TfL policy direction: Making many London roundabouts 20mph, to protect cyclists and pedestrians?

Link to 'Two Wheels Good' web site

"A 20mph speed limit for Waterloo Roundabout and approach roads might not sound like much, but it is actually, in my opinion, rather momentous.

"This is a (unique) example of Transport for London prioritising the safety of the 5,500 cyclists that use this roundabout every weekday, over the motorists, who [will] see a decline in the average speed of 34mph on the Waterloo Bridge and Stamford Street approaches.

"Time and again, good infrastructure for cyclists has not been implemented in London, because TfL is afraid to curb the excessive speed of London's motor traffic. The politics of road use are far more important, in deciding the quality of cycle infrastructure that we have in London, than either funding or expertise (though of course, we still have much to learn from Dutch and Danish town planners)."

IFS: "Departmental spending down, public sector employment down faster"

Link to the fully monty

"Current spending plans imply an average cut in public service spending of

one third

across unprotected Whitehall departments – i.e. all excluding health, schools and overseas aid – by 2017–18. If the defence equipment budget were to be added to the list of protected areas, then spending in unprotected areas would need to fall by

around 35%.

"Over this parliament, departments are planning to cut pay bills quicker than other forms of spending, and so far, they are doing it through

reducing employment

much more than through real pay cuts.

"This means that public sector jobs look likely to be cut faster than implied by Office for Budget Responsibility forecasts. If departments continue to cut their pay bills beyond 2014–15 at the rate they are currently planning, then public sector employment would

fall by 1.2 million

by 2017–18, rather than by 900,000 as the OBR forecasts.

"Avoiding such deep cuts to public services, whilst sticking to fiscal plans, would require

substantial and additional cuts

in social security spending; or

tax rises

would need to be implemented.

"Over the last 30 years, tax rises announced in the year after a general election have averaged £7.5 billion. Considering this trend, and in the context of the current fiscal situation, further tax rises following the next election would not be surprising."

(Formatting added!)

---

The Guardian:
"UK deficit reduction will need big tax
rises after next election, experts warn"

"Britain's leading experts on public finances have warned
of hefty tax increases in the first budget after the 2015 election
as the next government seeks to repair a £64bn deficit
caused by a stuttering economy."

"Minister acts to speed up Portas Pilots high street revamp"

Mary Portas
Link to The Guardian

"Mark Prisk, local growth minister, [is chairing] the Future High Streets Forum (BBC report) which includes representatives from John Lewis, the Association of Town & City Management, and the Association of Convenience Stores.

Prisk is telling the meeting of the 27 so-called 'Portas Pilots' in Loughborough today that:

"It is clear that our high streets will need to change to prosper. There is already great work being done across the country to revitalise the town centres, but it needs to spread further, faster."

"Future’s bright for London’s lighthouse" (but Brent Cross's Hammerson is holed, and taking on water). [That's enough nautical analogies.]

Heave to, and board the Evening Standard 
[good grief]

"London’s very own lighthouse at King’s Cross is about to get a spruce-up, at the hands of developer Nick Capstick-Dale’s UK Real Estate. Most historians think the 1875 landmark was built as an elaborate advertisement for Netten’s Oyster Bar, which occupied the ground floor when oysters were much less of a delicacy.

"When a fresh batch was delivered, the beacon would flash to attract customers. Capstick-Dale is planning offices and shops on the site, but will keep the listed exterior."

Brent Cross's Hammerson, and Westfield's er, Westfield, jointly develop 'Westfield Croydon'

(Croydon Advertiser)

Woof, woof.

Not if you want to avoid corruption, they can't

(Croydon Advertiser)

(Croydon Guardian)

[Reposted from July 2012 - avoiding corruption] Questions to the Mayor: Croydon - Brent Cross Stitch-Up: "Not Us, Gov!"

Brent Cross Shopping centre (1)

Question No: 1951 / 2012

Caroline Pidgeon

What discussions have you, the Deputy Mayor for Planning or any other GLA officer had with Hammerson, Westfield, the Whitgift Foundation, Gavin Barwell MP or any other parties about the potential relaxation of planning conditions at Brent Cross Shopping Centre?

