London's recovery starts with you

When it comes to transport too many of londons stations are inaccessible, no lifts or if they are the route to use them are very long and beyond peoples abilities when they are elderly or disabled. 

Too many trains and platforms have huge gaps and steps making them unusable as there arent sufficient guards to use ramps etc plus too many people pushing disabled and elderly out of the way in their rush to get on and get a seat. 

20MPH speed limits create pollution yes its understandable for them to exist outside schools etc during start / finish and break times when they are open but outside that they are pointless, they slow traffic so a lower gear is used that creates releases more toxins

there are too many bus lanes that are left empty whilst traffic sits queuing polluting the atmosphere

Bakerloo Line Extension & Green Recovery - Public transport should be central to London's Green Recovery plan, so I don't understand why the Bakerloo Line Extension to South London has not been approved. It's planned to cost a fraction of other infrastructure projects, will facilitate billions in investment as well as affordable green housing and jobs in both the immediate & longer-term. It'll contribute significantly to the UK's economic & green recovery. 

Approving this project would allow South London's councils to showcase their ideal Green recovery plan in the form of an infrastructure project that is universally welcomed. It'll bring all the usual green benefits of public transport like lower carbon emissions & reduced need for private car ownership, as well as countless economic & social benefits. Banning & taxing cars will only take you so far because after this crisis is over, people are going to need to move around London! Projects like the Bakerloo Line Extension will contribute towards meeting the green targets of 2030 & 2050 by reducing the need for private cars across South London. If the government is serious about tackling emissions then they need to Back the Bakerloo (https://www.backthebakerloo.org.uk/).

"The UK low carbon and environmental goods and services sector (green economy) is worth £40 billion in sales and employs nearly 250,000 people. It is worth more to the London economy than the construction and manufacturing sectors combined."

How is that defined? How much of that is due to government mandated payments / businesses / requirements rather than freely created entities? Construction and manufacturing are delivering value and wealth generation. How many of these green ventures would be loss making without taxpayer mandated support? Which ones generate wealth vs merely charge for mandated services? What is the breakdown to get to this figure and comment?

Leave our roads alone!! You are implementing changes that are causing chaos without any consultation!! The old and disabled are trapped in our houses withoit care because no ome can get to us! You cannot build a city from the back of a bike!! You have been bought out by the cycling lobby and its a disgrace!!

Great to keep pushing for these 2030 targets and not wait for 2050 - this is simply too late 

As health professional this is simply a must and will have huge benefits to NHS re impact on respiratory and cardiovascular disease. 

Lets make at least zone 1 car free and go from there  - Protecting of course tranport for those with disabilities , emergency services etc. Whole public transport fleet and taxis to be electric. Fully support the move by some of the  Royal Parks to stop traffic coming through them - a benefit that many users highlighted during the lockdown period 

We need to make public transport the choice, make parking permits more expensive and incentivize people to take public transport Where I live brent ,it is cheaper to get a car parking permit for the year  than to safely store your bike in secure bike hangar  for those of us living in flats- this is crazy. 

Replace one  side of every road - currently used for car parking with green spaces- - in high streets use them for outdoor cafe space as needed 

Public buildings to convert to renewable energy and support private owners to move away from gas 

How can we lobby to make sure all London councils/ assembly etc  divest their pensions/ investments  away from fossil fuel investment 

For tourism/ business  how are we working with European colleagues to make it cheaper and more pleasant to make travel to London from Europe by train the preferred option in our 2030 vision

Evidence shows older Londoners are concerned about the safety of travelling on public transport  post COVID which they are reliant on rather than walking or cycling or traveling by car. Whilst social distancing is in place then there are constraints on the capacity of public transport.  To support a green economy and the needs of older people, some immediate actions are required for London's public transport: 

1. Improve public confidence in travelling by public transport in London through communicating safety provision

2. End the TfL suspension of free travel for over 60s before 9am

3. Priority given to those older people who require it at bus stops and queuing into tube stations

4. Engage with older people organisations in London on any route changes or major frequency changes

5. Ensure hospital transport is protected via bus routes 

Also I think London is due to address the lack of control and offering of rentable electric scooters. Other countries and cities are already on top of this. 

I had an idea to have rentable woodworking /electrical making workspaces where anyone can access tool to "build your own robot" or solar panels or "invention hubs". 

This would include 3D printers, computers, robotic arms, even basic filming and lighting equipment for YouTubers or instsgramers.

Imagine if you thought of a new "eco cup" for the disposable coffee cup problem and was able to use this space to prototype that cup. Then manufacture it locally, in the same workshop space?!?! 

It would launch off a new era of "Designed and Manufactured in the U.K." and "Eco-friendly" labels. That would be amazing. 

Penalising car drivers by closing roads and forcing everyone down main streets is not the solution to easing pollution - in fact it only causes more. As someone who has is self employed and has to drive for their job (not a cabbie),the road closures of the so called "rat runs" has only increased time sitting in traffic with engines needlessly sitting idle,increasing the pollution as well as wasting time & money...and this is without the majority of people going back to offices and schools opening again! You can't just brush vehicles under the carpet and expect them to disappear,people are too used to using them and having things delivered to their door as they can't be bothered to go out their front door to get what they need. Also vehicles are essential for some people who rely on them to get around like people with disabilities,mental health issues,OAP's etc as well as services like the police and ambulance. What local councils/government should be doing instead is creating incentives and help finance people to switch to electric vehicles as at the moment they are far too expensive for someone,like me,who doesn't earn much with mortgage and bills already to pay. Charge points need to be installed much more quickly in all boroughs as even if I did have an electric vehicle,my borough has so few local charge points I wouldn't even be garunteed I could come back home after work and be able to recharge my vehicle. 

