Is your new year's resolution to let the train take the strain? (Islington Liberal Democrats)

Islington Liberal Democrats <Islington_ld@cix.co.uk>

Is your new year's resolution to let the train take the strain?

January 15, 2004 12:00 AM

Is your new year's resolution to let the train take the strain? Rail is one of the quickest & safest ways to travel, so passenger numbers are up, but services are struggling to cope. Liberal Democrats are committed to real improvements in our rail services - I want your views too. So this month, with Simon Hughes' & colleagues, I'm asking rail users in Islington to complete our rail survey. It's clear from the early responses that many people are fed up with overcrowding and unreliability of trains on Silverlink and WAGN lines, especially at rush hour. The unwelcoming atmosphere at stations has also come in for criticism, with many people saying they don't feel safe. At a time when we are investing in upgrading Islington's schools, housing, street lights and shop fronts, our stations get shabbier by comparison. Council-backed charity Groundwork has recently repavied the forecourt at Highbury & Islington, but there's more to be done. We all need a safe and reliable rail network. Investment in maintenance is essential, but it must be with the right partners. I was shocked to learn that Jarvis - still under investigation for the Potters bar rail crash - is being considered for a £450M track renewal contract. Tory Steven Norris' decision to take a top job with Jarvis is greedy, insensitive and wrong; especially with Jarvis bidding for new contracts in London. London's politicians should be holding rail contractors to account, not taking their cash. Meanwhile Labour has tried to suppress the Strategic Rail Authority's report that the Government's 10 year railway plan is in tatters. Important new links like Crossrail and the East London Line extension are way behind schedule. I'm campaigning to take the East London Line through to Caledonian Road & Barnsbury - helping regenerate the north Kings Cross area. The Lib Dem Council is insisting that the York Way station site is preserved to keep transport options open in future. We want to see more freight on rail to get lorries off our streets. Now we need the government to play their part by giving these schemes the green light. The Labour government is all too ready to approve expensive, unwanted airport expansion, while essential rail services lag behind. It's a bad set of priorities, not in Islington's interests - something Liberal Democrat MPs would change. Thank you for the response to my campaign to save local Post Offices. As I write I am waiting to hear which local post offices face closures under government backed plans to slash the urban post office network by one third. Islington's Labour MPs failed to oppose the Government's post office closure plans in Parliament. Already Islington has lost four Post offices in recent months, with two in Holloway under threat now, and more to come. Local people can't afford to lose any more. I'll be doing all I can alongside local residents to persuade Post Office bosses to listen to Islington's needs, even if our MPs have neglected them.