Written response from the Mayor

As I have set out before, I am committed to delivery of the wider regeneration benefits at Brent Cross and Cricklewood as set out in my London Plan. The Deputy Mayor and my planning officers have discussed how this might be delivered with Hammerson who own and operate Brent Cross. I am not aware of any meetings with Westfield, the Whitgift Foundation and Gavin Barwell to discuss planning conditions at Brent Cross.

*

Brent Cross Shopping Centre (2)

Question No: 1952 / 2012

Caroline Pidgeon

Do you agree that it would be wholly improper to link discussions about the Brent Cross Shopping Centre with discussions about proposed developments in Croydon Town Centre (notwithstanding the fact that the same developer has interests in both locations)?

Written response from the Mayor

It is not uncommon to discuss multiple sites with landowners. Any consideration of developments in either location would of course be done in the context of my London Plan.

*

Croydon Town Centre

Question No: 1953 / 2012

Caroline Pidgeon

According to the Croydon Advertiser you were due to meet the local MP Gavin Barwell to discuss the regeneration of Croydon Town Centre in June. What was discussed at this meeting, what will be the results of this meeting and will you publish the agenda and notes of the meeting?

Written response from the Mayor

The meeting referred to in the Croydon Advertiser did not take place but I and my team are in regular contact with Gavin Barwell MP, as well as councillors and senior officers at LB Croydon, as we work together on regeneration plans for the town centre.

Terry Farrell: on the London housing crisis

Link to Evening Standard

"There are lots of myths and misconceptions about many big ideas. 

"With housing, there is the idea that planning and land availability are the biggest barriers. That’s just not true. Planners give consent for lots of things, which then get stalled because of fear of the market.

"There are a lot of developers sitting on their hands because of uncertainty over the market. I got planning for 10,000 homes in Greenwich Peninsula, for example, and for 1,000 in Chelsea. So that proves it isn’t lack of land, or a planning problem. There must be huge other factors.

"If houses are needed on one side, and planning has been granted on the other, then what’s in the middle, stopping it? It must be to do with finance.

"Finance, and a muddled marketplace."

Join our debate:
The Future of London's Property Market
20 March, 6.45pm until 8pm
Emmanuel Centre, Westminster

Free tickets available from: standardevents.co.uk/housing

New light-rail station in Brent Cross shopping centre makeover ("Alight for John Lewis")

(Source)

"The winners of the MIPIM Architectural Review Future Project Awards have been announced. These awards uniquely celebrate un-built or incomplete design projects, and are intended to showcase fine architecture and creativity, and the response to the client development brief."
(Daily Telegraph)

---

Link to:

"Despite quick-profit horizons of the developers, it was decided a justified transport solution for Brent Cross's expansion was light-rail"

Bike Biz: "Build it and they will come, Get Britain Cycling inquiry is told"

Link to Bike Biz web site

(photo:CTC)

"The All Party Parliamentary Cycling Group inquiry is now on its third session, with three more to come. The two-hour evidence gathering sessions were held in committee room 13 in the House of Commons. Today's session was about cycling infrastructure and urban design.

"Witnesses from cycling and pedestrian groups, universities, urban design and transport organisations presented evidence on segregation, junctions, signage, cycle parking, road maintenance, urban design, traffic calming and speed limits.

"... Secretary of the All Party Parliamentary Cycling Group, Lord Berkeley [centre, above], said:

"Any cyclist using many of today’s roads will know that cycling is often seen as an afterthought, rather than being considered when roads are planned. In order to get Britain on bikes, we need to first change the environment to make it more appealing.

This demands a concerted effort from government, local authorities and planners to ensure our roads are fit for purpose for all road users."

---

Link to web site

Cyclists' Touring Club (CTC):
"Planning and design for cycling scrutinised by MPs and Peers"

"Fabian Hamilton, MP for Leeds North East, who had cycled from Leeds to the Netherlands in 2012, felt we should simply copy what had been achieved there.

"Mark Ames agreed, suggesting that a big part of the problem lay with the guidance documents set by the Government, and the skills of the engineers who design projects.

