The privatisation of our streets
The Liberal Democrats in Islington, perhaps out of naivety, continue to perpetuate the lie that parking control and speed bumps have been introduced for the benefit of the public and in a valid attempt to deal with environmental issues.
In reality they fail to address the very real climate change issue and simply amount to the privatisation of our streets.
What follows are the text of two letters sent to the Islington Gazette on 2007 February 23rd.
First the original text of the letter that was printed following editing.

Removing much of the parking from in front of our homes when introducing parking controls (in Tollington Park we voted against) sped up the traffic. Then to slow down the traffic speed bumps were introduced (we voted for chicanes or anything other than speed bumps).
The increased cost for fuel incurred when allowing pensioners to take up off-peak, spare capacity on public transport is marginal, but once the bus services have been contracted out then this has to be paid for.
Is this what Councillor Kelly Peasnell refers to when he writes that “the revenue from parking charges is put back into the community where it is needed most – it improves our streets and funds the Freedom Passes”? (“Difficult decisions”: Viewpoints February 21st)
A cynic would say that before government can get brownie points for solving problems it first has to create them but in reality all we have seen is the privatisation of our streets for the benefit of various contractor’s.

Then a second letter that was not published.

Sad to see that boroughs are now engaged in a price war over parking charges (“Parking rises are fair” Viewpoints February 21st)
By selecting out those who can least afford them, parking and congestion charges only temporarily curb the worst affects of having a badly planned environment.
They do not adversely affect the better off and businesses who can pass the cost onto their customers until they too become uncompetitive and take their jobs abroad. They exacerbate the divisions in our society whilst doing nothing about the underlying problems.
If we really wanted to address climate-change, pollution and social exclusion whilst accepting London’s population growth then it is the need to travel itself that we would set out to eliminate.
We should encourage work and other facilities to be at or near home and for the journeys that cannot be avoided we should reinstate the rail, tram and bus routes that ran when the London’s population was at its height.