02/01/2014 BBC London News

Campaigners say prices are rising three times faster than wages. That

is all from BBC News Tonight on BBC London. How the

capital's commuters are among the hardest hit by the latest rise in

train fares. It is the capacity problem particularly coming in from

Redding. Very often, you can't get a seat and are paying a huge amount,

not even to have a comfortable journey. We'll find out if the new

fares are fair and how they might affect you. Also tonight. Hundreds

of flood alerts in place across the South East after yet more heavy

rain. I'm in Surrey where people say they have seen the worst flooding in

40 years. They are preparing for even more rain. The Catholic Church

investigates why it took three days to find the body of a priest in a

supermarket car park. And as more of the capital's restaurants adopt a no

booking policy, why you might have to queue to dine out in London.

Good evening. More than half a million people commute by train into

London every day. And from today, they'll be paying more for the

privilege. Across the country, the average fare has gone up by 2.8%.

But if you're a season ticket holder, as many London commuters

are, prices have risen even more. On average you'll be paying over 3%

more. It's true, the rise is the smallest for four years because of a

Government`imposed cap. But critics say the cost of using trains is

rising faster than wages. The price rise may be smaller than in recent

years but that's of little comfort many commuters. Alex Bushill is

outside Victoria Station for us this evening. A New Year and new fares.

No surprise this, they are going up again. Season tickets on the train

is up 3.1%. Among the worst affected, these commuters from

Redding. It's the capacity problem particularly coming in from

Redding. Very often, you can't get a seat so you're paying a huge amount

not to have a comfortable journey. I don't mind paying the money because

I know I have to get to work so the money needs to get paid. Rising

every year is not fair, I don't think. Maybe every three years is

fair enough, but not every year. It's not right. Even a modest

increase is hotly contested. The rail company says the smallest race

in three years per passenger groups point out how to get prices are

increasing twice as fast as wages. One of the hardest hit are commuters

using the Shenfield to London line. From today it will cost 3.6% more,

an additional ?96 on an annual season ticket. From Redding, 3.2%

increase. An annual season ticket now costs more than ?4000. For those

on the Bedford and battled on line, they are up by 3.1%, the average

increase across all lines. Anyone using the Hartford line has seen a

3% hike. The train company say the extra money will be reinvested back

into the network. Billions of pounds are being spent on huge improvements

to the rail network in and around London for the viewer only have to

go to King's Cross to the vast amount of money spent to improve the

station there. There's also many other smaller schemes, less usable,

helping to improve the speed we make trains travel and the ability for

them to carry more passengers. So, ?16 billion will now be reinvested

over the next five years. Passenger groups are not happy. I asked one

white meter shouldn't pay for improvements they will benefit from.

The investments are welcome but it shouldn't just be fare payers to pay

for it. The rest of the world recognises that investment in the

railways doesn't just benefit the users, but everybody, less traffic

on the roads, less pollution and a better economy. We think the country

needs to follow suit and otherwise, London will find itself priced out

of the world economy. Ticket price increases for travelling excuse and

within London, on the Underground, won't be revealed until next week.

