Mayor Unorm Policies

Creating London Metropolitan Area

Post title but instead changed idea to a page that can be easily clicked from the sidebar.

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It's totally not something I've ripped straight out of Tokyo Metropolitan area which combines-
Okay it is. Hear me out.


I've been having this in my head for years in various shapes and forms, as red London buses ventured outside of London's pre-1965 borders into the then-countrysides. Now those are large urban centres of course. Conversely, green country buses would penetrate fairly into London's boundaries.
See routes 313 370 402 403 405 409. Self-explanatory.

My reason for bringing this up is the unfortunate reality where, after Thatcher did the thing (if you're unaware, just go on Wikipedia) only London had stable transport whereas elsewhere, every man for himself. That led to the transport version of Russia after the collapse of the USSR. Consolidation of the profitable, whilst the less used routes either died shortly or suffered for long by the breadth of a hair.

It's no coincidence you hear of withdrawn routes time and again in the country, it's a shame the reason cited is costs. It is true, simultaneously also a shame.

Postscript: Major is to blame for privatisation of British Rail as Thatcher realised privatising the railways wouldn't bring profit and lose necessary links to communities particularly in rural areas. She also didn't privatise the NHS!

Some people question why car usage is high, even going on to make every measure to tax them to the extent of Brits having among the highest in the developed world. Then the worst public transport in western Europe.

As one folk put it "[they tell us to] get out your vehicle, use public transport, then [they] take public transport away, you're an idiot."

Our issues with transport is a dime a dozen, whether it's buses or trains. At least with planes you're off to another country unless you're sad enough to stay in this not so large island nation.

Meanwhile in many parts of Europe, public transport is actually public transport. Let me translate that for you: state-run. London Transport was before the 1980s, as was much of the buses in the UK with various company names. As for rail only one name was associated with it, British Rail.

Instead of us who have to put up with it, I feel for the travellers and tourists who are used to paying €20 for an entire day trip on trains to end up looking at the price of London to Leicester one-way trip on the same day for £130.

Going back to Tokyo. It isn't a city so to speak.

It's made of 23 wards (each >500,000 in population would be a city). Though not all wards are cities.

Tokyo comprises of 23 wards; 26 cities; 3 towns; 1 village; each with their own mayor.

Tokyo Prefecture (basically a state/province) is the capital of Japan.

As usual with imperial powers there's another mess.

Tokyo Metropolitan Area is different. Don't pretend Britain isn't a hot mess designating it's country either.

Thankfully it's easier. Tokyo Metropolitan Area = Tokyo Prefecture + [insert prefectures]. Easy!

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If I was thrown into Downing Street today, what would I do for Britain?

- Paid Suggestions into Google Forms 

Literally just watched a video from Moist Critikal who came up with basically the above idea. Pretty much opened my third eye.

No doubt you would have come across Google Forms in your life, or other variations. Surveys, whatever it may be. You would enter whatever details, though you wouldn't lose anything (thankfully) but you won't gain anything back most likely.

There are a lot of smart people in this world, though as more people get squeezed into poverty and the middle-class have slowly been pushed down, less people have been getting degrees.

-Tax-free and discounts if you show passport when shopping (etc DonQuijote does this in Japan for foreigners)

Our data is already in the web in some form. Made a Clubcard? Nectar? Lidl Plus? Perhaps you travel abroad and use Avios.

Putting to aside Amazon and other online stores having your payment details and address, there is bound to be at least some/various third-parties that knows your payment details and/or address.

The goal of this: If you're willing to sell yourself, we'll discount your shopping and tax-free - 

Clubcard's rise was to data-farm, whilst also rewarding the users

All in all: Give good idea - you get £1000. Simples. Absolutely cannot be abused...(sarcasm)

- Adopt a replicated version of Germany's electoral system (Mixed Member Proportional System)

The goal is to do away with the past-the-post system where people blindly vote Labour or Conservative, whilst getting rid of the "tactical voting" on the country-scale which is seen as football politics, either in the UK or USA.

- Adopt fixed term limits like in America

Regardless of however many resignations happen, the original term of a Prime Minister will continue until it's final date. In the same way that if a US President died (or other cause of stepping down) the Vice President would continue under the ex-President's term until the 4 years is over. Then the ex-Vice President has the option to run as an elected President if desired on a new 4 year term.

- Adopt union laws/rules more akin to France

Stop. The. Continuous. Strikes. That. Achieve. Little.

