• FIRST, may I join the many others who applaud the CNJ as a really first-rate local paper.

I don’t align with its political stance, but you raise issues that are important and interesting to residents, the articles are well written, and it doesn’t hurt one to read opposing views.

Many thanks to you and the team.

I am fully in sympathy with Elaine Chambers (Suspension of our freedom passes is an insult, October 14).

Beyond the loss of a chunk of this benefit, it is particularly annoying that every message from Transport for London announcing the weekend closures mentions that the quiet times to travel include from 8:15am to 4pm.

As I recall, the suspension of the Freedom Pass was justified on the grounds that before 9am would be busy, so to “protect” us perhaps.

Of course, it’s surely more about money.

That’s fair enough, it is a high-cost and heavily-unionised business. I just wish TfL could be honest in its statements and not try to hide its need for revenue behind the pretence that it is doing what’s best for us.

And I fear the start time of 9am is here to stay. The TfL website has dropped all mention of the shorter hours of validity being temporary.

As Elaine Chambers says, many Freedom Pass holders will avoid appointments with doctors, dentists, etc, that are before 9:30am or 10am, so as to allow for travel after 9am.

That just puts pressure on already stretched practices, having to fit in more people within a shorter working day or, more likely, having them wait for another day.

For me the main effect was not being able to make the supermarket slots for older people, which usually stopped at 9am.

I imagine one of the objectives for the original pass was to ensure that older and disabled people were not dissuaded from travel for want of funds.

Whether that was for medical appointments, for work, for volunteering, or for an outing, the freedom to do any of those is now curtailed.

SEBASTIAN CREWE
Elsworthy Terrace, NW3