• Question by: Samantha Heath
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

Well maybe we do need more detail, because in the document it very clearly says that there isn't a production capacity problem. It actually identifies that very specifically. And given that congestion charging is supposed to give us the big hike in bus usership, I would actually say that if you're talking about 200 buses a year, this would be the time to provide the 200 buses a year and not next year. So in a sense, perhaps you could come back to us and let us know when we're going to get the rest of the 50 buses that...

• Question by: Samantha Heath
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

Going back to what you just said about detail of the bus improvements, I'm very glad to have the document which was actually submitted on 3 September to your committee. And try as I might, I think I am relatively numerate, but I've got here 133 new buses, not the 200 that you've quoted blandly in the papers right, left and centre. And even if that took on the double deckers, which you're talking about here, that only adds up to about 150 new buses, taking that extra capacity into account. So my first question is where does the 200...

• Question by: Valerie Shawcross
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

How much have you spent and how much do you expect to spend this year?

• Question by: Valerie Shawcross
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

How are you getting on with spending the £64 million that was put in the budget for preparation for congestion charging? Last time we talked about whether or not you could do an impact study on how the hospitals and public services will be affected by congestion charging. Do you not think there's a case for doing a bit of research on the faster areas of roads because it's the urban roads that are the dangerous ones?

• Question by: Valerie Shawcross
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

Looking at the publicity there's been recently about the experiments on speed cameras and how there is clearly a link between traffic speed, accidents, injuries and particularly pedestrian deaths and cyclist deaths. What consideration has been given to the view that if congestion charging is successful traffic speeds will increase in central London? Is there going to be, or has there been, any study done on whether or not there will be a knock on increase in accident black spots within the congestion charging zone?

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

You need to factor in the economic costs of congestion. That's precisely the argument used with the congestion charge and you need to apply it to the North Circular as well. If you can do that and you can explain to Londoners how it's going to work, saving them money, they'll be delighted.

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

Can I just conclude then? I'm taking it from what you're saying that if those sort of wicked boundary issues about the effects of rat running on boundary areas, on people with low incomes who have to travel across that boundary regularly to get their kids to school or whatever, if all of those issues can't be tackled and addressed properly and you can't demonstrate to London that they can be dealt with fairly, you would be minded not to proceed with this scheme. The other part of the question is about the more affluent Londoners, it's not people on...

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

That's a somewhat worrying answer because I think the Labour position, as distinct from the Tory position, is that we have no problem whatsoever with the principle of the congestion charge and we think that it is probably an answer to the problems of congestion in central London, but you've got to get the details right. You've got to get them right in two regards. One is all those wicked issues about people on low incomes, about people who live on the edge of the zone, about rat-running, about the air quality effect of this. All that sort of detail...

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

I think the first question here is somewhat separate from the others, which is that a lot of us in London are thinking that this project is bigger than you, and in particular Derek Turner, seem to think it is. Just because you could describe it on a fag packet or a beer mat doesn't mean that it's going to be easy to pull together because it requires all sorts of clever electronic systems to talk to one another. It requires retail outlets, like with the National Lottery, but cleverer, to issue tickets, it requires Mrs Bloggs to get a...

• Question by: Jenny Jones
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

I want to congratulate you on this visionary scheme of course. It's clearly common sense and I'm very excited to see the congestion charge coming in. I think you're going to manage to get it in as well. I think that you'll do whatever it takes. But of course a lot of the problem though will be in the detail of this. I'm just wondering how much help you're getting from organisations like the DVLA because I think that they're going to play a very crucial part in the whole thing being effective.