Thatcher, Cameron and Truss squeezing unions from the ability to strike well made things ridiculously worse, only stopping short from the workers becoming the excuse to abolish unions and become like America who effectively enslaves their workers by - having no unions (almost).

- Separate London in as many aspects as possible except for foreign policy. Houses of Parliament and Commons remain in London. The UK's capital to remain London. However London would be isolated from the government's control as much as possible, leaving them to address the rest of the country falling behind and bring it up to snuff. 

With the Mayor of London effectively Prime Minister of London so to speak.

The goal here is to remove power-struggle dynamics of a Labour mayor and Conservative government and vice-versa/so-on-so-forth.

- Following the above, revert all road ownership from boroughs to TfL, and other top three cities' respective agencies

(with as much as Transport, Housing, Planning co-ordinated tighter or also reverted)

Effectively reversing the mistakes of the abolition of the Greater London Council by Thatcher.

This would mean, again, less useless kerfuffle between authorities by reducing the amount of authorities that need to talk to one another. Having to install new bus stops on a road to remove parking restrictions for example does require back-and-forth, let alone new tube stations. (Ahem Lambeth sitting on a Brixton Overground station everyone wants and benefits from)

A different example is how the borough shouldn't be consulted on permission for the changing of a bus/tram/train route.

The goal is reducing as many examples of two or more authorities involved in one key aspect. Especially having roads (a form of transport) fully managed by the transport entity, TfL in this case.

- Establish the London Metropolitan Area.

Greater London and surrounding counties' borders will not change.

Nullifies the county paying TfL for services into the shires (e.g Central Line in Essex, the 96/428/492 in Kent, etcetera), to make both the County and TfL equally responsible rather than a one-way relationship. As a by-product, routes from the counties into TfL territory would have more TfL involvement than simply "get lower emission buses yourself" turning into TfL investing in that goal. In short, can 310 come back to Enfield, 402 come back to Bromley and 409 to Croydon thanks (include other examples).

- Enter the Schengen agreement and enter economic ties with the European Union (unfortunately whilst being outside the union to retain dignity of our mistake)

This will allow the goal of trains stopping at Stratford International to actually go to international destinations.

- Cede Northern Ireland to Ireland

Get rid of complications of Northern Ireland protocol with the EU as a result of Brexit. Just bloody bury it once and for all.

- Go through with the union of Britain-Canada-Australia-New Zealand. Effectively making the former colonies part of Great Britain itself rather than colonies/dependencies of the British Empire. All using the British Pound (as if the £ or Canadian $ have worth to the American $ all as of October 2022)

Making travel between any of the countries hassle-free, with more lax border control between them. The goal is travel and economy to be as intertwined as Alaska/Hawaii is to mainland America. Furthermore, the ability for people to freely live in one country and easily move residence to the next. Effectively Schengen but between UK-CA-AU-NZ.

- As a continuation of the above, go through with annexation of Turks and Caicos Islands into Canada (which both sides have wanted in the past, but the British disapproved since it was a British overseas territory). Even without a UK-CAN-AU-NZ union, it would benefit Canada by giving them a hot place to holiday to freely, like America and Hawaii. How giving Canada one improves Britain? Friendly relation +1.

- To reduce immigration a little bit (if hopeful, a bit; if cynical; barely)

- Return all road speed limits to pre-2014 levels (reverse 20mph-ification)

- Remove Low Traffic Neighbourhoods or introduce cycle routes using them, making LTN roads have cyclists as priority; car-users as second-class citizens.

- Adopt variable traffic lights throughout the country to even further increase speeds and drastically improve traffic efficiency.

In addition, turn off (display or power) of traffic lights between 2300 and 0500: Crossings and three-way intersections. If two major roads intersect, those will be excluded.

At minor 4-way intersections, having all 4 lights on permanent-yellow. Effectively making the intersection no different to if there were no lights, also from 2300 to 0500.

Estonia does similar during the night time by having all lights blink yellow, relying on the driver to judge carefully as they drive through the lights.

        - Bus priority lights: At intersections with bus lanes on one side and none on the other, a 3 second delay added to normal traffic. 1.5 seconds if otherwise.

    e.g Streatham High Road at Becmead Avenue

           The goal is to move buses ahead of queue. Bus priority. 

    Crystal Palace Park Road has something of a by-pass lane with the junction Westwood Hill, more doable examples would be nice. Bastable Avenue on EL2, etc.

- Variable road speed limits

   e.g 30mph roads but 20mph near high pedestrian areas such as schools during schooltime (with lights flashing, or something to make it obvious to road drivers visibly[/audibly], some places have LED signs of road limits that change)

   e.g above but all 20mph main roads become 30mph during night-time. There is only the ghosts to be considerate for at night.

- Add trolley wires on road corridors such as the A10, A13 (East India), A23, etcetera

The goal is to reduce emissions of existing diesels/hybrids (preferably retrofit existing vehicles but not mandatory) whilst allowing electric vehicles to have further range by relying on the trolley wires on the corridors.

- More tram improvements through the country, replacing some low-used rail lines by light-rail and extending them into city centres. Using tram-train vehicles where applicable

Extending Tramlink to Crystal Palace.

Converting the Greenford branch into trams maybe,

Etcetera. Etcetera.

- Create the proposed bridge from Thamesmead to Beckton

I hope it's self-explanatory. As a temporary fun solution, piers created on either side to allow ferries (only carrying buses and pedestrains/cyclists) to cross the thames.

- One travel card system for all transport in the UK based on contactless

To put it a different way, the Oyster compatible with Manchester Metrolink. Brighton's The Key usable on London Buses, etcetera etcetera.

A new card won't have to be made. However, all of them being inter-compatible is important. Japan got this under control with the several rail companies, we can do the same.

- Free-to-play and gacha tactics

If you're familiar with loot boxes or gacha in the gaming community, you're already up to speed.

In short: Free games lure you into paying for in-game items that are will be on absurd discounts when you join, then as you play more the in-game items slowly revert to normal price with other shenanigans to extort you.

   For transport purposes we'll say for new users there would be free travel for a week whilst all users have 50% off all single fares for two weeks (and up to 33% for other fares).

- Train service quality increase

Increase standards of train on-time to around 90-95% (with 10 minutes or greater requiring a refund)

Increase penalties for late departure massively.

The goal is to ensure excellent service, even more enticing to use instead of private transport, trains with militant operation akin to Japan but at least on-par with Switzerland and Netherlands, ensuring our trains operate to timetables almost all the time, with any late events being down to out-of-control problems (landslides/weather etc) instead of controllable variables (no spare train/late drivers

- Fare caps (£15 a day, £50 a week, £7.50 on weekends/holidays) across the whole network, not just bus cap of triple bus fare [£1.75 x 3 = £5.25]

Inspired by Sydney's transport system

- Distance based train fares country-wide + balanced ticketing

at about 30p per mile (standard), 45p per mile (1st class), 60p (1st class + meals)

at about 45p/mile (standard return), 67.5p/mile (1st class return), 90p/mile (1st class + meals return)

In above example, London to Brighton is very similar, but you save £40 London to Birmingham, as well as similar price savings on more obscure destination-to-destination.

Currently 0.16p per kilometre in Ireland

The goal of this is to reduce the obscene price differences as a direct result of British Rail being privatised.

Or by train capacity in the case of potential overcrowding issues (profiteering as per capitalism),

Quietest trains at 22.5p per mile, normal 30p per mile, busiest trains 37.5p per mile.

Unify all train operating companies' smart cards into one smart card. Go even further so as to travel anywhere in the UK by public transport. One step further as the Dutch do and personalise your smart card with your name/face on (Zip Oyster cards anyone? Discounted Oyster anyone?).

Perhaps a semi-bank card with contactless to avoid the issue of not being able to apply Oyster discounts/travelcards onto bank cards. It should be made hard to use as a normal bank card for cash withdrawals (then again more than half the population don't use cash in UK) - it'll be a bonus using it as a one-card-for-all solutions like in South Korea. Using your transport card to buy groceries!

Lastly, region tickets being advertised more, placed front and centre to make it very obvious. Paying a 1/3 off off-peak travel to go anywhere in Southeast England. The goal is to entice travel even more.

Balanced, as per Belgium if two people travel, one person pays the fare

- Join HS1 and HS2 into one high speed line.

- Third runway for Heathrow

Build lots of houses near Slough to relative luxury. Kick residents out of Harmondsworth, by option (to new luxuryish houses) or force (expiration date).

- Second runway for Gatwick; a quick short-term solution whilst dealing with Harmondsworth residents

This does mean Gatwick should be incentivised over Heathrow, preferably domestic and other cheap flights and/or to specific regions of the world only (whilst excluded from using Heathrow).

