Transport is likely to be a key issue in the forthcoming General Election. Just before Christmas, the present rail Minister, Lord Adonis, talked about 2010 being the year for high speed rail, with particular emphasis on the London to Scotland route. My concerns are closer to home though.
Many people who live in the Kemptown constituency commute daily to London and it is important that we have good rail services, at the time people want to travel and that they find comfortable and good value for money. When the change was made recently, to extend the Gatwick Express line to Brighton, the rail using public was not impressed by the modification. Nothing short of chaos ensued.
However, while matters have improved with regard to time keeping, over-crowding remains an issue for many, especially during peak times. One way to add extra capacity to local rail services is to re-open the Lewes to Uckfield line. This would have the effect of providing another option for people living in East Sussex to get to London and would reduce demand on the Brighton mainline itself.
Frequently, the Labour Government announces 'big bang' suggestions to problems rather than working on a simple, but strategic intervention, which while not as headline grabbing, improves the quality of people's lives and provides help in solving the day-to-day issues people face.
Re-opening the Lewes to Uckfield line is one such intervention and the work that has been undertaken so far needs to be built upon and taken forward.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment