A Sea of South Eastern Regeneration

Reading article "A Sea of South Eastern Regeneration" - Reply to this / 2 comment(s)
There are reports that the Thames Gateway "risks becoming a sea of roads and car parks." Having lived in the area for some time now, I can see how true this is, too.

"Transport 2000 said in the Kent and Essex development areas, the government plans to spend £432m on roads but only £15m on public transport."

With the exception of the extended Channel Tunnel rail link, the most successful public transport scheme is the Fasttrack bus service in North Kent. There is so much regeneration happening in Kent at the moment but I'm truly worried about the lack of sustainable practices behind it all.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/kent/4478286... 

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1. Re: A Sea of South Eastern Regeneration by ecosrights, 1 day ago

   One of my concerns (amongst many, not that I say the development should stop) is that they aren't planning ahead and putting in basic "green" measures on the residential properties. Other than the odd specialist development, I've heard of none where they are putting in basics such as water butts, compost bins, solar panels and such like on all new buildings. Surely this is common sense as it is cheaper to put them in initially - in bulk, therefore cheaply, and building them into the design - than leave it to residents to add later. There are regulations that cover the amount of insulation you need to have in a new build, well I think this should cover other elements as well with water recycling a must on residential and commercial property.

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2. Re: A Sea of South Eastern Regeneration by ecosrights, 1 day ago

   I think that yesterday (18th Jan - major storms) really demonstrates how important it is for public transport to receive major investment. The whole area was gridlocked (I'm not just talking 1 or 2 square miles, but 10 or more) and journeys were taking at least 5 times their normal duration. If more people were able to trust the public transport systems, they wouldn't be driving, therefore the problem would not have been as drastic.
   
   The nursery our son was at closed over 2 hours later than normal because parents couldn't get there - again, more buses to get people there (or more faith in buses that cover a larger area, as I think there is a fairly good system there anyway) and children could have been picked up one time, or just slightly later.
   
   We already get congested in the Thames Gateway area, so there has to be further provision for better public transport.

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