Liverpool City Council plans to spend many millions of pounds on changing the road layout in Liverpool. In the process they plan to reduce bus services.
The Green Party opposes these changes. We should be doing the opposite: improving public transport so that fewer cars will clog up our roads. This is all the more important because of the climate emergency.
Here is the motion Green Councillor Tom Crone has submitted to the Regeneration and Highways Committee:
Motion to Save the 82C 82D and 86D
This committee believes that closing Lime Street, and therefore removing several popular commuter bus services from the network, will reduce bus patronage, leading to increased traffic and air pollution in the city.
Committee considers that the consultation on these plans has not been meaningful. This is illustrated by the inclusion of the following words in its preamble:
“We do welcome people’s comments, but we have to be clear that we will be limited in any changes we can make because of the changing layout of the city centre.”
Given the need for ambitious measures to address the Climate Emergency, this committee calls for a pause, and reconsideration of this closure. Other options, such as closing the road to all traffic apart from buses, must be considered to protect the 82C, 82D and 86D from deletion.
More broadly, plans for city centre highways need to be bolder in promoting public transport, walking and cycling. Over two years ago when the 82 route was first changed we proposed using a bus gate to control traffic on Hanover Street. Nothing has been done here and the uncontrolled traffic on this road continue to hinder bus services.
Committee requests the cabinet member for regeneration and highways to meet with the cabinet member for climate change, the chair of Merseytravel and the bus operators to agree the best way to protect these vital bus services.
