Boris's bonfire of transport projects

The London Assembly Labour group have slammed Boris Johnson's decision to drop a series of major transport projects, including the much-needed Thames Gateway Bridge, the private sector funding for which will now be lost.

Boris's "bonfire of transport projects"

The London Assembly Labour group have slammed Boris Johnson's decision to drop a series of major transport projects, including the much-needed Thames Gateway Bridge, the private sector funding for which will now be lost.

The Mayor has today abandoned plans for:

A Brixton/Peckham to Camden cross river tram
Extensions to the Docklands Light Railway and Croydon Tramlink
An east London river crossing, the Thames Gateway Bridge

Responding to the news, Labour's London Assembly transport spokesperson Val Shawcross said the Mayor was showing his utter lack of ambition and abandoning outer London by making a bonfire of vital transport projects. Deputy leader of the Labour group and local east London Assembly member, John Biggs, said that by axing the Thames Gateway Bridge the Mayor was wasting £350 million and over twenty years worth of work and betraying east London.

John Biggs said: "This is a betrayal of East London and a stab in the back for East London residents whose transport needs far out-weigh the minority opposition to the Bridge.

"It has been in the pipeline for over twenty years. Work was due to begin, subject to final planning approval, in 2009. But - for all the Mayor's platitudes about the need to invest to stimulate London's economy - when it came to the crunch, he has done the complete opposite. The Bridge would have slashed local cross-river journey times, kick-started regeneration in the area and created the potential for 42,000 new jobs and improved opportunities for local people. This, and the £350 million of PFI credits, will all now be lost for crude political reasons.

"The Mayor is showing a lack of leadership - he is there to serve all Londoners and that means standing up to the forces of backwardness in his own party. The London economy vitally needs this sort of boost and east London's ability to provide growth and job opportunities for the capital as a whole will be seriously compromised by this decision."

Private sector funding for construction of the bridge, which would have connected Newham to Greenwich, was in place so there were no cost implications for London council tax payers. The PFI credits secured from the government for the project will now be lost; not reinvested
It would have been only the fourth road crossing to the east of London between Tower Bridge and Dartford, compared to the sixteen between Vauxhall and the M25 in the west.

Commenting on the loss of London's other vital transport projects Val Shawcross said: "The Mayor has said a lot about the need to invest in major projects for the sake of London's economy. Yet here he is making a bonfire of much-needed transport schemes vital the economic regeneration of the city.

"The Mayor's utter lack of commitment to public transport, to encouraging people out of their cars and to investing in London's future have been vividly exposed today. It seems that poorer areas of London and the outer boroughs in most need of public transport links just do not feature in the Mayor's vision. I fear this could be the week in which London's public transport progress ground to a halt."

The Cross River Tram would have transformed public transport in south London and eased pressure on the Northern Line.
The DLR extension to Dagenham Docks was vital to the regeneration of the area, connecting it to other parts of London. £5 million has already been spent
The Croydon Tramlink extension would have reduced journey times between Croydon and Crystal Palace to just 18 minutes. The scheme had 78% local support, would have reduced pollution and increased air quality and boosted the local economy.