dg comments

please empty your brain below

I've just tried reporting a pothole but it tells me no council has been selected after not asking for one! I tried using Fixmystreets instead and apparently Newham council don't accept pothole reports from third parties. TFL obviously didn't get local councils to take part in this. The pothole is on a bus route so I would have thought TFL would have responsibility for this.

Paul Draper | 17.12.19 - 7:26 a.m. | #

This is one of those times when central government should be pushing all those concerned to agree on a single platform for people to be able to report problems to. (And not just for London)

The problem with that idea, though, is that someone like Crapita (Or Fujitsu!) will end up getting a huge fat government contract and produce rubbish (Probably 10 years late)

Jon Jones | 17.12.19 - 7:38 a.m. | #

If you email or call TfL about a streets problem it is clear that they pass your message on and then mark it as resolved on their system (like they seem to be doing with this new system). There are issues where I've had more than 5 different reference numbers for the same problem as each time I chase to say something is still unresolved they say they "will follow up with the relevant team" and provide a brand new reference. At least this method is easier to compete than the previous web forms buried in TfL's website and provides some form of public accountability.

MS | 17.12.19 - 8:01 a.m. | #

I've been using the LoveCleanStreets app for years. It covers flytipping etc. and certainly works with my local council (I'm not in London). Recommended!

Tim W | 17.12.19 - 8:14 a.m. | #

That "Cyclists Dismount" sign is wrong. It should say "Cyclists Join Main Carriageway"

(You don't tell bus passengers to "get out and push" if a bus lane is closed)

timbo | 17.12.19 - 8:14 a.m. | #

Timbo - Your personal opinion has been noted and we have reported this to our contractors. If this is a genuine issue we will take action within 30 days. Thank you for taking the time to tell us what is wrong with the world.

Street Care | 17.12.19 - 8:21 a.m. | #

Thanks for this most timely article.

For the third time a parking bay instruction hss just re reappeared on the red route in the centre of Cheam. This was permanently removed five years ago as part of a genuine solution to speed up traffic (a new left filter with now direct access from the bus stop)

I spoke to my ex and very visible local councillor to get these removed twice but in her absence you have provided a new way forward. I can then move on to permanently blocked drains, etc.

Incidentally, it is just the sign that re-appears, the post has always remained sadly, and the road clearly shows double red lines for the whole stretch. Bizarre. How many separate departments does TfL have?

Ken | 17.12.19 - 8:33 a.m. | #

I live outside London. FixMyStreet tells me that it passes observations onto the appropriate body. Later it asks _me_ whether it has been fixed.

mikeS | 17.12.19 - 8:41 a.m. | #

When I tried it, the map view where you can drop a pin actually did show which roads were under TfL control - there is a red shading on the red routes and other major TfL-managed areas. But I suspect whether this works depends on phone / browser / etc.

David | Homepage | 17.12.19 - 8:47 a.m. | #

Thank you very much for those insights. I will take them constructively as crowd/resp public bodies inspired by crowd taking ownership. And not start complaining immediately about perceived shortcomings.
Equivalent for Paris (in English too) - Dans Ma Rue with apps.

International reader | 17.12.19 - 8:50 a.m. | #

Street care
Not my personal opinion - it is TfL policy

timbo | 17.12.19 - 9:26 a.m. | #

Does this system allow you to post a photo? Most do not yet often this would make it very clear what and where the problem is.

And do they allow you to use 'what three words' to report the exact location?

Some credit to my local council, on occasions they have sent me a photo of the fixed problem to prove they have resolved it.

Pedantic of Purley | 17.12.19 - 10:10 a.m. | #

I will make a small claim to having done something in this area. A couple of decades ago, as editor of a magazine covering government IT systems, I was having lunch with a senior exec of the Local Government Association.

We discussed small things that could make a significant improvement. What about street lights, I said. There's one outside my house that hasn't been working for months, but I don't know where to report it.

Why not a little sign on each lamp post with a reference number and a phone number, I said.

And, lo, within a year, lamp posts in my street and others sprouted little plaques with just that information.

AlanBG | 17.12.19 - 12:04 p.m. | #

I reported on November 4 that a bus virtual stop on a local hail & ride route (in Purley) was giving the DLR as an alternative transport option.

I have been told today they will forward it to the digital team for this to be rectified.

And has anyone else noticed that you need to fake a journey so that you can report an error on TfL's webpages. And how long it takes them to fix it (if they do at all). It does not bode well for Streetcare.

Pedantic of Purley | 17.12.19 - 12:25 p.m. | #

I flagged an issue about the Chandos Avenue bus shelter, in Oakleigh Park, having damage to its roof and they'd fixed it by the end of the day when I went passed again.
At least that's one success from this website.

Daniel | 17.12.19 - 5:07 p.m. | #

Update

Mile End cycle lane signage - reported FIXED today at 1pm (23 hours after it was fixed).

Abandoned cone, under the bridge near Embankment A3211 - Collection has been arranged.

Sofa Dumped (in Hither Green) - No longer Investigating, now Resolved.

diamond geezer | Homepage | 17.12.19 - 6:05 p.m. | #

It is usually the case that when one set of traffic lights displays the green aspect, its counterparts display red.

If a set of traffic lights in Twickengam has been stuck on green with a 28 day clear-up target, that's going to be an awfully long time for some other poor blighters to be held at a red signal.

Malnutrition will probably set in as a byproduct of this defect.

dg writes: It's at a pedestrian crossing.

Petras409 | 17.12.19 - 10:36 p.m. | #

Cycle lane closed is a fact, and the cyclist will have to make an informed decision.
Cyclists dismount is a often ignored instruction.
Unfortunately TfL "policy" (which I saw at many meetings) is so afraid of closing a bike facility less they upset that fraternity, even common sense, sensible and safe practice gets ignored.

Scrumpy | 18.12.19 - 1:27 a.m. | #

The oblong "cyclists Dismount" is an advisory sign, unless accompanied by a mandatory (circular) sign prohibiting cycling (or all vehicles)

Timbo | 18.12.19 - 1:53 p.m. | #

Your report has been investigated by our team and this is not the responsibility of Transport for London. However, your local borough will be able to help you.

Street Care | 18.12.19 - 2:44 p.m. | #

Welcome to the world of "helpdesks". They aren't designed to help anyone other than the managers who run them, to enable them to massage statistics and report positive messages up to the directors above them. This is our future, I'm afraid.

Wole | 18.12.19 - 3:18 p.m. | #

Which roads are TfL's responsibility? When I did some work for them - admittedly 10 years ago - the TLRN (Transport for London Road Network) was the red routes, ie roads with red rather than yellow lines. To the best of my knowledge that's still the case, and there's a map of them here.

Peter CS | 18.12.19 - 5:16 p.m. | #

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