London Mayor Sadiq Khan has urged Transport Secretary Grant Shapps to reverse his decision to block a planned affordable housing in a subway car park. Khan instructed the TfL to “explore all options,” including seeking a judicial review after Shapps intervened to veto the building in Cockfosters, north London, using a clause in the 1999 GLA Act. the Enfield board last month and would have 351 new homes as well as open spaces. In a letter to Shapps seen by the Guardian, Khan said he was “deeply concerned” about the move. He said: “At a time when London is facing a serious housing crisis, I can not understand why you would prioritize the maintenance of a car park over the construction of new homes that are desperately needed.” Hahn said he was “very surprised” by the very positive conversations I had with the Foreign Minister about the Ministry of Elevation, Homes and Communities. [Michael Gove] about the government’s ambition to build the new homes that families need in this country. “ The development would have retained 47 parking spaces on the Piccadilly line station, out of the existing 336. About 2,000 locals opposed the plan, with the support of Theresa Villiers, a member of parliament for the nearby Chipping Barnet constituency, where similar plans for redeveloping car parks in High Barnet for housing are being proposed by TfL. Villiers, a former transport minister, has argued that car parks “perform an important parking and driving function, helping people get on the public transport network”. After Shapps issued his veto earlier this month, he said: “We have saved the Cockfosters from towers.” The controversy comes as TfL pushes for long-term funding from the Department of Transportation as it recovers from losing billions in freight rates during the Covid-19 pandemic. It depends on emergency financial assistance. Pp 200 million was given last month by Shapps to last until June, which was conditional on Khan raising revenue. Khan said in his letter, which was also sent to Gove, that prioritizing “car parks over the hundreds of homes in need so badly” sends a worrying and frankly contradictory message from the government. “The program would also have generated much-needed revenue for TfL to reinvest in public transport, so this decision also undermines the agreements we are negotiating for the delivery of housing to TfL.” The mayor said he “asked TfL to explore all available options to ensure that this development can proceed.” Answering questions in the Commons this month, Shapps erroneously claimed that the plan would have “abolished all but 12 parking spaces,” adding: “While I want to get people to use active travel and all forms of travel, the the idea that only 12 cars coming out a day was ridiculous. “ He added: “It would just mean that other cars would park on the streets and disturb the residents. “I encourage the mayor of London to come up with better plans than that.” A spokesman for the Ministry of Transport said: “When rehabilitating land used by transport hubs, the transport secretary must approve all plans, but in this case the application did not provide sufficient parking space for passengers. “Transport for London can submit alternative plans if they wish.” Gove’s department was called upon to call the planning process for a ministerial decision. He declined to comment.