"Gerhard Weiss from LCC, explained that the 'Love London, Go Dutch' campaign, aimed to copy the Dutch approach of giving cyclists priority: cycle paths aren't there to "get cyclists out of the way", but to allow cyclists to gain advantage over other users.

"However, even basic ideas, such as giving cyclists priority over side roads, or low-level traffic lights for cyclists, which are common in the Netherlands or Germany, are incredibly rare in Britain."

---

“Our weather is such that for at least one quarter
of the year we must cycle at home or not at all,”
stated a correspondent to the short-lived
The Rambler weekly cycling magazine in 1897

Link to: RoadsWereNotBuiltForCars

Evening Standard: "Elephant and Castle estate revamp ‘ripped off taxpayers’"

Link to web site

"Critics of the £1.5 billion regeneration of Elephant and Castle claim secret documents prove local taxpayers have been 'ripped off'.

They spoke out after reading a confidential agreement between developer Lend Lease and Southwark council that was not redacted properly.

"They say the document reveals that the council spent £44 million on emptying the Heygate estate at the heart of the regeneration scheme — but will only receive £50 million from Lend Lease for the 22-acre site. Other costs to the council would leave it out of pocket."

Boris on Housing: "This is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning"

• Boris wants stamp duty cash to build homes to avoid crisis
• He warns London is in urgent need of 1m more homes in next 25 years
• Boris: "Give us the tools and we'll get on with the job"

Link to Evening Standard
or hear Boris's speech

"Boris Johnson today called on the Treasury to hand over £1.3 billion a year in London stamp duty receipts to fund a massive house-building programme in the capital.

"The Mayor wants to wrest control of tax revenues from property sales from George Osborne, to address a chronic lack of affordable housing. He warns that London faces a housing crisis, unless one million homes are built in 25 years."

[Reposted from Jan 2012] Andy Travers Goes Up To Town

On 9 September 2011, London Councils hosted a workshop to examine the options available to London boroughs seeking to finance economic development and regeneration. It follows on from the publication of the London Councils report 'Investing in London'.

"With central government funding for regeneration having virtually ceased, and the costs of borrowing from the Public Works and Loans board rising significantly, London boroughs face increasing difficulty in securing funding to support large scale economic development/regeneration.

"It is clear that the private sector is going to play a much wider part in financing regeneration projects. [And in some cases, like Barnet, the local authority will cede all democratic control.]

"The workshop looked to furnish borough officers with information on the various tools through which economic development can be financed, what is likely to attract investors and developers into partnerships with boroughs, and the safeguards that both borough treasurers and private investors will want in place. [Barnet wants safeguards?]

The event was chaired by Andrew Travers, Deputy Chief Executive of Barnet Council [working on a £1000-a-day contract - see Famous Five Barnet bloggers] and ppresentations [sic] were made by:

• Andrew Hume, lead Director of the Regeneration team at Jones Lang LaSalle
• Jon Rowney, Head of Fair Funding, London Councils
• Jonathan Guthrie, lead on Investment Promotion, City of Edinburgh Council
• Pierre-Emmanuel Noel,  Senior Loan Officer for UK public sector lending, The European Investment Bank
• David Rose, Vice President, Infrastructure Finance, RBC Capital Markets.

---

Andrew Travers, London Borough of Barnet, opened the workshop with a succinct statement -

"The money has run out..."

"With central government funding for regeneration having virtually ceased, and the costs of borrowing from the Public Works and Loans Board rising significantly, London boroughs face increasing difficulty in securing finance to support large-scale economic development/regeneration.

Link to documents

"Nor is there any indication that government funding or capitalisation will return to previous levels within the foreseeable future, and, whilst there are important programmes and policies in the pipeline (New Homes Bonus, HRA self financing proposals, Business Rate retention, TIFs, etc.), boroughs will need to take a broad view, and it is clear that the private sector is going to play a much wider part in financing regeneration projects.

"The next question to be asked is whether the government and the boroughs are up to the challenge. [Especially in Barnet!] The government needs to give local authorities the freedoms and flexibilities to be innovative, and the boroughs must be ready to explore all options, including working collaboratively with the GLA and/or with subregional partners." [Don't expect help from Brent, Harrow, Camden, ... !]

"Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt mobbed by fans at OK! Magazine signing at Brent Cross" (It doesn't actually get any more interesting than that.)

"Speidi share a smooch,
as they hold their copies
of OK! Magazine"
Link to OK magazine

(Thumbnails images are not covered by copyright,
so that's all you're getting.)

"Stuff you don't need? Freegle it!"

Link to web site

"Don’t throw it away – give it away on Freegle! You might not need that old sofa or wheelbarrow any more – but there might be someone just round the corner who does. Or if there’s something you’d like, someone nearby might have one.

Lurking in sheds, attics and cupboards all over the UK are items that are too good to throw away, but are not loved or needed anymore. Freegle online groups can help!

There are 1,430,399 Freegle members in 373 reuse groups all over the UK - see photos of recently Freegled items and a live map of new messages.

Link to: Freegle Groups in London

Civic Voice responds to comments from Sir Terry Leahy about decline of the High Street

Link to web site

"Responding to former Tesco boss Sir Terry Leahy who has described the rise of supermarkets and the closure of small shops as 'part of progress', Civic Voice Chair, Paula Ridley, said:

“Our collective sense of community and well-being is intimately connected to the health of our high streets, which play an important social role in bringing people together.

The rise of supermarkets, with the infrastructure needed to sustain them, and their purchasing power has helped to crowd out competition. As a result, small independent shops are increasingly missing from the high street. This is not progress, but it is change."

"The super-rich are pushing workers out of the capital"

Link to Evening Standard

"London prices have exploded because London has become the world’s most desirable city, because there are more rich people now than ever before able to come here, and because the UK is seen as a place which is stable, so their money is safe.

"But the effect is to detach London not just from the rest of the UK, but from Londoners themselves. ... The inner oval of central London is rapidly becoming a place where we are still allowed to work but no longer able to live.

"... People displaced in [expensive] areas in turn try a bit further out in their turn and the ripple of rising prices spreads ever wider. The result is that prices rise in parts of London an oligarch does not even know exist.

"Meanwhile, in the rest of the country, house prices have been falling. ... We can’t go on like this."

---

Link to web site

The Guardian:
"Buy-to-let landlords' buying spree will keep more families in rental trap"

"Buy-to-let landlords will embark on a home buying spree in 2013 while young adults and families remain trapped in rental properties, according to a forecast by Britain's biggest property website Rightmove. ... Meanwhile, 53% of tenants say they are trapped in renting, wanting to buy a home, but unable to afford to do so.

"The research is published as a committee of MPs begins a formal investigation into the problems facing Britain's 'Generation Rent'.

"... Campaigners at Priced Out, a group representing tenants unable to afford to buy, said without new building, landlords are simply displacing first-time buyers."

---

Link to web site

Daily Telegraph:
"Rising house prices depress rental yields, but will not kill buy-to-let"

"Rising house prices, the mortgage famine and increasing numbers of ‘accidental landlords’ look set to cause a modest reduction in rental yields.

"... Unhappy tenants and others hoping for a house price crash may detect a top of the market aspect to this admittedly stale bull story. It would be easy to stroke one’s chin sagely and point out that today’s feast can cause tomorrow’s famine.

"But sceptics have been predicting the top of the buy-to-let market all the way up. Rental property remains an attractive source of income for many people entering retirement at a time of historic low interest rates, bond yields near all-time lows, and high share price volatility."

The Economist: "Tax-increment financing of local infrastructure"

Link to The Economist

"Even modest investments in local infrastructure, such as tram routes and suburban railways, are currently approved in [Whitehall] and paid for out of central taxation. Business rates (property taxes levied on firms) are put into a central pot and redistributed according to need.

"Under the city deals, Greg Clark, the cities minister, wants local authorities to keep any growth in their business-rates revenue. They can borrow against this 'uplift' to build critical infrastructure, which, in theory at least, [our emphasis] ought to provide enough revenue over time to repay the loan. 

"This funding method, known as tax-increment financing, is common in America, but has never been tried in British cities."

