Hypocritical Government
 

No surprise there, but just look at these 2 stories today. 1st off, Alastair Darling has started the push towards tracking motorists by telling us it's part of a wider transport policy to improve things:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4480292.stm

But then the Government stops Liverpool (and Leeds) from implementing a better public transport system:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/m...de/4481146.stm

Makes you wonder exactly what satellite tracking will really be used for, because the government don't seem exactly commited to improving public transport, do they?

It is even more interesting to note that they really expect their road charging scheme to be such a success that the Time reports:

"Tyne & Wear is considering using profits from its proposed charging scheme to compensate businesses for loss of trade."

Well, that is great then. No better way to get the economy back to the stone age than by implementing a wide range of control systems that will fill the far left with joy and ruin business and transport.

Just typical Labour, rather than solve any root cause they just try fire fighting measures.

If we had a half decent public transport system, that would in itself cut congestion, and people would be more willing to use it rather than drive everywhere. I know exactly what will happen in Greater Manchester - people will just avoid the CG zones by skirting around them using the small outlying villages as rat runs.

The only thing they can do to cut congestion in real terms is to price people off the road by charging £5/litre for fuel. But...they MUST provide decent alternatives rather than blowing our money on crap like they are proposing.

Obvioulsy it will have to cost the cash cows more or it wont reduce congestions. What a tw@t. And a 1.5% reduction in London traffic means feck all re congestion. Just another huge stealth tax.

Actually there are a good few alternatives
1) Remove the congestion creating mechanisms that have been introduced such as the removal of pull-ins for bus stops, the introduction of 24 hour bus lanes, the removal of second lanes on dual carriage ways by hatching them all out, the continual and unesscessary reduction of speed limits on safe roads.
2) Incentivise businesses to encourage home work and staggered starting hours. Rather than a rush hour, we spread the load.
3) Improve public transport and provide more / better park and ride style facilities, particularly to get people from the outskirts in to town centres.

Money would be better spent on incentives to get freight back onto the railways (if this is a viable alternative) :)

Stop making junctions etc narrower so that you can no longer get two lanes of cars for turning both left and right. This p!sses me off big time.

Thats an excellent list, seems too easy doesnt it. But in some cases local authorities have changed road patterns and traffic light sequences to specifically increase congestion They feel that the harder they make it the more will stop using the roads or keep out of town....

Plus this Government is determined to track its population. They want to know where you are, what you are doing and when ..... their plan is working!

OllyK

Can I use that list to send to my MP? He is looking into the issues I raised with him and I want to know what the Conservative view on them is. However, by sending your list, I can come up with his next transport policy for Northampton!

Cool.

:sleep: :D :D lol

They are certainly doing that around my area.

They are not 'fire fighting' measures. They are what all their transport policies have been leading up to. Control and power over private transport - to make it work they can't provide a viable public transport system either. There is also the fact that their methods of implementation lead the *oppostition* to argue over details whilst the main objective goes on regardless .......

Dave

They've just done it on the A6 through Stockport:mad: Over a periond of two weeks they have been altering the traffic light sequences, and several teams of clipboard toting numpties have been recording the results, on my particlar 15 mile journey the time taken varied over as much as 30 minutes. The study has obviously finished because it now consistently takes me over half an hour longer to get to and from work than it did a month ago:mad:

I'm betting sometime soon there will be a report about traffic congestion worsening too:mad: