Speaking at the launch of the Central London Partnership's 'Integrated Transport and Environment Strategy for Central London', Livingstone said: 'Central London is the single most economically productive part of Europe. It's economy is essential to the whole of London as well as to the rest of the country. However, we have a city that is intolerably congested. To tackle this immediately we are putting in place a huge system of reforms to both the bus service and the taxi trade, as well as proposing a congestion charge for a small area of central London.'

'In the long term, we are seeing major projects finally take off: the East London Line, Cross Rail and the Hackney South West Line'

The CLP's strategy is to identify a series of short-term measures that could improve transport and environment in central London. Although major investment in the infrastructure is an essential factor, the group believes many improvements could be made through better co-ordination or management. Strategies like co-ordinating road works, giving higher police priority to bus lane violations and making journeys safer and more pleasant for pedestrians and cyclists could all ease congestion, the group claims.