Europe



Black taxi cabbies have lost a High Court challenge which could have disrupted completion of London mayor Boris Johnson’s £47 million flagship east-west cycle superhighway.

Taxis lined up on Fleet Street, London, as cabbies found out the result of a High Court challenge.

Taxis lined up on Fleet Street, London, as cabbies found out the result of a High Court challenge. Image by Anthony Devlin/PA Wire

The Licensed Taxi Drivers Association (LTDA) asked a judge to declare that the continued construction of the segregated cycling route linking Westbourne Grove and Tower Hill via the Victoria Embankment without planning permission “constitutes a breach of planning control”.

But Mrs Justice Patterson rejected the application.

Steve McNamara, LTDA’s general secretary, accused Mr Johnson of rushing through the scheme as an ill-judged “last hurrah” before he leaves office.

The cabbies say the scheme is causing massive delays in central London because of the amount of road space it is taking up.

The LTDA asked the judge at a recent hearing in London to grant a judicial review against Transport for London (TfL) and the mayor to force a reconsideration of the whole project.

TfL is the highway authority for Greater London Authority (GLA) roads. Its legal team argued that it would be “inappropriate” for the court to make a declaration as it would usurp the powers of local planning authorities.

Mark Lowe QC, for the LTDA, said the association had consistently opposed the cycle superhighway on behalf of its 10,000-plus members.

(Press Association)