Are we electing a new Mayor?

mickysalt wrote:

I wont decide who I give my first and second preference vote to until I’m in the poling booth.

But I've only been reading this thread to get your political insights. PLEASE tell us who you're going to vote for.

Ivanhoe wrote:

mickysalt wrote:

I wont decide who I give my first and second preference vote to until I’m in the poling booth.

But I've only been reading this thread to get your political insights. PLEASE tell us who you're going to vote for.

No need for snarkasm

In which case, don't use it.

I attended the cycling hustings on Monday that you might have heard about. I have long been a regular cyclist on city roads and as a friend of one of those killed by a rubbish truck, my attention has been grabbed by the fantastic lobbying being done by http://www.londonersonbikes.org.uk/, The Times and Sustrans. The hustings was interesting as a chance to see the candidates in debate, regardless of the cycling issues. Here's a BBC report: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-17907614 The Londoners on Bikes movement has been hard at work analysing the policies of the candidates with regard to their proposed measures regarding road safety for all users. I personally have been less studious in my ponderings of who to vote for, but based on Monday's show, I am no longer in any doubt. At the end of the debate, candidates were invited to say in a few words about what they will do for road safety and why we should vote for them. Boris blundered his way into a diatribe against us so-called "Lycra-clad" cyclists - so far removed from a true description of the audience that it beggered belief. He had got it wildly off the mark. And here he is digging himself an even bigger hole (nor was the audience "difficult and truculent" as claimed): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYbLCktThDA My understanding is that transport is the one area in which the London mayor does actually hold significant sway, so basing one's vote on transport policies is not such an illogical move to make. Londoners on Bikes recommend to vote Jenny as first choice and Ken as second (and above all, not to choose Boris as first or second). Ken pledged to appoint Jenny as the person in charge of cycling should he get in.

EleanorT wrote:

I attended the cycling hustings on Monday that you might have heard about. I have long been a regular cyclist on city roads and as a friend of one of those killed by a rubbish truck, my attention has been grabbed by the fantastic lobbying being done by http://www.londonersonbikes.org.uk/, The Times and Sustrans. The hustings was interesting as a chance to see the candidates in debate, regardless of the cycling issues. Here's a BBC report: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-17907614 The Londoners on Bikes movement has been hard at work analysing the policies of the candidates with regard to their proposed measures regarding road safety for all users. I personally have been less studious in my ponderings of who to vote for, but based on Monday's show, I am no longer in any doubt. At the end of the debate, candidates were invited to say in a few words about what they will do for road safety and why we should vote for them. Boris blundered his way into a diatribe against us so-called "Lycra-clad" cyclists - so far removed from a true description of the audience that it beggered belief. He had got it wildly off the mark. And here he is digging himself an even bigger hole (nor was the audience "difficult and truculent" as claimed): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYbLCktThDA My understanding is that transport is the one area in which the London mayor does actually hold significant sway, so basing one's vote on transport policies is not such an illogical move to make. Londoners on Bikes recommend to vote Jenny as first choice and Ken as second (and above all, not to choose Boris as first or second). Ken pledged to appoint Jenny as the person in charge of cycling should he get in.

Thanks Eleanor for this - very informative.
For my own safety and those of my friends cycling in London I really hope Boris will NOT serve another term.

Remember, Boris publicly stated cycling around the elephant and castle is perfectly fine if one keep his / her witts about themselves. I think the world class city London is, it can and should do far better than this. It's an embarrassment actually.

Is this the same Boris you're voting against as the Boris who introduced the Boris Bikes?

The Boris Bike scheme that has done more to get London cycling and achieve a critical mass that means drivers have to look out for cyclists?

The Boris who introduced the big blue cycle highways?

The Boris who introduced the cycle bypass for the Elephant? (Admittedly not finished, but these things cannot be done in a day.)

The Boris who is a regular cyclist?


Or the Ken who has never cycled in his life. The Ken who is going to cut public transport fares and thus the cash available for investment in cycling.

The hire bike scheme was set up and started under Ken. The later stages of implementation happened after Boris got in, and he seems to enjoy claiming the glory.

Boris' own idea, the superhighways, while useful in parts, have also quite likely contributed to the death of cyclists at the appallingly badly designed Bow Roundabout.

I could go on, but I'm typing on a mobile and the autocorrect keeps wanting to change Boris into Virus.

The cycle bypass at Elephant pre-dated Boris. I've been using it since 2006.

Eleanor is right - I was at the same meeting, people went with a view to giving Boris a fair hearing, and indeed voting for him. The truth is, he's a disaster for cyclists and (more importantly) pedestrians. Not, I suspect, because of his own views, but because of his party's "end the war on the motorist" (like there ever was such a thing) rhetoric and a political calculus that puts the supposed needs of White Van Men in Bexley over inner-city dwellers.

I'm voting Jenny & Ken, and Green for London-wide. Not because I'm some lentil-knitting ecohippy, but because both the main parties have turned a debate that should have been about a vision for the future of London in to a petty squabble about small-scale personal morality & insignificant cuts to bus fares or council tax. Of the two leading contenders, at least Ken has the vision to sort out Central London out a bit for pedestrians.. it's not that I'm anti car (well, a bit), there just isn't room for all the people on foot at the moment & space for people to move about needs to be put before vehicles of any kind, even bikes.

Hmmm somehow I don’t think those bikes that no one uses will decide the outcome of this election.

Back to the original topic, I hope.

Polling day dawns and the campaign ends. I've received election materials from the Labour and Liberal Democrat parties, but the only Conservative campaigning material I've seen is the Evening Standard.

Was I unlucky, or does the majority party of government not think it worth explaining its policies for London to SE1?