Improve transport or London economy will fail
Improving transport links to east London is essential to safeguard the economy of the region.
The topic was one of a number discussed at the Thames Gateway Forum at The Indigo2 yesterday, which drew together agencies and organisations involved in developing the region flanking the river east of Canary Wharf.
Among those taking part was Richard Gooding, chief executive of London City Airport, who had some trenchant views on transport links in the area, particularly the vexed issue of a new bridge.
He said: "Cross river connections are a major problem in east London. The Mayor has published his new draft transport strategy but he's not pushing enough on a river crossing.
"We still rely on the Woolwich Ferry and although the Mayor plans an upgrade of that we need something for the 22nd century, not just the 21st. A new river crossing would make the area work as an area."
Mr Gooding also poured cold water on Boris Johnson's proposals to develop a new airport in the Thames Estuary.
He said: "London needs a new airport like a hole in the head, but what it does need is adequate airport capacity. If we don't have sufficient capacity to serve the Thames Gateway then the whole of London's economy will fail.
"An easier solution is to build a new airport but we haven't done that very often in this country. The likelihood is to create a new airport from scratch, with all the infrastructure around it, will take 30 years at a cost of £40billion, but add in the infrastructure and it'll cost £100billion.
"That means it will take us 15 years to decide to do it, let alone actually do it. What we need in London is to plan for the interim, using airports like Luton, Stansted and London City to their maximum capacity."
But he ruled out having flights from City Airport on Saturday afternoons and Sunday mornings.
He said: "It's extremely unlikely we will change that unless there's a huge increase in business passengers wanting to fly on a Saturday afternoon, but we don't see any sign of that."
Crossrail also came under consideration after rumours the Government was contemplating pulling the plug on the project. Richard Brown, chief executive of Eurostar, urged investment to continue.
He said: "We should be concerned about not so much the cancellation of Crossrail but the curtailment or the slowing up of it.
"It's actually a much bigger issue. The private sector is already finding it difficult to invest because of funding and profitabilty. The public sector is going to find it hard because of public expenditure cut backs.
"The key issue is to make sure the Government doesn't cut back on essential infrastructure investment, whether it's in Crossrail, additional east London river crossings or local road networks.
"Public sector investment over the next five years is projected to decline very significantly as a percentage of GDP and that's a very bad thing. Investment must be sustained."
Older/Newer
« Concrete Pencil: Looking back | Preview: West Ham v Aston Villa »
I find it in poor taste that London City Airport should even that it is okay to have flights on Saturday afternoons and Sunday mornings. What about all the promises they made to the community about aircraft noise?.
If you live in London you have enough to contend with, even when you get home all you want to do is flip off your shoes and relax. But how can you do this if all you can hear is non-stop flights London City Airport flights. And if that is not bad enough, now you have heathrow jets that that fly around here.
London City Airport builds an airport in the middle of a residential area, and then 20 years on, they say it is residents fault for living next to an airport. The noise from the airport is just getting worse and worse.
Why is Richard Gooding bothered about the economy of London?. Just look at the negative impact of the airport on the local economy. Go see the unsold flats by Galleons Reach that have been sitting empty for years. And look at Building 1000 - a £100m building that has stood empty for 5 years. Who wants office next to noisy runway?. If businesses love the airport, why don't they move next to it? And what about the failed £1.5bn renegeration project at Silvertown Quays.
As for a new river crossing - all it will do is bring in more cars and congestion into East London. Already at rush-hour the traffic just does n't move. Adding a bridge, will mean more cars coming from South London into North of the river, on already crowded roads. Rush hours is impossible. You only have to look at all the major road improvements in East London over the past 15 years. Have they provided any relief?. It has not made road journeys any easier.
It is time for a re-think and it is better to build self-contained communties, where people don't need to travel hours just to get to work. People should live close to where they work.
I am fed up living in London. I have been led down by politicians who are supporting expansion of the airport. It is time to pack my bags and leave this country!