by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
Green Party chiefs in the county of Kent have called on Kent County Council to draw up ‘greener’ transport policies.
Proposals include cutting residential speed limits to 20 miles per hour, ending major road building, introducing improved cycling and walking networks and enhancing bus services in rural areas.
To coincide with Green Transport Week – which starts on Saturday, June 13, 2009 – they are also demanding new policies to prevent a new Thames crossing and block the building of lorry parks in green areas.
Dr Hazel Dawe, chair of Kent Green Party said: “Measures like these would be consistent with David Cameron’s repeated claims of concern about climate change.
“Green rhetoric is easy, but where are the policies needed to create sustainable transport in Kent?” “We have not seen them from Kent County Council (KCC) so far.”
In a response, KCC prospective cabinet member for regeneration, Kevin Lynes, said: “Having looked at these suggestions, they appear to be something of a curate’s egg. “Some of the suggestions would be welcome.
“Some would be clearly impractical and would hamper our ability to drive ahead Kent’s economic potential in these challenging economic times.
“We will include the Green Party in the round of consultations on our integrated transport strategy when it is published later this year.”
Kent County Council, like so many other councils and the central government at a whole suddenly have an excuse not to do anything too drastic as far as the environment is concerned and this excuse is that it could hamper the economic potential in these challenging economic times. How very convenient.
How about, instead, looking at how many “green” jobs, industry and businesses that could possibly be created.
What this country need, in its entirety, is a green transport policy. One where trains and buses are actually affordable and where cycling is possible without risk to life and limb.
We need, first and foremost a proper national cycle network and cycle lanes, proper ones that protect the users, that link every place in this country and also that go through every town and city.
Examples for this can be found in other European Union countries but in Britain there are always excuses being brought to the fore again that this cannot be done because of the way the roads are and all that jazz.
The truth is that they do not want to do it. The love affair with the car is way too big – and the car is also a great revenue generator for government – and also the backhanders from the car and oil industry sure play a role there too.
One way to make cycling through towns and cities safe is for the government to simply make sidewalks shared use, for pedestrians and cyclist. It can be done for it has been done in other countries. But, alas, is there the will to do it.
© 2009
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Call for green transport policies
