4/13/04 London Guardian Reports:
London's mayor, Ken Livingstone, today said he was withholding £1.5m
of funding from a council because its transport policies were putting
children's lives at risk.
Barnet council has ripped out road humps in defiance of his transport
safety measures, which have the force of law, withdrawn cycle lanes
and increased the danger to pedestrians by introducing parking on
pavements, Mr Livingstone said.
He vowed that the north London council would not receive any money
until his transport agency, Transport for London (TfL), had
investigated.
The council's Conservative leader, Brian Coleman, branded the claims
as "absolute bollocks", insisting that the council's measures had
widespread public support.
He accused Mr Livingstone of indulging in "political grandstanding"
and "emotive nonsense for which he had no evidence at all" ahead of
this June's mayoral election.
Barnet is also accused of cutting its funding for cycle training in
schools, failing to spend a £120,000 allocation from TfL it received
last year for improvements to the London Cycle Network, and failing to
bid for a share of this year's funding for the London Cycle Network.
"Barnet's half baked policies are putting children's lives at risk, "
Mr Livingstone said.
"London has one of the best road safety records in Europe. We are not
going to allow that to be undermined by the loony right in Barnet
council. Transport for London will not fund schemes that jeopardise
road safety or cut things like cycle training for school children."
[full article at http://society.guardian.co.uk/governinglondon/story/0,8150,1190985,00.html]