Examination of Witnesses (Questions 980
- 999)
980. CHAIRMAN: Ms Lieven, I am going
to ask a question about this anyway. This has got to be sorted
out.
981. MS LIEVEN: Mr West, do you know
that there is a more recent ward map?
(Mr West) I would have to check back at base camp, my Lords.
982. If there is, could you make sure you serve
it on us tonight, please, so we can check it?
(Mr West) I will use my best endeavours, my Lords.
983. MS LIEVEN: Thank you very much.
That was all, my Lords.
984. CHAIRMAN: Mr Reed?
Re-Examined by MR
REED
985. MR REED: Just a couple of points,
Mr West. Can we look at 005 of Mr Berryman's evidence, the local
bus service route map for Manor Park.[69]
You were asked some questions on the extent to which one could
simply use the bus services along the Romford Road and then get
straight to Stratford or Forest Gate. Do you remember that?
(Mr West) Yes, I do.
986. Tell me, in terms of the residents who
live to the south of Manor Park, what bus route or routes would
they have to take to then go to Forest Gate or Stratford?
(Mr West) They would have to change at Romford Road from
a bus going towards Manor Park.
987. What do you say about the benefit or otherwise
of that need to change?
(Mr West) It would be inconvenient, to say the least.
988. You were asked about the extent to which
there would be an additional cost if you did use a bus in order
to get to an accessible station, and you were taken through a
number of different possibilities: those who were in receipt of
means-tested benefits; those who were registered disabled; those
who were elderly. None of those would be required to pay more
for their bus trip. Do you remember that?
(Mr West) Yes, indeed.
989. In addition, you were asked about the other
sorts of mobility restricted people who could use a Travel Card,
and there would be no additional cost if they had a Travel Card.
Do you remember that?
(Mr West) That is so, yes.
990. Tell me, do you have any knowledge of the
extent to which the Travel Card is used generally over an Oyster
Card in London?
(Mr West) Cash-free travel is used for the majority of journeys
certainly on the buses.
991. If you were using an Oyster Card do you
know whether or not there would be an additional cost to use the
bus service and go from there and use other underground or train
services?
(Mr West) If you were using an Oyster pre-paid Travel Card
then you would be charged for every journey that you make on public
transport. For instance, if you were to start your journey in
East Ham and got a 101 to Romford Road and then continued to Stratford
by bus you would be charged at the very least two times 90p, £1.80
for two bus journeys. There would be a penalty for an Oyster payer
in making two bus journeys to Stratford.
992. MR REED: Thank you very much, Mr
West. Those are my questions, my Lord.
Examined by THE
COMMITTEE
993. CHAIRMAN: What we are going to do
is see if we can finish with Mr West's evidence subject, if necessary,
to his being recalled, and subject to any other questions there
are. We will adjourn today and we will have Mr Berryman tomorrow.
Everybody else for tomorrow has settled, so we have got the day
to ourselves, but that does not mean to say you can take it all
up!
994. Mr West, what I would like to ask you to
do, you have already been requested to look at the ward map that
was put up to see whether that is the up-to-date one. What we
have got in this Petition is a problem about two specific railway
stations and the accessibility to people who are PRM. I do not
think that the figures you have given us on the number of disabled
people in relation to ward population helps at all, because we
do not know where the wards are and we do not know whether those
are the right figures; and you have already been asked if you
could possibly do that and I think it is important that you should.
It should not be difficult, should it?
(Mr West) It should not be difficult. I just need to talk
to—
995. Your electoral registration people ought
to know where the wards are and how many people live in them,
should they not?
(Mr West) The only problem I have, my Lord Chairman, is that
I will not be in the office until probably tomorrow afternoon
if I have to be back here tomorrow morning.
996. CHAIRMAN: You had better get on
the telephone in a minute and see if you cannot do something about
it. They will not have gone home yet. The other thing is that
in relation to that we will then know where the people live and
the numbers of them. We will then be able to relate the column,
which is the numbers in receipt of higher mobility component Disability
Living Allowance, with the geography. I do not think that anybody
has explained to us how many of the people in that column are
going to suffer from difficulties if there is not accessibility
without steps at the two stations. I do not believe there is any
correlation necessarily between the figures you have given us
and their difficulty in getting onto the platform to catch the
train. Is there anything you can do to clarify that for us? You
may not be able to do it straightaway.
997. MR REED: It is something we will
certainly endeavour to do overnight.
998. CHAIRMAN: I do not think we are
going to be able to come to any conclusion on this on the basis
of what we have got at the moment. I think we will have to have
more information.
999. MS LIEVEN: My Lord, what we can
do from our side without very much difficulty at all, because
I know I have the book, is to tell your Lordships in the morning
what the criterion is for higher component mobility component
for DLA, Disability Living Allowance. That will not tell you exactly
what proportion of people need step-free access, but it will give
your Lordships a feel for what the level of disability is that
falls within that particular category.
69 Crossrail Ref: P8, Manor Park-Local bus services
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