Transport News - April 2008
The bridge of size
Shoreditch was the scene of a traffic-stopping spectacle, when a huge bridge for the extended East London Line was lifted into place.
Britain’s largest mobile crane was needed to move the 350 tonne, 35 metre, bow string bridge into position on 29 March.
The £1billion East London Line extension is set to bring new Tube-style services to Hackney when it opens in 2010.
There will be four new Overground stations built in the borough at Shoreditch High Street, Hoxton, Haggerston and Dalston Junction.
London’s Transport Commissioner Peter Hendy said: “When complete, the East London Line will bring extraordinary regeneration to some of London’s communities who need it most. It will put communities on the transport network and Tube map that were not there before. It will also be a vital part of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic transport network.
“The bridge being put in is a major milestone towards the delivery of this excellent new transport and regeneration link.”
More information
For East London Line info visit: www.tfl.gov.uk
Driving down the cost of a car
An eco-friendly car scheme is booming in Hackney with nearly 1,200 members and cars in 25 locations.
Hackney Car Club, which was launched last April, aims to relieve parking pressures, provide access to a car for all, and reduce the reliance on private motor-vehicles.
Residents will soon receive a flyer about the club – with a £10 voucher to encourage them to try it.
Members of the scheme – operated by Streetcar – can book online or by phone, as little as 30 minutes before they want to drive the car.
A remotely-activated smartcard is used to unlock the vehicle, which is returned to the same space when the user is finished.
Residents and businesses can become members for as little as £50 a year. Cars cost from just £4.95 per hour, with the first 30 miles of petrol free.
Ben Plowden, Programme Director of Smarter Travel at Transport for London, said: “As the number of car club vehicles continues to grow in the capital, more and more people are discovering that you can have the benefits of a car without the financial or environmental cost of owning one.”
More information
Call Streetcar on: 084 5644 8475 or visit the Carclub page.
Freewheeling family fun
Hackney cyclists will need to be quick if they want to grab a chance to ride through car-free streets.
Last year’s London Freewheel attracted 38,000 cyclists of all ages, who rode a 14km route that took in some of the capital’s most striking sights, as well as offering a fine excuse for a picnic.
This year’s event takes place on 21 September. If you’d like to make the streets your own for a day, sign up. Last year’s ride was fully booked well in advance.
More information
The Freewheel website has more information about the event, as well as top tips to ensure you and your bike are in good shape. Visit: www.londonfreewheel.com
Action stations
Students presented innovative ideas about how to keep stations pristine at the end of a two-day workshop at the University of East London (UEL).
It was part of the Young Crossrail Education Programme, which aims to involve local pupils in a development that will directly connect London with Maidenhead and Heathrow in the west and Essex and Kent in the east.
For five weeks, students from Millfields Community School and Hackney Free and Parochial School researched how railway rubbish is managed. Both are part of the Eco-Schools Programme, an international group of projects that teach students to take responsibility for their environment.
Crossrail has been promoting the programme to 750 schools along the planned route.
The pupils interviewed the public and visited stations along the Crossrail line, finding that 99 per cent agreed more rubbish should be recycled. They also investigated the number of cleaners and waste bins at stations, as well as recycling policies, and found 52 per cent of station waste is paper, left on seats and escalators.
UEL Education Officer, Priya Khambhaita, said: “It was a pleasure to host this event and to see both schools working hard to produce outstanding projects.”
More information
For further details visit: www.crossrail.co.uk/youngcrossrail.
Move to reduce road accidents
Pioneering work is being carried out in Hackney to discover why black children are at greater risk of being hurt in a road accident.
Youngsters from black and minority ethnic communities are one-and-a-half times more likely to be injured on the roads than white children.
Transport for London (TfL) has funded a number of pilot studies across the capital to find out why.
In Hackney, black children will be working with a TV and film production company to make a documentary comparing their parents’ and grandparents’ experience of road safety in their native countries with present-day London.
The two reports, produced for TfL by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, explore the relationship between deprivation, ethnicity and road safety.
Road traffic injury rates from 1996-2006 were highest for black children (175 per 100,000), lowest for Asian children (92 per 100,000) compared to white children (115 per 100,000).
More information
View the reports in full at: www.tfl.gov.uk
Look in the mirror
A new initiative has been launched to reduce the number of cyclists killed or injured by lorries.
Collisions with goods vehicles are the biggest cause of cycling fatalities in London. A tragic local case being that of father-of-one, Ninian Donald, who died after a collision at the junction of Kingsland Road last May.
Now Transport for London (TfL) is issuing 10,000 free safety mirrors to freight companies that operate in the capital to help prevent accidents. The lenses, known as Fresnels, stick to the passenger window giving lorry drivers a better view of cyclists alongside their vehicles.
David Brown, TfL Managing Director of Surface Transport, said: “Our new campaign is designed to give both cyclists and goods vehicle drivers the practical tools they need to be safe and be seen on London’s roads.”
Charlie Lloyd, HGV campaigner at London Cycling Campaign, added: “We urge all freight operators in London to use these lenses, which will help drivers see cyclists on their left side and remind them of their responsibility to ensure the safety of all vulnerable road users.”
In 2006, nine of the 19 cyclists who died on London’s roads were involved in a collision with a goods vehicle.
Provisional data from the Met Police indicates that nine out of the 16 cyclists killed last year also collided with a goods vehicle.
"I'm on the bus!"
Loud mobile phone conversations have topped a list of the most hated behaviour on public transport, new research has found.
Noise from headphones and passengers taking up more than one seat were the other main gripes revealed in a Transport for London (TfL) survey.
While eating hot food and pushing to get on or off a vehicle were also high on the hate list.
Two out of three people said inconsiderate behaviour was unacceptable, but most admitted to acting badly themselves, especially by taking up more than one seat.
The research coincides with a TfL campaign to encourage people to ‘consider your fellow passengers’.
The vast majority of those surveyed agreed everyone has a part to play in making the London travel experience better.
Page updated: 1 May 2008