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Boris Johnson continues to fulfil his campaign pledges at breakneck pace.

Since our last update, Mr Johnson’s announcements include:

• Changing the inspection regime for black cabs to be from once to twice a year, a move applauded by cab drivers and seen as cutting red tape.
• Moving to put 440 extra police on the transport network and at hubs throughout the capital.

In the next couple of weeks, LondonUnlocked plans to run a comparison with the pledges Johnson made whilst campaigning, to see what remains to be done in his first term. Stay tuned.

• A new scheme has been launched to promote innovative ideas for the 2012 Olympic Games, with the topics covered including engineering & construction, a possible gateway to fresh thinking on Olympic transport plans.

• BAA believes that it will double profits at Heathrow by 2012.

• Motorcycle lobby groups are expected to put pressure on the Mayor to agree to allow motorbikes into bus lanes.

• Metronet begins the process of upgrading stations after a hiatus.

• Boris Johnson has launched a consultation on the abolition of half-yearly black cab inspections, as per his manifesto pledge.

• It is announced that Kulveer Ranger has been named Director of Transport Policy in the Mayor’s new team.

• The Times estimates that £500m could be made in redirecting passengers from changing at Heathrow.

• DHL is the first major delivery company in London to trial electric vehicles, which are Congestion Charge exempt.

• TFL.gov.uk is to start carrying banner advertising from Yell.com [Marketing Week].

Today’s article wanders somewhat off our main transport remit.

Several news sources are reporting that Boris Johnson has signed off his campaign pledge to cancel The Londoner and reinvest the money saved in the planting of 10,000 new trees in London’s streets.

This is an admirable aim, and one which we fully support. Quite aside from the fact that trees brighten our working and living environment, they also serve to reinforce the image of streets which favour pedestrians, foster community cohesion and help to tackle global warming.

For Londoners to cut down on their car usage and move to walking and biking to walk, it will be small incentives such as the one which the Mayor is now introducing which will make the big difference.

For more information on projects similar to this, we highly recommend visiting Trees For Cities.

• The City Diary in The Independent carries a story on Peter Hendy’s future in TfL. Inconclusive seems to be the verdict.

• Mayor Johnson hopes to ‘Oysterise’ the entire transport network by next May.

• The Mayor has closed a deal with Thames Water to limit the number of road closures.

• Morgan Stanley has raised $4billion for an infrastructure fund. Such a sum could be tapped by the Mayor to pay for any number of the projects we have discussed on this site.

• Caroline Flint, Minister for Housing and Planning has approved a £237m spending package which will be used in part to improve the transport infrastructure in the Thames Gateway. [Transport Briefing]

• Mayor Johnson is meeting with his counterpart from New York, Michael Bloomberg. Amongst the discussions on the table will be the chairmanship of the C40 and Congestion Charging. [BBC]

• The Mayor has been asked to reveal his flood prevention plans, essential to ensuring a safe environment for Londoners, business, and the transport network. [Property Week]

Boris Johnson has announced that his election pledge to ban alcohol on the transport network will be enacted next month.

The ban will be enforced by the extra 440 police community officers and 50 transport officers which he has also pledged.

Given that the East London Advertiser only today carries the story of a drunk commuter attacking TfL staff, this policy is welcome and should go a long way to ensuring that the Mayor provides the necessary conditions for Londoners to feel secure on the transport network.

The Mayor’s remit for bringing business to London is to “promote economic development and wealth creation”. Providing a secure environment for workers certainly helps in fulfilling that aim.

However, The Times carries that news that the unions are not happy with the policy, which they see as “impossible to enforce”:

The measure also drew criticism from transport unions, which said that it had not been thought through and that it could endanger staff who approached drunken passengers. Bob Crow, the RMT general secretary, said: “Violence against our members is already a major problem, particularly from people who have been drinking.

“Perhaps the mayor will come out with his underpants on over his trousers like Superman one Saturday to show us how it should be done, and maybe tell a crowd of Liverpool supporters that they can’t drink on the train.”

There is more than a measure of truth in Mr Crow’s statement, though the new officers being employed on the network should allay some of his concerns.

With Boris Johnson pledging to bring in a no-strike rule for the Tube, this may be the first shot in the long war between his administration and the unions in attempting to deliver on that policy.

• Sir Simon Milton, Leader of Westminster Council and Chair of the Local Government Association, has been appointed by the Mayor to be his senior advisor on planning. Sir Simon was an outspoken critic of the powers granted to Ken Livingstone under his tenure as Mayor, so this appointment may have significant implications on the building of new capital projects.
• The Mayor is due to outline the timetable for his ban on alcohol on the Tube [PA].
• Transport Briefing outlines the challenges facing Mr Johnson in his new job.

Boris Johnson officially took over the job of Mayor yesterday morning - so much for his bank holiday break - and now has to set about the job of moulding the administration about his image and implementing his manifesto promises.

Both the BBC and Telegraph have good summaries of the priority decisions which he is currently making, focussing especially on cutting crime on the transport network, reviewing the congestion charge and implementing a ’son-of-Routemaster’ bus.

Whilst this goes on, Mr Johnson faces his first major test with the news that one in five Tube drivers have been judged unsafe. How he reacts to this news will be a good measure of what approach he intends to take to towards transport related incidents in the future.

In terms of the administration of transport in the capital, this article in the Guardian suggests that Mr Johnson plans to keep Peter Hendy, Commissioner of TfL, and Tim O’Toole, MD of London Underground, in post. This is a good short term move, ensuring continuity in London’s transport network whilst team Johnson set about implementing their plans. Mr Hendy and O’Toole’s ability to deliver manifesto pledges will likely seal their jobs in the short term.

Finally, Transport Briefing carries a typically excellent article highlighting the other transport-related tasks facing Mr Johnson:

Short-term transport improvements are expected to include an increase in the number of police patrolling buses. Johnson has pledged to double the number of officers on buses as well as recruiting additional British Transport Police for railway stations. Other plans include providing £2m for safe bicycle parking and working with boroughs to improve existing cycle and walking routes…

…another manifesto pledge which is likely to prove tricky to deliver is a no-strike deal with London Underground train drivers. Meanwhile, the upgrade of most of London’s Tube lines is set to be added to the new Mayor’s remit when the responsibilities of failed infraco Metronet are transferred to Transport for London, a development expected within days.

LondonUnlocked will continue to track the delivery of Mr Johnson’s pledges and keep you updated on his progress here.

The BBC carries an interview with him and a profile of his career thus far.

LondonUnlocked looks forward to working with his administration, which will hopefully have a more open attitude to progressive transport than under Ken Livingstone’s control.