For those committing out of the city, they know where they stand,

the wait is over, and they will be paying more as of today. There are

nearly 100 flood alerts in place across the South East after

yesterday's heavy rain. Roads have been closed and trains have been

cancelled. The Environment Agency is keeping a close eye on rising river

levels in Surrey including several areas which were seriously flooded

over Christmas. It's issued flood warnings in Elstead. Guildford,

Horley and Leatherhead. Our reporter, Tarah Welsh is in Surrey

for us this evening. Tarah. Well, we have certainly seen wide today, we

have been across Surrey, lots of roads are being closed, and just

take a look behind me. There is not usually water here. This is a flood

plain and now the water is a few centimetres away from the road and

this area flooded badly over Christmas. Just down the road from

here, we were speaking to staff there who said they had a power cut

and they were seeing patients by candlelight. You can understand why

there were concerns about more rain. This is usually an access road to

Leatherhead football club. But after yesterday 's rain, it is now under

water. So with the football pitch on the clubhouse. It is the river which

has burst its banks. It runs parallel with the football club. 150

metres from here. The police came down yesterday with a red alert

flood warning which is quite a rare one. And they said they wanted a

place locked for safety and the Alec Este turned off the mains, which

obviously we did. It's the second time it is flooded in two weeks. On

Christmas Eve there was four feet of water here. Volunteers help to clear

it, but now it is back. Rivers are rising and roads are closing and

homes are threatened again. Many in the south`east were flooded and

without power after last weeks storms. The water was all swirling

around here. Peter had to leave his home by boat. It was about a foot

deep. I stayed by the front door. The water kept coming up so I

thought, I'd better get going and get the furniture up on blocks. One

of the flood warnings as for this area and you can see why. Usually,

you can't make out the river from here. But now there's water

completely covering this flood plain. Now, flood warning means an

area is at risk of flooding. And anyone likely to flood should take

action. Doing things like getting sandbags and moving electrical is

upstairs. But for some, that is too late. Belongings and the holiday

season completely ruined. Rain is expected across London and

the south`east over the next 48 hours and we have just heard that

the Thames Barrier will be closing tonight because of concerns about

strong wind leading to large floods. In Surrey, people have been

telling me this on the worst floods they've seen since 1968. They say,

yes, they are worried about more rain coming over the next few

hours, but they are more concerned about the long`term future. Some of

them don't know when they're going to able to go back to their homes,

and another told me today that his insurance will cover the damage but

he says he has been told he can't renew with that same company. So,

miserable start to the New Year for many people here. The situation

affecting many thousands of people tonight. Thanks very much for that.

A bit more on the weather now, as damage to a train track caused by a

landslide in Surrey will take at least a month to repair. More than

40 metres of the embankment at Ockley collapsed after the recent

storms. Network Rail says the size and location of the damage make it

awkward to repair and passengers will have to use alternative routes.

And of course we'll have a full weather update from Sara Thornton

later in the programme. Also to come. Driving artists out. Are

property prices pushing our creative industries out of the capital?

A 72`year`old man has been punched and kicked by a group of teenagers

after he asked them to stop throwing sweets at rail passengers. British

Transport Police have released pictures of three young men they

want to speak to. The attack happened on Platform A at St Pancras

International Station exactly two weeks ago. Officers say the assault

was unprovoked and malicious. The Catholic Church in Luton is

investigating the death of a priest found dead in his car in a

supermarket car park. Police believe the body of 42`year`old Father

Joseph Williams from Luton lay undiscovered at Morrisons in

Houghton Regis in Bedfordshire for three days. Yvonne Hall reports.

Struggling to come to terms with the loss of a much loved colleague.

Father Kevin McGinn or, at Luton's Holy Ghost Catholic Church today.

People have lost some who served, someone they liked and admired. And

also, for us, as priests, it's the loss of up colleague who has been

with us since 2011 but has been a priest since 2000. 42`year`old

father Joseph Williams was found dead in his car in a supermarket car

park and police believe his body had been there for three days. Desperate

Francis, the Church in Luton has launched an investigation. So far,

there are no clues. The CCTV at the church showed him looking at the

church just before he went shopping. There's absolutely nothing in the

house, nothing in his behaviour or anything like that, which indicates

anything abnormal. Police officers investigating father Joel's death

say they don't believe any suspicious circumstances and

postmortem examinations were due to be held today. The result of that

should be known within the week. Father Josef was due to spend a

belated Christmas with his family on January the 16th. The data that is

now set for his funeral. The Apollo Theatre on Shaftsbury Avenue will

re`open its doors later this month after being forced to close after

part of its ceiling collapsed before Christmas. More than 70 people were

injured, some seriously, as plaster and wooden beams from the Grade II

listed building fell onto the audience. It was hoped that

performances would resume this weekend. But due to ongoing

investigations, performances will start on the 13th. Still to come

before the end of the programme. 60,000 people join the call for the

Southbank Skate Park to stay put. And he's buried in an unmarked grave

beneath Euston Station. Now money has been raised to commemorate the

maritime explorer who named Australia.

