James Scantlebury
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turini2.bsky.social
James Scantlebury
@turini2.bsky.social
Planning Policy at LB Newham. Transit, Urban design, Politics, Motorsport. EG tea drinker, Briton. (he/him) #DFTBA
Posts are personal, usual t&c’s apply
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article... this is great news for Oxford Street and London!
Oxford Street traffic diversion plan ahead of pedestrianisation
www.bbc.co.uk
November 21, 2025 at 4:24 PM
Great news!
Fantastic news for London: the DLR Extension to Thamesmead is going ahead with backing from the Government.

It’s something I’ve long called for, and will create jobs for Londoners and help deliver tens of thousands of homes in London.
November 20, 2025 at 9:11 AM
This feels too on the nose.
November 19, 2025 at 3:46 PM
There’s something particularly sleazy about having a pub quiz sponsored by [app based trading platform for stocks and crypto], especially when 2 questions in the quiz have been “provided” by the sponsor.
No discounted entry fee either!
November 19, 2025 at 8:44 AM
Can’t wait to ride this the next time I’m in Montreal - $124m a kilometre is incredibly impressive build costs, shows IBX in NYC what can be done when you reuse existing rights of way…
a few pictures from today's celebrations for the extension of the rem, an automated light metro in montreal, canada. the network now spans 50 km (31 miles), and has the second-deepest rapid transit station in north america.
November 17, 2025 at 3:50 PM
What an excellent day, and an excellent Roast.
November 16, 2025 at 7:16 PM
Reposted by James Scantlebury
Oh wow! A London Underground station being officially Listed is always great news - this one especially so. Southwark station, 1999 by MacCormac Jamieson Prichard, has just been Listed at Grade 2. Now for the other JLE stations. @c20society.bsky.social

historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-...
November 11, 2025 at 6:08 AM
“Kent residents Hannah and Paul George designed the system after estimating they spent hundreds of hours attempting to navigate the planning process when they opposed plans to convert a building near their home into a mosque.” 💀
There is an "AI arms race" developing in planning as AI scanning speeds up planning applications

But off-the-shelf AI-analysis of those planning applications generates objections

(objections which will then all be analysed by...AI !!)

It's all going a bit mad

www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
AI-powered nimbyism could grind UK planning system to a halt, experts warn
Tools that help people scan applications and find grounds for objection have potential to hit government’s housebuilding plans
www.theguardian.com
November 10, 2025 at 8:54 AM
The faster that the left learns the lessons from Zohran's very successful campaign - the better.
You can win from the left while aiming at the centre ground...
November 6, 2025 at 11:15 AM
London would be a much uglier, noisier, car centric place if the Ringways had all been built…

We dodged a bullet … thanks to @roads.org.uk for this impressive resource!
November 3, 2025 at 7:47 PM
TIL that the City of London *technically* doesn’t use Albertus on its street signs - used since 1988 and updated in 2025
October 28, 2025 at 5:21 PM
Victor Le Masne - the composer who did the music for the opening ceremony of Paris 2024 - is working on a new project to recompose Ravel pieces and I’m really enjoying it spotify.link/9DkPoZaEMXb
Assez vif, très rythmé (From String Quartet in F Major, M. 35) - Recomposed
spotify.link
October 26, 2025 at 5:03 PM
An un-fun discovery on a Friday afternoon - Newham Cabinet papers that include the option of cutting the team I work in by 50%.
mgov.newham.gov.uk/documents/s1...
October 17, 2025 at 3:19 PM
glasgow.gov.uk/whyyouneedto... Love this from Glasgow City Council, pushing back against the crazies who think that saying "I am a Sovereign Citizen" or "this person doesn't exist" etc means that they don't have to pay Council Tax...
Why you require to pay Council Tax - Glasgow City Council
Information about why you are required to pay Council Tax.
glasgow.gov.uk
October 15, 2025 at 10:59 AM
Good, but many of the solutions to this are at the national level - cheaper childcare, cheaper housing, more secure and better paid employment, more/better support structures… uh, improved optimism for the future given climate change, war and populism…
Is London becoming a ‘childfree city’? Tomorrow, #AssemblyEconomy is holding a meeting to discuss current and projected trends relating to birth rates and the number of children in London. Find out more: www.london.gov.uk/could-london...
October 13, 2025 at 3:54 PM
Agreed - the irony of out-of-town retail parks in Newham being replaced by big box industrial distribution warehouses for Amazon etc…
While the Internet has had an impact, the main cause of the death of high streets is the out-of-town retail park. Any council which gave planning permission to a retail park only has themselves to blame for the destruction of their city centre.
October 7, 2025 at 4:27 PM
After 6 years, finished this deliciousness. Any recommendations for something new?
October 2, 2025 at 9:14 AM
Oh shit, Imgur no longer works in the UK. That might break a lot of things across the internet for UK users
September 30, 2025 at 7:21 PM
If we're doing pie in the sky New Town ideas... how about North Weald? Could cheaply extend the Central line for 10,000+ new homes on this site.
There's enough land to keep the air ambulance and industrial uses on site, while buffering the existing village. Bet the NIMBY pushback would be intense...
September 28, 2025 at 3:20 PM
1) we need proper bus rapid transit in London rather than just skipping a few bus stops and branding it "Superloop"
2) Bakerloop is a silly name
3) Wow, brown buses are *ugly*
The wait is over, Bakerloop is here 🚍

The new express electric bus between Waterloo and Lewisham launches today. It’s faster, greener and free all week - hop on board.
September 27, 2025 at 6:04 PM
Digital ID is gonna be another embarrassing U-turn for Starmer, I can see it from here.
September 26, 2025 at 7:37 AM
Reposted by James Scantlebury
What is this, the fascism cheering section of NYT? Abusing government power to silence critics shouldn’t be headlined with “success”
September 18, 2025 at 6:30 PM
Eurovision rumours are that some broadcasters (including Germany) will withdraw if Israel isn’t permitted to take part, and on the other side RTE, RTVE & others publicly saying they’ll withdraw if Israel takes part…

Tim Davie at the Beeb saying “Eurovision isn’t political” is a laughable statement.
September 18, 2025 at 8:10 AM
Looks like it needs one more lane, eh?
Tube strike in London today has brought out legions of cyclists. Great to see it!
September 10, 2025 at 7:35 AM