In February, Jack Thurston reported an exchange between Buffoon Johnson and Jenny Jones at Mayoral Question Time:
Jenny Jones
Now that the additional guidelines ‘providing for cyclists at road works’ have been adopted by Transport for London, will TfL veto any road management plan for temporary roadworks on TfL roads, which does not comply with the guidelines?
Answer from the Mayor:
The new guidelines ‘providing for cyclists at road works’ to which you refer were developed to minimise the disruption to cycling during temporary road works. These guidelines contain agreed good practice, developed and collated by TfL, including the addition of advisory signing to that commonly authorised by DfT. All engineers have a professional duty to consider available good practice – and I have asked Transport for London to ensure that this and other cycling good practice is referenced in all relevant contracts.
What a liar!
The Buffoon has blood on his hands; two weeks ago 26 years old Jayne Halliwell was butchered by a bus driver on the Oxford Street chicanes.
If this had been a rail crash, the HSE would have been involved and the track closed; instead after a few hours buses and taxis were allowed back, to terrorise and intimidate riders.
But this is a city ruled by assholes like the Great Buffoon, his Transport Assistant, Kulveer Ranger (” we are doing everything we can to make cycling safer”), and transport engineers that create hazards like this one, reported by Rob Ainsley. London will never be a proper Cycling City until we get rid of this filth.
I understand this is a terribly tragic accident – but to say that Jane was ‘butchered by a bus driver’ is also horribly emotive language. Yes, the bus driver killed her. He did not butcher her.
Also it is unfair to say that buses and taxis ‘terrorise and intimidate drivers’. Most don’t. I know because I am a regular cyclist, espcially around this part of London.
It sends a chill down my spine every time another cyclist gets killed on the roads. Of course, like many others I’m worried about whether I’ll meet the same fate one day.
But we have to be constructive and try and work hard with organizations like TFL to put cyclists first in vulnerable road situations. Negative and emotive accusations on blogs do not help the situation. We cannot start a war between cyclists and buses/taxis. Cyclists will come of worst.
As Amelia Gregory said: “I hope, very soon, that we will see safer roads for cyclists and that her life will not have been taken in vain.” Me too.
But the first step is for cyclists to take responsibility for their own cycling. How many dodgy manoeuvres do you see on a daily basis? Squeezing down the side of buses? Darting out in front of traffic? Running red lights? I see this every day. Until us cyclists realise the fragility of our position, especially in a city as unfriendly to cyclists as London, we are in trouble. We can be better cyclists. We can show respect to pedestrians and traffic and in turn receive respect from drivers.
RIP Jane. I’m glad you loved your bike – let’s hope we can reclaim the roads for all cyclist who love their bikes equally.