SO Labour got cold feet over Lendal Bridge. Perhaps they should have taken a leaf out of Ken Livingstone’s book, a Labour politician of conviction who had the courage to turn the centre of London around by introducing congestion charging.

Let’s consider why someone stands for office.

I would like to think this was because they want to do something positive for the people and the city they live in. In that case it should be plain that reducing traffic in the inner core of York is a positive move. We have a large pedestrianised central core, a move instituted by a previous Labour administration. There is a plaque to Coun Albert Cowen in St Helen’s Square to this effect. What would York been like today if he hadn’t the courage of his convictions?

I applaud the Labour group, especially Coun Dave Merrett, for leading the ‘experiment’, although I feel the closure should have become permanent.

As for Susie Cawood of the Chamber of Commerce talking about “idealistic transport strategies”, she sounds as if she is advocating the retrograde step of cars zooming everywhere at will.

As previously revealed by The Press, tourism brought £442.6 million into York’s coffers in 2008, most visitors welcome car-free shopping areas, and that includes Lendal Bridge that connects the railway station to the city centre.

Gordon Campbell-Thomas, Project advisor, John Lally International Foundation, Grosvenor Terrace, York.