Campaign calls for car-free London by 2030
A new campaign has launched, demanding a car-free London by 2030.
The ‘Away with All Cars’ report, published by Common Wealth and backed by groups Greenpeace and We Own it, calls for private cars to be non-existent in the capital at the conclusion of the next decade.
This report also imagines a number of ways residents of London can ditch their own cars in favour of alternative methods of transport. It pictures a scenario where electric buses have replaced diesel equivalents, trams lines have been installed as a result of quieter roads, e-bikes are available on a low-cost subscription service and an Uber-like service is ran by Transport for London (TfL).
Leo Murray of Common Wealth said: “The privatisation of public transport in the UK has had widespread negative impacts on human welfare and social justice. But these are dwarfed by what may prove to have been the most profoundly damaging privatisation project of all time: the relentless subjugation of the public realm to the exigencies of the private motor car.”
In a new report out today @crisortunity lays out how we can take private cars off the road in London by 2030, relieving the roads of congestion and smog w/ publicly-owned transit – including a TfL ride-sharing service💡 🛴🚐
Part of our GND series.https://t.co/elKVck4hIr
— Common Wealth (@Cmmonwealth) August 1, 2019
Speaking to BBC News, a TfL spokesperson said: “We’re investing a record £2.3bn in creating healthier streets where walking, cycling and public transport are the natural choice for all journeys and we want 80 per cenr of journeys to be made in these ways by 2041.”
Nicholas Lyes, RAC head of roads policy, added: “Our own data suggests that 72 per cent of Londoners say they would find it very difficult to adjust to life without using their vehicles.”
