The question of whether local authorities could have done more to avoid near total shutdown of London's transport system after heavy snow falls is to be discussed at a special meeting of the London Assembly transport committee. Key players from Transport for London will attend the meeting on 12 February, where they will be asked why the decision to suspend all London bus services was taken, and whether there was sufficient co-operation between the local authorities responsible. The transport commissioner, Peter Hendy, has already written to London borough chief executives to acknowledge they did not have the capacity to clear the roads. Outside the capital, local authorities have warned a repeat of the chaos caused by snow blizzards in south-east England is likely because councils don't have the equipment needed to clear heavy snow from roads. Transport for London told The MJ it ‘cannot guarantee' that a repeat of this week's disruptions ‘will not happen again'. London Councils said town halls were unlikely to invest in the equipment required because the costs would go into the ‘hundreds of millions'. A spokesman said: ‘Local authorities would have needed fleets of snow ploughs which are rarely needed in south-east England.' Mr Hendy acknowledged boroughs did not have the capacity to clear the roads. He said: ‘The local authorities deployed everything they had but it just wasn't enough for the circumstances.' Chairman of the LGA environment board, Cllr Paul Bettison, said the turmoil caused by the weather was not the fault of councils. He said: ‘The claim that it is local authorities' fault that they cannot run services needs to treated with a huge pinch of gritting salt. Other organisations that are affected by the snow appear to be using councils as a scapegoat for their own poor preparations for the weather.'