It should be the big energy guzzling companies that should be the first to change and pay more for their consumption and pollution,not the small businesses.

The biggest source of pollution in London is coming from the roads - air pollution, CO2 pollution, noise pollution.

The city should belong to people, but in most places in London it is cars that get most of the public space, not people. Cars lower everyone's life quality and diminishing their numbers should be the #1 priority of any green agenda. A couple of ideas:

(1) finish Crossrail and continue investing as much as possible in rail-based public transport - this is the best long-term investment and London absolutely needs this;

(2) introduce a city-wide speed limit of 20mph, and introduce a city-wide rule that pedestrians and cyclists always have the right of way over cars - like it's done in Belgium and the Netherlands;

(3) replace car parking spaces by trees, or bicycle parking, or wider pavements;

(4) replace one or several lanes of traffic on larger roads by trees, bike lanes, wider pavements;

(5) stop the construction of additional road infrastructure like the new Blackwall/Silvertown tunnel and focus instead on pedestrian and cycle infrastructure including pedestrian/cycle only bridges over the Thames in east London.

(6) forbid access to the city to any personal car above 1.5 or 2 tons - those large cars and SUVs are the most dangerous to pedestrians and cyclists, and simply do not belong in the city. Professional vehicles above that weight should remain allowed.

Rubbish is another issue. An easy target to cut down on rubbish would be the food delivery and take-away places - single use plastics usage there is terrifying.

I would like to see:

- Full electrification of London's buses and cabs

- Expansion of cycle routes 

- Ban of non essential car traffic frm roads mostly frequented by pedestrians for leisure activities. e.g. village centres, park through roads. Exception should be made for the emergency services, the disabled and those for whom the car is essential to complete work (e.g. grocery deliveries, post, building and repair services etc). Such people should be issued FREE permits to continue using the roads as required. These measures would discourage people for whom it is not essential from using their cars and make traffic more efficient for those who have no other choice but to sit in the car.

- Financial support for buying bikes and electric bikes. Besides concerns about road safety, the physical difficulty of getting around with a bike is a major hold back for many people, preventing them from switching from car to bicycle. Electric bikes are a perfect solution as they are completely green, provide means for healthy exercise but have an electric motor to boost performance and make it easier and more comfortable to ride for those not up for long and/or regular rides or carrying their shopping relying on muscle power alone. But electric bikes are quite expensive and therefore out of budget for many. They are still much cheaper than an electric car though so more cost efficient for the government to support. For my own commute I would probably prefer one as it would save me the sweat (literally) and hence the need to shower and change every morning when I get into the office which make the overall bike commute quite a bit longer.

- Protection to all green spaces, support to make green spaces richer with planting trees, shrubs etc. to lure wildlife and biodiversity that support our existence. 

I really hope that London does become greener in a way that is socially just. A couple of ideas include:

- Having more allotments and community gardens.

- Making cycling safer with cycle routes and provide more safe places to keep bicycles (as bikes get stolen all the time).

- Having green community spaces, plant trees and improve biodiversity (i.e. flowers on roofs for bees etc). 

- Reduce traffic and subsidise public transport - invest in it so it is greener.

- Tax private landlords with EPC low ratings

- Have a recycling system like Sweden and move towards a zero waste system (or at least encourage more recyclable plastic that wont be exported abroad and incinerated).

- Tax and ban highly polluting vehicles, tax rebates for companies that use electric vans to deliver goods etc. (Tax rebates for companies that reduce single use plastic, invest in green projects/charities etc). 

- Nationalise water, or increase fines for polluting the Thames and wasting water. 

- Move the date from 2030 and 2050 to within the next 5 years, so its actually a green new deal.

It's GREAT,

But a big problem in London is the rubbish. We don't separate it, it's all facade. And we don't minimize product packaging. We are 20 millions day in and day out: this has an immense environmental impact. We should never consider selling it off to other countries with dubious policies, especially when we do not offer clean separated product.

- rubbish separation policies must be presented in a much clearer and immediate way. After 4 years I still hadn't got them, despite seeing the ads. I had to Google for half an hour. It must be crystal clear what the priorities are, and said in a reasoning that is easy! to remember.

- separated public bins must be tested against efficacy. If they are not reaching the scope, they must be covered with more useful stickers.

- businesses especially in central London must be OBLIGED to separate at least in the most relevant ways to the rubbish disposal process. I worked in many establishments and I can confirm that it is not separated, but by some small diligent pubs. Many big businesses producing loads of trash just play pretend with separation. It's unacceptable. There is a way to do it, especially if it was law.

Thanks.

im Pleased to see that the GLA is seeking a Green Recovery and encouraging active travel should be central to that.  The GLA should seek to 

1. Widen cycle lanes and pavements over the long term.

2. Provide car free zones outside schools and parks, to ensure that parents/children feel safe cycling together

3. Provide free public cycle usage to under sixteens and place docking stations near to schools

4. Prioritise cycle theft, as would-be cyclists may be discouraged knowing that there’s little the police do in the event of a cycle theft

5. Ticket drivers who ‘stop’ in cycle boxes at traffic lights, to allow cyclists to feel seen and therefore, safer

Why not change to a recycling charge on packaging, bottles and cans at source?  It's amazing what a financial incentive can do to change behaviour.