The questionable claims continue
The article below appeared in our community newspaper, the Echo
For Waltham Forest Streets for All refutation of some of the assumptions and conclusions in the quoted research click here
And these are the comments from member Claire Weiss:-
"Don't know where to start really, because the article is replete with the jargon of coercion rather than reasoned debate. For instance, the following phrase is an example of using an untruth as a basis to bolster an argument: "social justice implications of unfettered car use". On the contrary vehicle owning, using and driving is a highly regulated activity and its use has not been unfettered since the introduction of driving licences, speed limits, road tax, yellow lines, parking meters and seat belts.
And here is another example of whipping up an adverse emotion that has not been substantiated:"the fear of road danger whenever they leave their homes" (WHENEVER?)
On the contrary I now have Pavement Fear - of being struck by a bike as I open my gate. Honestly it happens every day whereas before, adult cyclists would dismount to use the pavement. Cycles seem to have been given licence to use the pavements in one-way streets as short-cuts. Yet the cars stay obediently on the road and I am not frightened of them because they are regulated.
The next problem with the article is the focus on cars. The traffic on the roads comprises more than the car, there are vans, taxis, delivery lorries, repair trucks, Council waste
pick-ups the list goes on: we all depend on vehicle-provided services especially those who don't have their own car. Yet these people are presented in the above article and elsewhere in the MH promotions as some kind of deprived group when many of them are not - they just choose to spend their money on Uber and minicabs for shopping trips, journeys to the station, pick-up trips, airport transfers etc. And why shouldn't they. They also want unclogged roads.
And finally, the whole article rests on the sham presentation by the Council of commissioned statistical speculation that assumes WF is an experimental bubble. For the avoidance of any doubt, let me say that I support the improvement of air quality and people's health. But I do not support this social engineering. The great tragedy is that TfL is now having to eats its words that removing bus lanes would have no impact on bus journey times. MH is having such an adverse impact on bus journey times that key sections of the public (workers) have reduced using them. The TfL's answer now is to cut whole bus services and this affects those who are less commercially critical to TfL as passengers but for whom individually the bus is a vital part of their interaction in society. Sorry, I didn't know where to start and now I hardly know where to stop ....