---

We say: There is nothing 'critical' to Britain's infrastructure about expanding Brent Cross shopping centre, with its living bridge of more out-of-town shops, but Barnet Council has tried this scam already (a financial scandal of the 2020s, when all those concerned have moved on?)...

Link to a 2011 posting
(with links to other press stories)

WESTFIELD CROYDON: Property Week TV: "Hammerson, Westfield and Boris go under the bonnet of the Whitgift deal"

Link to Property Week
(Registration provides limited online access)

"Following the news that Hammerson and Westfield will unite to redevelop the Whitgift Centre in Croydon, Property Week caught up with the involved parties and Boris Johnson for an insider view of the deal.

"... On the subject of Westfield conquering all four of London’s compass points [BRENT CROSS IS IN THE NORTH!] Westfield’s managing director of United Kingdom & Europe Michael Gutman told Property Week that the focus was solely on Croydon."

---

BorisVision video is MP4 file, and viewing method is device-dependent:

http://brightcove.vo.llnwd.net/pd16/media/10190167001/10190167001_2103652950001_Kat-in-Croydon.mp4

---

Property Week provides limited online access after registration.
Subscriptions are available here.

---

BBC: "Small shop closures are progress, says ex-Tesco boss"

Link to web site

"The former boss of Tesco has described the rise of supermarkets and closure of small shops as 'part of progress'.

"Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs, Sir Terry Leahy also called some High Streets 'medieval', saying the way people lived their lives had changed.

"Sir Terry said seeing boarded up local shops was sad, but this happened because consumers were choosing to shop at the bigger supermarkets.

"The benefits of out-of-town stores outweighed the downsides, he added."

Review: "Inequality for All – another Inconvenient Truth?"

"The powerful documentary 'Inequality for All' was an unexpected hit at the recent Sundance film festival, arguing that US capitalism has fatally abandoned the middle classes, while making the super-rich richer."

Link to The Observer

"In one sense, Inequality for All is absolutely the film of the moment. We are living through tumultuous times. The economy has tanked. Austerity has cut a swath through the country. We're on the verge of a triple-dip recession. 

"And, in another, parallel universe, a small cohort of alien beings – or as we know them, bankers – are currently engaged in trying to figure out what to spend their multimillion-pound bonuses on. 

"Who wouldn't want to know what's going on? Or how it happened? Or why? Or if it is really true that the next generation down is well and truly shafted?"

By 4 March: Contact Eric Pickles about his Slimming Campaign (of the planning process)

---

Click above for web site
[Pre-austerity, they would have used a picture]
 
"An effective planning system plays an important role
in supporting growth – promoting and enabling the homes,
jobs and facilities that communities need, and minimising
uncertainty and delay for those proposing or affected by
development.

"This consultation paper seeks views on measures to streamline
the planning application process by simplifying the requirements
for design and access statements, and improving the validation
stage and requirements around local authority decisions
notices."

Web site 'Out-Law.com' adds:

"Local planning authorities (LPAs) may be challenged on their information requirements for planning applications and the requirement for LPAs to state reasons for granting planning permission may be removed under new Government proposals. 

"... The Government also proposes to remove the requirement to provide design and access statement with most minor applications, where statements "add little value to the design process but add significantly to the cost and complexity of preparing an application". It said that the requirement was an "unnecessary statutory burden".

"... Planning Minister Nick Boles said:

"We are determined to cut away unnecessary burdens and paperwork and provide a simpler, swifter planning system for all.

The small changes we are proposing are another step in streamlining an application process that for too long has been weighed down by the need to provide irrelevant information and detail."

Tues 5 Feb: Movement for Liveable London: 'Street Talk'

Link to web site

"Street Talks are informal evening events that provide an opportunity for anyone with an interest in the way people move around London and use its streets and public spaces to come together and discuss what can be done to create a more liveable city.

"Past speakers include Oliver Schulze, Director, Gehl Architects; Stuart Reid, Director of Sustainable Transport and Communities, MVA Consultancy; and Anna Minton, author of Ground Control. Presentations from all previous Street Talks are available here.
Next Street Talk:

Tues 5 February 2013

Rachel Aldred,

Senior Lecturer in Transport at Westminster University

'The Case Against the Car'

Upstairs at The Yorkshire Grey,

2 Theobalds Road, WC1X 8PN

at 7pm on Tuesday 5th February 2013

(bar open from 6pm).

