LIB DEMS BATTLE TO SAVE BUS STOP COUNTDOWN TIMERS

10.37.53am GMT Tue 9th Mar 2010

Susan Kramer MP has vowed to fight for residents set to lose out after transport chiefs announced the removal of all countdown information boards in Ham ward, and many on the Upper Richmond Road.

Transport for London is to reposition the majority of the electronic signs at bus stops in Richmond, it said, in order to "enhance the quality of life for Londoners".

Many local residents disagree, and Susan Kramer MP and the local Liberal Democrats are fighting the plans.

She said:

"TfL seems to have pulled these proposals out of thin air, and our local residents are set to lose out.

"If TfL gets its way there will be no countdown signs at all in Ham, a ward without a train station and with only an infrequent bus service.

"We are also set to lose many of the signs along the Upper Richmond Road West.

"With frequent roadworks causing traffic disruption that impacts this road, countdown timers have been invaluable to passengers, especially in the evenings."

"I am asking Transport for London to reconsider these plans and save the existing countdown signs, as well as installing a new one inside the shopping centre at Hammersmith so that passengers travelling over the bridge can wait inside in the warm."

Sue Jones, Councillor for Ham, Petersham and Richmond Riverside said:

"This is a very short sighted position for TfL to take.

"We have no train service in Ham, we have just two bus services - the 65 and 371, and I know many residents rely on countdown timers to help them decide whether to walk further to catch the 65 bus instead of the 371.

"There are areas of Ham where we have the lowest car ownership of any ward in the Borough and we need to protect and enhance the services to our public not reduce them.

This will disadvantage young people, the elderly, mothers with young children, as well as individuals waiting for buses at night not knowing when the next bus will arrive."

Notes to Editors

1. The full list of stops to lose electronic bus information in the borough is below:

Priests Bridge

St. Mary's Grove

Manor Road / North Sheen Station

Gipsy Lane

Ham Common

Sandy Lane

Lower Teddington Road

Lebanon Court

Ham Parade

Richmond Station

Ham Gate Avenue

Kings Road

Thornton Road

Temple Sheen Road

Temple Sheen Road

St Margaret's Drive

Heatham House

Meadway

Sixth Cross Road

Hampton Court Green / Cardinal Wolsey

Cambridge Road

Cambridge Road

St. Mark's Road

St. Mark's Road

Kingston Lane

Teddington / Elmfield Avenue

Kingston Lane

Mariner Gardens

Priory Lane

Ashburnham Road