The goal is, whilst expanding Heathrow, to increase valuable capacity as much as possible as quick as possible.

- Create Boris Island airport as an investment airport

- Tax the owners of all apartment buildings with no tenants about 15% of (rent price x number of apartments). Land Value Tax.

Likewise tax all land itself (not buildings) appropriately according to value of land. Shifting burden of tax from you as individuals to the people that own the building on the land.

People on all political spectrums agree

Milton Friedman, economist to Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher.

Winston Churchill

Karl Marx father of communism with disdain to Henry George agreed to Land Value Tax being efficient. The many fathers of American capitalism (Adam Smith, Thomas Jefferson, etc). The father of liberalism (John Stuart Mill). Many many people of differing ideologies.

The goal is to have better economy and less burden on it's people. Those who made money from unearned wealth should be taxed for it, not the people who kept society moving.

(perhaps abolish the Corporation tax, Value Added Tax VAT)

(absolutely abolish Income Tax, Property Tax)

The goal of this is to reduce housing prices whilst also making use of their barren space. Houses are meant to be lived in, not to be multiple giant manifestations of asset ownership.

- All new housing developments must have frequent bus services (and an overnight service), with lots of bicycle parking and a train station within 5 minutes by foot (failing that, 5 minutes by bike). Next to no car parking inside the development. In addition, to prevent disasters like Thamesmead and New Addington, all developments must have [mini-]hospitals and medium-large shopping centres.

The goal is for new developments to be only use transport. Reducing car dependency, which also reduces the amount of cars by people who have the option of transport, allowing those that need the car to keep using the car with less traffic generated by people who have the option.

Fun fact: The Soviets revolutionised this in their famous estate blocks. Great public transport, great medical facilities, great shops. Effectively towns in their own right. When the model was replicated outside of communist places, costs were cut in many instances leading to... the failures we see in Thamesmead and in other places inside UK, Europe and America.

- If a property has been empty for a year, the council must buy it up. Allowing for cheap housing opportunities.

- Reduce green-belt slowly, into nothingness

It plagued not only us, but Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Funnily enough.

It restricts building on green areas. Preserved the green countryside for farmers and scenery, also keeping the air cleaner. No it didn't make a noticeable effect, very liminal.

So removing that, allows more housing and other critical infrastructure.

- All fines/crimes to be charged in relation to wealth.

Look up Finland's resolution. Nokia's CEO was speeding and was fined thousands of dollars worth. The same being done by a student would be in the hundreds, comparatively.

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Singapore is wild

Feed Pigeons? S$500 fine

Didn't flush toilet? S$500 fine

Singing in public? 3 months in prison

Chew gum? Up to $100,000 in fine or 2 months in prison

Smoking is illegal

Walk naked in your house is illegal

Committing suicide is illegal

Drug activity? DEATH PENALTY

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Dean Sullivan of Sullivan Buses has posted this rather interesting insight relating to the latest tender outcome for them over on the Londoner FB group

"Thomas, Sam Riches, Tony & friends, of course we are extremely disappointed to lose a further route. We are certainly not having a great deal of success with TfL at the moment.

There are a couple of reasons, firstly as Tony has pointed out, its access to suitable 'used' vehicles. Clearly the other London operators have an advantage in that they know what buses they already have in the fleet in order to offer them up to TfL. On the other hand I am at the mercy of the dealers who cannot state what stock they have in say (in this case) six months time. I have researched and contacted other operators in the possible knowledge that certain suitable vehicles will come out of their fleets before the routes commencement. But in most cases these could be either reallocated or are leased vehicles which are returned to the hirer. I buy all of my vehicles, so am not keen on dealing with leasing companies. The other problem is that by contacting other operators, we are in effect tipping them off as to what routes we are bidding for.

Also we have experienced a number of issues with TfLs two stage tendering processes. Some recent bids we submitted for mainstream services were automatically rejected by their two separate systems.

In the case of the 603 TfL were aware of the pre-existing issues we were facing and we 'reached out' for further assistance. Unfortunately due to circumstances (and the fact they already had compliant bids) they declined to extend the tender deadline.

I cant blame TfL for taking a stern line. That's entirely their prerogative and its absolutely right that they have one rule for all operators. But TfL are fully in the loop, and in their view its down to me to meet the requirements. If I don't, then we will need to focus our attention elsewhere."