---

Previous event:

Movement for Liveable London Street Talks:
George Weeks 11th December 2012
from Movement for Liveable London

Until 14 Feb: Regis Brent Cross Hair Salon Competition

(Click for salon details)

"For a chance to win a FREE hair makeover, worth about £150, including cut, colour, treatment and re-style by professional stylists all you have to do is state here [login or register] in no more than 20/25 words, why you or your nominated entrant deserves the makeover. Perhaps you want to say good-bye to bad hair days and start 2013 with a new look?

"You can also enter in store or via email by sending your nail/nominee [sic], address and telephone number and explanation in to enquiries@merlinswalk.com

"The last day for entries is Thursday 14th February. All makeovers must be taken in salon between Mondays and Thursdays, by appointment.

"All entrants will qualify for £5 off when you spend over £30 on any hair service at Regis Hair Salon. Excludes retail items. Just present the confirmation email as proof of entry when you come to the salon, to receive your discount.

"£5 off vouchers need to be used by 14th February.

"Competition closes on 14th February 2013." [Yes, yes, we've all got the 14th February business, thank you.]

Financial Times: "Britain in knots over infrastructure" (and London shopping centres)

Link to Financial Times
(registration for limited free access)

"The government’s decision to push ahead with HS2 is a good one. Britain needs to build a high-speed rail system, just as it needs to build a smart energy system, a high-speed broadband system and a water, sewerage and flood-defence system. It needs to address its chronic airport capacity problems in the southeast, to address road congestion and to tackle the state of our natural capital.

"As almost everyone agrees, there is no lack of things to do. It is doing them that is the problem.

"... By failing to maintain our infrastructure, we have in effect been living beyond our means. The alternative – signing expensive investment agreements with pension funds and sovereign wealth funds – comes at a price politicians are reluctant to pay: telling the public the true cost it will bear."

"Half of new London flats snapped up before they are even finished"

Link to Evening Standard

"Demand for new flats in London has reached record levels, with 48 per cent sold last year before they were built.

New figures from international property advisers CBRE show sales of high-value London properties — priced at more than £1,000 per square foot — rose 240 per cent last year compared with 2011. Lower-value properties have shifted more quickly in previous years, said the experts.

The Standard revealed last week that the average mortgage deposit for first-time buyers in London is set to soar beyond £100,000 by 2020.

"MOTORISTS’ FRONT OF JUDEA: What Have The Cyclists Ever Done for Us?"

"What Have The Cyclists Ever Done for Us?"
Link to "Roads were not built for cars" web site

REG: Cyclists have bled us white, the bastards. They don’t pay road tax, they run red lights. And what have they ever given us in return?

XERXES: Pneumatic tyres.

REG: What?

XERXES: Pneumatic tyres.

REG: Oh. Yeah, yeah. They did give us that. Uh, that’s true. Yeah.

COMMANDO #3: And ball bearings.

REG: Yeah. All right. I’ll grant you pneumatic tyres and ball bearings are two things that the cyclists have done.

MATTHIAS: And the roads.

REG: Well, yeah. Obviously the roads. I mean, the roads go without saying, don’t they? But apart from pneumatic tyres, ball bearings, and the roads…

COMMANDO: Lightweight steel tubing.
XERXES: Chain-driven differential gears.
COMMANDOS: Huh? Heh? Huh…
COMMANDO #2: Dust-free highways. Tractors. Automobile advertising.
COMMANDOS: Ohh…

REG: Yeah, yeah. All right. Fair enough.

COMMANDO #1: And central Government administration of roads.
COMMANDOS: Oh, yes. Yeah…
FRANCIS: Cars and planes.

REG: Cars and planes?

FRANCIS: Yeah, America’s first car was built by the Duryea brothers: they were bicycle builders first. And powered flight, Reg, that was developed by the Wright Brothers: they owned a bike shop and built bikes.

REG: All right, but apart from the pneumatic tyre, ball bearings, differential gears, roads, motoring, car ads, and aviation, what have cyclists ever done for us?