On Sun, 19 Jun 2011, Robin9 wrote:

I won't vote for any Liberal Democrat candidate and I wouldn't vote for
Brian Paddick even if he weren't a Liberal Democrat.

Might i ask, at the risk of going firmly OT, what your objection to
Paddick is?

Tuffey's advocacy of express buses is interesting - at least to me -
because I have long thought that the massive expansion of bus services
in the outer suburbs in recent years has been misconceived. Far more
relevant to the transport requirements of most Londoners would be
express buses.

Travelling by bus in London is slow and frustrating, partly because the
roads have been sabotaged, partly because buses are large and clumsy and
partly because buses have to stop so frequently. On judicially selected
routes, express buses could be a huge improvement over normal buses.

I hope the selection won't be judicial. Judicious, perhaps, but i'd rather
it was made by transport planners than judges!

It would definitely be interesting, though. The outer suburbs are the
areas where car use is highest, but also perhaps where it is least
problematic - there are more roads and fewer people.

Anyway, in inner or outer suburbs, where are these buses going to go? Into
town, like the existing railway lines? Or to local centres? His site:

http://miketuffrey.com/mike-tuffrey-...lan/transport/

merely says "Run express bus routes at peak commuter times, to speed
people to work, and more orbital routes round London to relieve pressure".

Mr. Tuffey's idea about municipal bonds frightens me. This is a recipe
for bankruptcy. Issuing bonds is a just another way of going into debt.

Presumably, the GLA already has ways of getting into debt - can it borrow
from banks? Might bonds be preferable to that? Or would they be used in
addition to, rather than instead of, loans?

tom

--
Don't believe his lies.