Sadiq Khan slammed over 'vanity project' railway rebrand as he's told 'stop wasting cash'

Sadiq Khan has been told to curb ‘wasteful’ spending and usage wealth to location stateless radical alternatively of connected ‘vanity projects’ aft a £6million rebrand of a railway network.

In February, the Labour Mayor of London announced that Transport for London’s (TfL) Overground lines would beryllium re-named.

They volition besides beryllium represented connected the Tube representation utilizing antithetic colours.

Officials accidental this volition marque the web easier to navigate, whilst celebrating London’s 'diverse communities and histories'.

The Overground was represented by orangish lines but, aft the rebrand, volition beryllium differentiated by 2 parallel grey, yellow, airy blue, green, maroon and reddish lines.

The caller names volition beryllium the Liberty, Lioness, Mildmay, Suffragette, Weaver and Windrush lines. They volition officially beryllium launched this week.

Here’s a afloat database of the rebranded lines:

• Lioness: Yellow parallel lines, runs from Watford Junction to Euston

• Mildmay: Blue parallel lines, runs from Richmond and Clapham Junction to Stratford

• Windrush: Red parallel lines, runs from Highbury & Islington to New Cross, Clapham Junction, Crystal Palace, and West Croydon

• Weaver: Maroon parallel lines, runs from Liverpool Street to Cheshunt, Enfield Town, and Chingford

• Suffragette: Green parallel lines, runs from Gospel Oak to Barking Riverside

• Liberty: Grey parallel lines, runs from Romford to Westminster

As good arsenic an updated Tube map, a refreshed London Overground web representation volition beryllium released, arsenic good arsenic a fig of on-network assets, including way-finding signage astatine each 113 stations, MyLondon reports.

Now, Mr Khan, who is Chair of TfL, has travel nether occurrence from absorption politicians.

Reform UK’s lone London Assembly Member, Alex Wilson, told The Express: “The immense bulk of Londoners are fed up of their wealth being wasted by the left-wing constitution successful London, this is conscionable different illustration of that.

“Sadiq Khan should beryllium concentrating connected the pressing issues facing our city, alternatively than engaging successful nonsense similar this.

"Reform UK volition slash wasteful spending to summation backing for frontline nationalist services and trim taxes for working-people.”

Neil Garratt AM, the person of the Conservative radical astatine City Hall, said: "Spending £6.3m to rename Overground lines without immoderate betterment to the work looks similar a spectacular discarded of money, compared to conscionable £4.8m the Mayor precocious announced to tackle homelessness.

"That should person been his priority, wherever this wealth could person made a existent quality to Londoners who are truly struggling.

“Instead, he’s wasting it connected a vanity project. It’s different incorrect prime from a Mayor that’s wasted 8 years successful bureau and is present desperately seeking a legacy.”

A spokesperson for Mr Khan said: “Customer probe showed that renaming the lines would assistance passengers navigate the Overground and promote much radical to confidently usage nationalist transport.
 
"The Mayor is arrogant of these caller names that honour and bespeak London’s divers communities and histories."

A Combined Homelessness and Information Network (CHAIN) study said successful October that 4,780 radical sleeping unsmooth were counted betwixt July and September this year.

The Big Issue reports that this represented an 18 per cent summation connected the aforesaid play past year, and was 13 per cent higher than the erstwhile quarter.

It was the highest quarterly fig connected record. Mr Khan promised to extremity homelessness successful the metropolis by 2030 during the mayoral predetermination run successful the spring.