Mayoral Elections - who’s best for cyclists

Hey I just got my booklet with the mayoral candidates today. An unnerving number of them explicitly campaigning on removing cycle lanes, removing low traffic neighbourhoods, cancelling congestion charges and ULEZ etc. In short - anti cycling pro private cars.

I wonder if there is any consensus on who to vote for to try to ensure mayoral support for cycling. This might not necessarily be the most pro-cycling candidate, but the one most likely to win.

I think probably Sadiq but have no real idea.
Who are you folks going to vote for?

1st choice Green,
2nd choice Sadiq.

Funnily enough where i am the green candidate is anti-LTN but the party is pro.

Also greens applauded the french domestic flight ban (because of amazing fast and cheap trains in France) yet they are against HS2

Can anybody point out Khans achievements so far? I am only aware of his approval of the Silvertown tunnel and the City Airport expansion which will lock us into more pollution in the next decades and some cycle path renaming.

Can anybody point out Khans achievements so far?

He is not Sean Bailey

I had a quick Google of Sadiq’s record on cycling, one article from the guardian and one from a cycling mag.

Consensus seems to be that he’s pro cycling but frequently overruled by local councils (who run the roads). As a result they are massively underspent on cycling budgets. Khan has been very vocal in his criticism of these councils’ behaviour.

I worry that voting green is a missed opportunity to just get Sadiq back in cleanly with over 50% of the votes. Because I do not think that green has a real chance of winning anything.

I also heard a green candidate on R4 recently speaking critically of the LTNs.

You've got a transferable vote for 'Mayor'.

Sounds pretty useless to me, might as well flush my vote down the toilet and vote Green.

At the risk of being cynical/political about it, considering Sean Bailey is so obviously anti LTN, anti ULEZ expansion, and frankly so vehemently pro-private car, and so weak on public/alternative transport, Sadiq is really the only candidate to vote for the can realistically win. Better to vote for him in my book than 'waste' a vote on Greens, Lib Dems etc who prob won't win .

This. But seriously Khan is our best (realistic) bet. I was also amazed and deeply worried that so many candidates specifically were against bike lanes/LTNs. WTF is wrong with people? Cycle lanes are on like 5% of London roads? It’s not even remotely a concern for ‘normal’ people.

Many of these candidates will drive us all into the ground. Sean Bailey scares the crap out of me, even his manifesto is contradictory- saying he’ll act on air pollution and then saying that he will overturn the ULEZ. What are they smoking? But a lot of people will vote for that. We must get out there- SB is a nut job and will destroy all the (small) progress achieved so far.

Thing with greens is that they come across so naive and easily impressionable; like our candidate who is now a staunch anti LTN while being a green candidate.

At least bailey is running on conservative platform and is true to it.

I had a Twitter (DM) exchange with the local Labour candidate; although he didnt inspire confidence he seems like the best of the lot.

Sad and weird that your local Green is against LTNs (not least as it’s not within their power to influence). But overall Sian Berry is a good egg.

To be fair also the Tory platform is confused. Sean Bailey is weirdly way more right wing than Boris. There’s been major rifts between Boris and CCHQ with local Tories like Sean Bailey. Boris was pissed when Kensington & Chelsea took away their bike lanes without consent.

Sadiq has mooted the idea of using existing legal powers to take control of the roads from local councils. Probably bluffing but would be one way to get the lanes built.

I might be missing something, but the booklet explains that a mayoral candidate receiving over 50% of ‘first choice’ votes wins. So if the cycling vote were split between green and labour, it follows that an anti-cycling candidate could win simply by having a more focused electorate.

I'm always for voting green as a case for building their base up, the hope being that in 10 years perhaps (optimistic) we're not suggesting that a vote for green is always wasted.

However, I'm also torn by the opportunity to ensure Khan smashes Bailey and help show that London rejects that politics.

As ever I'm even more confused by the local election choice. Kingston seems to be a really horrible place to do local politics - they are all at each others throats the whole time from what I can see on the local Twitter. No one seems to understand the awful reality of trying to run a local council at the moment and getting any accurate reporting of whats actually going on and whether the incumbents are doing a half good job is impossible.

Edit - There is no wider local election (other than a by-election mainly populated by monster raving loonies near me). We do thought get to vote for the Assembly member for SW London - is this where I should stick my green vote?

Yeah. My understanding is Labour first, Green second. Otherwise there’s a risk of the crazies getting in.

Overall one for @London_Cycling_Campaign to chip in and tell us what we need to do 🙂

Overall one for @London_Cycling_Campaign to chip in and tell us what we need to do 🙂

100% this.

If bailey gets more than 50% then it's irrelevant whether the left vote is split.

Also if bailey does get that vote share, the political commentary of London is way off, khan is probably over 50% but a first vote green and second khan makes sense and is low risk. With the benefit of course of letting khan know that green politics are vote winners.

Sadiq Khan is building a £2 billion motorway under the Thames from Greenwich to Silvertown. It has a special lane for larger HGVs than the Blackwall tunnel. It will increase motor traffic in the wider area north and south of the river, especially Greenwich and Newham, which has some of the worst air quality, and resulting respiratory health outcomes, in London. It has, for example, amongst the highest Covid death rates, and we know that air pollution directly increases liklihood of death from Covid.

Sadiq Khan has not mentioned the Silvertown tunnel in ANY of his three mayoral election manifestos, because he does not want to have this conversation. Ending a multi billion pound contract is costly and looks bad. But he needs to be held to account. Mps for Greenwich, West Ham and Lewisham are all opposed to the tunnel, as well as Newham and Greenwich residents groups. I am a Labour member but I am voting green because of this issue.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/jan/20/silvertown-tunnel-assault-health-locals-warn-doctors-london

@Backstop

I’m not sure that I agree or maybe I’m being dumb. Or possibly a bit of both.

If cyclists voting green meant that Khan didn’t get the 50%, it would be a strategic failure, right?

Your point assumes Bailey gets over 50% but that’s a big assumption to have up front as a reason to preemptively split the vote.

Sounds like - ‘we’re going to loose anyway, may as well vote green’.

But why lose in the first place? Does that make any sense?

I believe you are.
There is zero chance of Sean Bailey, or, any other right wing candidate passing 50% of first choice votes. There are at least three swivel-eyed loons who will peel off some anti-bike/anti-Sadiq votes.
Depending upon the weather on the day, which will affect turnout,
Sadiq has a good chance to win on first choice votes.
My Green first choice vote registers discontent with some of the policies of the last five years, but my second choice vote indicates that a Labour London Mayor is much better option for all Londoners than anyother realistic alternative.

See also the City Airport expansion, first he approves the expansion in 2016, then he
criticises the expansion in 2020.
2016:
https://www.edie.net/news/6/Sadiq-Khan-s-pollution-pledges-called-into-question-with-City-Airport-expansion-approval/

2020:
https://www.guardian-series.co.uk/news/17993568.sadiq-khan-attacks-london-city-airport-expansion-plans/

he should be judged by his actions not his words.

If Bailey wasn't such a shitbag we probably would have more chance of better cycling infrastructure with a Tory candidate. They might fall in line with Johnsons pro cycling plans
instead we just get a standoff between Tory government vs Labour mayor.