Big expansion to car clubs

Lambeth Council has received funding from Transport for London to expand the number of car club bays in the borough from the current 33 bays, to over 70 bays. This will make car clubs even more accessible to many more residents and businesses .

Car clubs operate pay-as-you-go cars which you can hire by the hour. But unlike hire cars, they are parked locally. Once you are a member, you just book a car, access it with your membership card and drive it away for approximately £5 per hour.

Apart from the cost and time benefits of not having to worry about parking permits, insurance,
maintenance and petrol, car club users who give up their cars also benefit their local community by helping to reduce parking stress, helping to ease traffic congestion and improving local air quality.

New car club bays are proposed in:
Black Prince Road
Cleaver Square
Kennington Green
Radcot Street
Walcot Street
Wincott Street
Juxon Street


If you have any comments, please write to: Lambeth car club consultation, Project Centre, Saffron Court, 14b St Cross Street, London EC1N 8XA before 18 July 2008.

If you would like to know more please call Mike Eames at The Project Centre (working on behalf of Lambeth) on 020 7430 6912.

For more information about car clubs please visit http://www.carclubs.org.uk/.

Labour members visit Sports Action Zone at old Lilian Baylis school

20 members of the local Labour party were treated to a tour of the Sports Action Zone facilities at the old Lilian Baylis school site on the Ethelred estate. Director Brian Dickens told the group about how his team had started providing a programme of activities in summer 2005, soon after the school moved away, leaving the site empty. Since then the Sports Action Zone activities have expanded massively, attracting the attention of celebrities like Michael Jordan, Linford Christie and Kelly Rowlands.

Brian showed the group classrooms used for homework and arts projects, halls used for football, basketball and dance, the boxing gym, and the plush new basketball court, funded by Michael Jordan himself. The site was full of activity, and members were impressed with how much was going on, and what a difference it was clearly making.

The success of the project is a testament to the hard work of all the staff and supporters involved. It did not come about over night. Norman Turner, Chair of StreetGames, has said 'Lambeth Council and Kate Hoey MP are applauded for their vision and commitment to the project. They backed the London Sport Action Zone to take over the derelict school buildings when it would have been easier to walk away and sell off the land.'

You can read more about the project here and on the SAZ website.

Pictured: Cllr Steve Morgan, Kate Hoey MP, Mark Harrison and Cllr Lorna Campbell at the SAZ.

Clean up the Old Paradise Street railway bridge!

Local campaigner Mark Harrison has begun a campaign to sort out the Old Paradise Street railway bridge. Pigeons nesting in the rafters under the bridge continue to foul the pavement and make it dirty, smelly, and slippery for pedestrians. Water also filters down through the railway tracks above and drips unpleasantly on to unsuspecting walkers for around a day after every rain shower.

Mark has already collected dozens of signatures for a petition, and has lobbied Sally Prentice, the councillor responsible for the environment in Lambeth.

Mark said 'it's high time Network Rail and the Council get their act together and tidy up this bridge to make it pleasant for pedestrians to walk under'.

Pigeons nesting in the rafters

under the bridge continue

to make a mess of the path

below: