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Ken: 'Tramlink buyout better for Croydon'

11:02am Thursday 20th March 2008

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Ken Livingstone has promised passengers on the Croydon Tramlink that they will get a better service as a result of a £98million buyout by Transport for London (TfL).

Tramtrack Croydon Ltd currently operates Tramlink services under a Private Finance Initiative, which started before the Greater London Authority and TfL were created.

Ken Livingstone, who this week launched his campaign for re-election, said: "This is a great deal for Tramlink passengers.

"No longer will we have to pay £4million a year to Tramtrack and we can put that cash into better services for the people of Croydon.

"The tram is very popular - passenger numbers are rising all the time and we can ensure that they get the best possible service."

Tramlink carries 25 million passengers and TfL plans to double the number of off-peak services between Elmers End and Beckenham Junction.

It is also likely to run additional services to relieve crowding on the Wimbledon to New Addington line and will launch a concerted attack on graffiti and vandalism.

"We will peg fares and increase levels of investment in the system to ensure Tramlink can keep up with growing demand, all the while providing a safe, reliable service for passengers," Livingstone added.

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Your Say YourCroydon Guardian

Huh?, Tram says...
11:26am Thu 20 Mar 08

"We will peg fares..."

Peg them to what? (and for how long?)

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SV, Croydon says...
12:36pm Thu 20 Mar 08

Fares will be pegged to that of the buses. This is part of the annual payment to tramlink of £4Million that TfL currently make because Tramlink as a PFI deal could charge much higher fares. TfL on the other hand are charged with maximising use of public transport and subsidise bus use to enable a lower level of road congestion etc.

This then is good news for Croydon, Beckenham and Merton residents.

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Huh?, Tram says...
1:37pm Thu 20 Mar 08

Thanks for clarifying that. Sounds good.

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VOTE BORIS, carshalton says...
3:21pm Thu 20 Mar 08

THAT SOUNDS ABOUT RIGHT, SPEND £98MILLION TO SAVE £4MILLION A YEAR. ANOTHER GREAT IDEA BY KEN.

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c may, biggin hill says...
4:58pm Thu 20 Mar 08

vote boris you must be joking its ken for me

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BTP, HN says...
5:11pm Thu 20 Mar 08

"and will launch a concerted attack on graffiti and vandalism."
How about more dedicated funding for the BTP then?


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Kes, Upper Norwood says...
8:14pm Thu 20 Mar 08

Where's the money coming from? Perhaps we'll find that out when Livingstone has gone!
I note he's now got Brown's support- no wonder ken's looking glum.

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richard francis, thornton heath/upper norwood border says...
10:14pm Thu 20 Mar 08

And the support of the Green Party (Darren Johnson & Jenny Greene et al) - what a strange alliance! All to get Ken re-elected!! The Greens will never have my vote again, not until they can practise what they preach, and stand on their own platform. Ken's Green credentials are bogus, and now they look even more so, as Brockwell Park goes under the hammer, and Crystal Palace Park goes next. All urban parkland, with one or two notable exceptions, will sooner or later be auctioned to the highest bidder. Prophetic? Scare-mongering? No, just look at what's already happening.

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SV, Croydon says...
11:38pm Thu 20 Mar 08

Richard Francis is clearly just a protest 'Green'. Sure Ken is not really really deep green, but he has been quite green. Parkland is important, but dont let that fool you. We could open loads more parks, but that would not help the planet.

Better public transport, low emission zones, a revolution for cyclists. They are the true results of a Green Ken as Mayor. Maybe not as radical as a Green Party supporter wants, but actually quite a good record. If re elected, Ken will deliver a lot of what the Greens want. That must be good for London and good for the Green Party.

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c may, biggin hill says...
1:54am Fri 21 Mar 08

it will be a disater for the enviroment and for london if ken is outed for gods sake think of our future trams will return meaning cleaner air for us

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richard francis, thornton heath/upper norwood border says...
9:19am Fri 21 Mar 08

Thanks for your generous endorsement, CV (Curriculum Vitae?). Many London buses travel, often at peak times, "Out of Service"; cyclists and pedestrians are still having a tough time; and "low emissions" would be fine if they were enforced. Parks are maybe just for dreamers, like myself, yet they do have a part to play in our lives - our health and well-being for a start.

Trams have their good points, but let us not be deluded that they are the Green answer to travel - their electicity has to be generated elsewhere, which has the same effect on pollution levels as other modes of transport which pollute perhaps more noticeably.

A "disaster" for the environment, if Ken is removed from office? Maybe. Maybe not - I voted for him first time round, and gave my second vote to Darren Johnson. I also voted for Johnson the second time. Never again, since their promises to me then were not kept. I would prefer to give someone else a chance.

Finally, my apologies to Jenny Jones, whose surname I confused. I hope that she and Darren, both of whom I have met, can grow in confidence, to the the point where they can challenge their Master, when the need arises.

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richard francis, thornton heath/upper norwood border says...
9:31am Fri 21 Mar 08

Sorry, SV. My reading of your initials was short-sighted.

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Kes, Upper Norwood says...
9:52am Fri 21 Mar 08

It certainly won't be a disaster for council taxpayers if Ken gets kicked out. Those of us that pay in full, of course. Perhaps someone can remind us how much his element has gone up since his job was dreamt up by New Labour. But then, they didn't foresee him getting the job.

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Paul, Upper Norwood says...
12:42pm Fri 21 Mar 08

I have a composter and a sub surface digester in my garden; that is as green as I wish to go.

My ambition is to put Ken 'I still have my Adenoids' Livingstone into my digester and feed him to the plants one day.


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