Friday, 1 October 2010

M4 Bus Lane to be scrapped!

Dancing in the streets is expected in West London next week as Transport Secretary Philip Hammond announces the scrapping of the bus lane on the M4 into our part of the capital at the Conservative party conference next week. Well not quite, but this can't be anything other than popular for those of us who have sat on that damned road in traffic going nowhere fast as the odd coach and taxi whistle past on the right hand side.

More details to follow next week - but it will be interesting to see how Ken Livingstone, now Labour's candidate for Mayor and someone who actually claims to have brought the bus lane about (he didn't John Prescott did) reacts to this. For me it looks like a touch-paper issue for voters in 2012 when they elect their next Mayor and I think its fair to say Boris will be making the most of this in the search for west London votes.
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13 comments:

  1. almost witty1 October 2010 at 11:06

    I thought the bus lane was a very nice idea, but ultimately didn't get enough take-up. Of course, I've never been on the westbound M4 and been in a huge rush to get to where I want to go.

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  2. Tom1 October 2010 at 11:12

    Um, you're missing the point. Removing the bus lane (if they do what I think they're going to do and allow cars back into it) makes life worse for everyone - the point was never that buses would magically fill it up, but that the existence of a third general traffic lane causes slower journeys, amply proven by the research since. Hammond is thus sabotaging journey times for West Londoners in search of a cheap headline, and that's supposed to get us dancing in the streets? Get real.

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  3. Anonymous1 October 2010 at 11:16

    Ha - removing the bus lane won't have the slightest effect on traffic - it is the speed restrictions and the fact that the M4 goes down to 2 lanes after the bus lane that cause the congestion, however many lanes of traffic there are.

    Just another pointless headline grabbing ploy by Boris to keep the middle class car drivers foolishly voting for him.

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  4. Chris Underwood1 October 2010 at 11:19

    interesting that it get's such instantaneous reaction though ... clearly a touch-paper issue!

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  5. Anonymous1 October 2010 at 11:21

    As a regular coach user and motorcyclist, I won't be dancing in the streets. Scrapping it is a stupid idea. Can't imagine it'll be a particularly popular move with the many, many taxi users coming in from Heathrow who will now be on the meter in a traffic jam.

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  6. Anonymous1 October 2010 at 11:45

    Full analysis here http://www.stableandprincipled.com/content/2010-10-01/wheels-bus-dont-go-round-and-round

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  7. wolfPup Jon1 October 2010 at 11:47

    Sorry - click on my name for direct link to article explaining the reasons why this is pure political positioning and NOT evidence based practical road management.

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  8. Damian1 October 2010 at 12:10

    I have to agree that the bus lane was a good idea. Removing it will not make the slightest bit of difference to cars as they will get clogged up later down the line as it merges to two lanes and now people who may have taken the quick bus will probably get back in their cars. God help anyone who gets a cab out of Heathrow, it was expensive to start with. And it was great and much safer for motorcyclists as well not to have to weave in and out of standing traffic for 5 miles. This is just pointless posing and a waste of money on an il thought out knee jerk reaction from a tory Bentley driver.

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  9. Tom1 October 2010 at 14:24

    "interesting that it get's such instantaneous reaction though ... clearly a touch-paper issue!"

    I've lived in the area a while and gone through the arguments times without number on ChiswickW4.com, usually to no effect whatsoever on the know-it-alls who inhabit that site.

    Anonymous is quite right - it's the two-lane elevated section and the speed limits that counts, not the number of lanes. Any analysis that stops short of exploring those is not doing the subject justice.

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  10. Chris Underwood1 October 2010 at 18:39

    the chiswick and shepherdsbush dot com sites dont publish their stats which is usually a marker of quite a low readership, which might be why you got such a limited response!

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  11. Anonymous1 October 2010 at 23:57

    Chris, ChiswickW4 has had 176 posts so far today and at 23.50 48 people are logged on, the Bus lane thread has had 31 posts (inc quite a few from Tom)Neighbournet might not publish their stats but Chiswick esp is very well used. As an aside an interesting thread on Toby school programme with vast majority anti! Unusual for Chiswick! Iain Muir

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  12. Chris Underwood2 October 2010 at 00:06

    Ian - all I'm saying is there's usually reasons why stats aren't published ... nothing more.

    They also have something of a reputation among local journalists for, lets say, producing remarkably similar articles to those published elsewhere.

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  13. Anonymous4 October 2010 at 16:01

    Chris, not to mention the completely unbiased restaurant reports that appear on Chiswick W4!

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