The answer to London’s traffic problems could lie in traffic lights, the Conservatives believe.
In an interview with headlineauto Theresa Villiers, Shadow Transport Minister, said that there is not an effective transport policy in the suburbs to provide an alternative for those who want to avoid the Congestion Charge.
She believes that the answer is in traffic management, as well as improving public transport.
'We will have to look closely at traffic management,’ she said.
‘The Ken Livingstone way is to actively try to clog up traffic with no commensurate benefit to the pedestrian or cyclist.
‘To tackle congestion we need to look at traffic light re-phasing and getting rid of traffic lights that actually cause congestion.'
She added: 'It is important to improve public transport, cars will remain a necessity but people will shift if there is a reliable and affordable alternative.”
However Ms Villiers said the Conservatives were not prepared to make any big decisions on fuel duty just yet.
'I can’t make any promises on fuel duty but if we do have to have new green taxes then these would have to be given back in tax cuts elsewhere and not used to fill a gap in the finances.
'We will seek to tackle bottlenecks where finances permit and you will certainly not see us backtrack on widening or by-pass schemes as we have seen with the Labour government.
'We will approach road pricing and congestion charging with considerable caution.'
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