Livingstone and the Hammersmith Flyover

Letter to the Hammersmith and Fulham Chronicle

Dear Sir,
In an interview for the Sunday Times, on November 21st 1999, Ken Livingstone said:  "I hate cars. If I ever get any powers again I'd ban the lot." Perhaps he thought traffic jams were a good way to punish motorists. Certainly he more than anyone else owes us an apology for the poor maintenance of the Hammersmith Flyover over the last 50 years.

He can't be blamed for the original failure to waterproof it when it was built. It was a project that the Labour-run London County Council was responsible for - but that was before Livingstone was in charge. It was this design flaw that meant when the road was salted the steel cables gradually deteriorated. However for 13 years of the subsequent 50 years (five years as leader of the GLC and eight as Mayor of London) Livingstone had ultimate responsibility for maintaining the Hammersmith Flyover.

Whether due to neglect or his anti motorist ideology he failed. He should accept a substantial share of the blame for the misery, damage to the environment and the economy which the recent chronic delays have caused.

Now Boris Johnson has to cope with the consequences of that failure. In the short term this means the highest priority to getting the flyover fully operational again as soon as is safely possible.

What of the longer term? 10 or 20 years time? I would hope it could be replaced with a tunnel. This is the kind of radical solution which should be investigated.

Yours sincerely,
Cllr Harry Phibbs
Cabinet Member for Community Engagement
(Ravenscourt Park Ward. Conservative.)
Hammersmith Town Hall,
King Street,
W6 9JU

Comments

[Scott Wilson]

Harry, indeed.

It would be a great step forward if TfL with the councils could develop a 20 year corridor strategy for the strategic road network. That would cover maintenance, intersection improvements, addressing bottlenecks, accident blackspots and setting aside land for new corridors. The A4/M4 corridor could be a start, and planning for tunnels to replace the flyover, the M4 flyover, bypass Hogarth roundabout and reclaim land would be potential options.

There would be complaints that it would dump traffic into Earl's Court, but that ignores that much traffic exits and enters the road at points along the way, and intersections are not an efficient way to manage demand. A tunnel from the A4 to the Holland Park roundabout might address some of those concerns.

Ken will oppose any road improvements, he didn't fight to get the North Circular fixed properly at Henly's Corner and Bounds Green, and stopped the A40 improvements at Savoy and Western Circus, approving a narrow 4 lane bridge replacement on the 6 lane A40.

Nobody is advocating big brutalistic flyovers or motorways, but better roads out of sight where they can deliver benefits for communities and motorists. After all, the tube isn't much use for freight, tradespeople or people who can't afford to live near it.