labour or whatever.

All you have are varying shades of right wing politics & politicians these days. Watch the screws turn as the economy gets worse; whomever is in office.

And anyway, your assertions are wrong. There is plenty of space for cycling infrastructure in London and elsewhere in the UK without "banning" all cars. See what the Dutch have done in a 30 year span. And the majority of their roadways were far more narrow.

You wont hear assertions about a "lack of space" for cycling coming from anyone who really cares about people and the environment. Tory's don't care about either.

lokikontroll wrote:

Boris Johnson does not care about cycling or cyclists. He never has and he never will.

He has done absolutely nothing to improve cycling in London since he became mayor except to leech off of Ken Livingstone's velomobile roll out.. All this is are soundbites to gain political points after recent Olympic cycling successes and nothing more.

Boris Johnson is a Tory and he is in power to serve the interests of bankers and the rich elite; neither of whom care one bit about cycling.

I'm with you apart from the Tory bit. He's a politician. They're generally as bad as each other. I didn't vote for him but there was no way I was going to vote for that awful Livingstone creature. Jones was the only one who showed any real commitment to improving cycling conditions in the capital.

Looking at the people cycling into the City and Canary Wharf in the morning I'd imagine there's a fair number of conservatives amongst them. Privately owned vehicles that don't depend on a unionised workforce operating public transport. Zipping past the buses full of hoi polloi. Very Tory.

Coleman wrote:

lokikontroll wrote:

Boris Johnson does not care about cycling or cyclists. He never has and he never will.

He has done absolutely nothing to improve cycling in London since he became mayor except to leech off of Ken Livingstone's velomobile roll out.. All this is are soundbites to gain political points after recent Olympic cycling successes and nothing more.

Boris Johnson is a Tory and he is in power to serve the interests of bankers and the rich elite; neither of whom care one bit about cycling.

I'm with you apart from the Tory bit. He's a politician. They're generally as bad as each other. I didn't vote for him but there was no way I was going to vote for that awful Livingstone creature. Jones was the only one who showed any real commitment to improving cycling conditions in the capital.

Looking at the people cycling into the City and Canary Wharf in the morning I'd imagine there's a fair number of conservatives amongst them. Privately owned vehicles that don't depend on a unionised workforce operating public transport. Zipping past the buses full of hoi polloi. Very Tory.

Actually, I think you are both wrong. Boris DOES care about cyclists. He is one,and a genuine one at that - not the play-act put on by Cameron at his strategy guru Steve Hilton's advice to make him look like a man of the people rather than the old Etonian toff that he is. Boris cycles extensively around town to attend business meetings, and he does so in suit and tie, and no helmet - one area where I support his libertarian viewpoint.

And that is precisely the point. Boris is hidebound by his politics. He is a libertarian tory, one of those who believes that people should have the freedom to do as they wish and that the state should not interfere to influence choices. I think his belief in this is genuine, and it is shared by a number of his tory colleagues in the GLA, such as Andrew Boff and James Cleverley, both active commuter cyclists and regular nice people otherwise.

The thing which, in my view, they are blind to about their philosophy is that there is no such thing as pure freedom of choice, and it is not true that the state does not interfere in people's choices - it can't be done that way. In fact, people are NOT free to choose cycling because there is a powerful influence against - fear of coming to harm at the hands of motorists. And that fear is engendered by deliberate actions of the state which are designed to favour privately operated, even individually operated, motor vehicles above alternatives including active travel (walking and cycling) and public transport by road or rail.

If their philosophy is genuine, then it has been corrupted by the buying of influence by the motor industry, probably one of the top three most powerful world industries (after farming and the arms trade - or possibly before). They employ highly paid lobbyists to argue behind closed doors, and they keep the media afloat with advertising spend, which makes newspapers in particular beholden to them for their survival, and thus vulnerable to have their editorial position dictated to them.

Paul M wrote:

Coleman wrote:

lokikontroll wrote:

Boris Johnson does not care about cycling or cyclists. He never has and he never will.

He has done absolutely nothing to improve cycling in London since he became mayor except to leech off of Ken Livingstone's velomobile roll out.. All this is are soundbites to gain political points after recent Olympic cycling successes and nothing more.

Boris Johnson is a Tory and he is in power to serve the interests of bankers and the rich elite; neither of whom care one bit about cycling.

I'm with you apart from the Tory bit. He's a politician. They're generally as bad as each other. I didn't vote for him but there was no way I was going to vote for that awful Livingstone creature. Jones was the only one who showed any real commitment to improving cycling conditions in the capital.

Looking at the people cycling into the City and Canary Wharf in the morning I'd imagine there's a fair number of conservatives amongst them. Privately owned vehicles that don't depend on a unionised workforce operating public transport. Zipping past the buses full of hoi polloi. Very Tory.

Actually, I think you are both wrong. Boris DOES care about cyclists. He is one,and a genuine one at that - not the play-act put on by Cameron at his strategy guru Steve Hilton's advice to make him look like a man of the people rather than the old Etonian toff that he is. Boris cycles extensively around town to attend business meetings, and he does so in suit and tie, and no helmet - one area where I support his libertarian viewpoint.

And that is precisely the point. Boris is hidebound by his politics. He is a libertarian tory, one of those who believes that people should have the freedom to do as they wish and that the state should not interfere to influence choices. I think his belief in this is genuine, and it is shared by a number of his tory colleagues in the GLA, such as Andrew Boff and James Cleverley, both active commuter cyclists and regular nice people otherwise.

The thing which, in my view, they are blind to about their philosophy is that there is no such thing as pure freedom of choice, and it is not true that the state does not interfere in people's choices - it can't be done that way. In fact, people are NOT free to choose cycling because there is a powerful influence against - fear of coming to harm at the hands of motorists. And that fear is engendered by deliberate actions of the state which are designed to favour privately operated, even individually operated, motor vehicles above alternatives including active travel (walking and cycling) and public transport by road or rail.

If their philosophy is genuine, then it has been corrupted by the buying of influence by the motor industry, probably one of the top three most powerful world industries (after farming and the arms trade - or possibly before). They employ highly paid lobbyists to argue behind closed doors, and they keep the media afloat with advertising spend, which makes newspapers in particular beholden to them for their survival, and thus vulnerable to have their editorial position dictated to them.

A libertarian Tory is nothing more than a red-herring political position. Of course he doesn't want the "government" to do anything. Because actually activating any government initiative would disrupt the existing power base.

And I absolutely do think Boris is a phony cyclist. He is simply trying to burnish his green credentials.

How many simple and inexpensive things he could have done to save the lives of cyclists since he became mayor. He has chosen to do none of them. He's done absolutely nothing. No wing mirrors compulsory on lorries in London, no driver education about sharing the road. FFS he has let motorbikes in the cycle lanes. He diminished the congestion zone!

His party has removed the gatso's and declared an end to Labour's war on the motorist! Cycling has actually gone backwards since his tenure started.

And of course, the financial elite and lobbying of auto industry, oil, etc are his paymasters. Its rotten at its core and Boris has you hoodwinked if you think he or any other Tory cares about cyclists. They do not. They do not serve the people and they barely pretend to.

Proof is in actions not words. Boris and the rest of the Tories have blood on their hands as far as I am concerned.

Simon_MacMichael wrote:

Coleman wrote:

Nice one, Boris. Like the High line in NYC. Except not. Ignorant of the facts. Well, at least he's consistent.

All mouth and no trouser clips.

To be fair to Boris, it was The Times, not him, that compared it to the High Line and incorrectly said that cyclists were allowed on it (a mistake subsequently repeated by the Mail).

Oh, yes. Thanks.