We often hear about problems associated with London's rising

property market but what may not be so obvious is the impact it's having

on our artists. For hundreds of years, the capital has acted as a

magnet for the best creative minds. But these days, affording to live

and work here presents a challenge of its own. The effect is that

artists are being priced out of London. Rita Monjardino reports. It

may not look like much from the outside, but this former biscuit

factory in Bermondsey is worth 380 artists are based. The arts

organisation which rents out the studios had hoped to remain here for

several more years. So, news of the owners had sold the building to a

high`end property developer came as a shock. It is the speed at which

regeneration is happening, and being pushed out of the centre. You can

never settled, you can never be secure in a building. Artists

studios always start developing ties and links with the communities,

projects which happen, but when you are constantly being moved, you

can't. The property boom makes it easier to convert commercial sites

into homes and putting London's artists community under a huge

strain. Most artists live below the poverty line and can't begin to

compete with London's rapidly escalating property prices. Some are

now leaving the capital altogether. Purfleet in Essex is about 20 miles

from Bermondsey. This production centre is home to a number of

artists including Philip, a sculptor who lives in Hackney but now works

here. I wanted to move back to London and looked for quite some

time, trying to find somewhere suitable for me. There's lots of

artists studios available, but pretty much far too small for what I

need. And far too expensive. His studio belongs to a charity which

owns and manages hundreds of artists bases across London. For many years,

it specialised in taking over rundown buildings and recently,

though, it started working with a small number of developers on

including affordable artist work spaces into their new builds. It's a

model the founder wants to see more of. The developer gets the planning

consent and makes a profit and creates affordable housing, and we

get permanent affordable studios which are high quality because they

are new build and the local authority and London gets a

permanent cultural resource. Bus schemes like these take time and

support from planning authorities. In the meantime, London's artists

are being priced out of the very areas that they helped transform. If

there was any doubt over the strength of feeling about plans to

move the skateboard park at the Southbank after decades of use, then

a 60,000 signature petition has sent out a clear signal. Campaigners have

also made thousands of objections to the area's redevelopment arguing the

skateboard park should stay where it is because it's culturally

significant. Warren Nettleford is on the South Bank for us now.. Take a

look at this. You can see how well used on this basis. It indicates why

people feel so strong you buy this area should not move. The concrete

may be moved and they feel that area is theirs and that's why they feel

it should not move. They live for skating. Biko has been here for 15

years and Amelia is more of a newcomer. They also have something

else in common. Anger at plan they say will affect the area's cultural

identity. This place is hallowed ground and has been loved and skated

every single day. It's not a skate park. It wasn't purpose`built for

skateboarding but the skateboarders are made of their home. It's such a

natural space, not just for us but for graffiti artists and whoever

wants to come here. For me with my long board, even and you can't

recreate that. the need to convert this area into retail space. It is

important culturally the skaters stay at Southbank Centre, that is

why we are building a new space. Do I think it is more important that

they stay in that particular undercroft rather than thousands and

thousands of other young people have access to opportunities? I don't

think that is more important. Already more than 60,000 have signed

a petition against the plans and now they have more signatures. This time

individual planning objections. In these boxes there are 23,000

signatures. These skaters feel about the issue. We have 100,000 people

who have subscribed to the preservation statement and public

opinion is huge. People have gathered today and we have immense

support. It could be some time until the council make their final

decision. Until then, the skating goes on. Where it always has.

Those campaigners delivered 24 of those boxes to Lambeth town hall

earlier today and will wait to see what the council has to say when

they make their decision. The Southbank Centre say the new

skateboard park is only 100 metres away and put it will be better than

before and they are working with an architect to make sure their new

centre is better than before but these skaters here are not

convinced. Football and Championship side

Queens Park Rangers have been granted planning permission to build

a new training ground in west London. The proposed site is that

Warren Farm in Southall. Chris Slegg has been following developments.

It is good news for QPR. They are trying to get back to the Premier

League. They have ambitious plans for the future. They announced last

month they want to build a new stadium. That is a long way off but

today, planning permission to build this new training complex and

Southall, Charlie Austin scored the winner for them yesterday. He and

his team`mates currently train at the Harlington complex and they have

been trying to get away from there for a long time. The new site is 15

minutes eastwards of their, closer into London. They will be a will to

benefit from some of the facilities that top clubs get to experience.

Ealing Council have been keen to see Warren Farm redeveloped for a long

time and that is why they signed this agreement with QPR. QPR say

they will be `` there will be scope for community use at their new

facility and they hope it will be opening 9016. There was news about

an incident which took place at Millwall yesterday? Yes, Millwall's

home defeat to Leicester, 3`1, a fan came onto the pitch and appeared to

take the flight from the assistant referee. The officials had to go and

get a new flag for the game to continue. The fan was arrested and

taken to Lewisham police station and today the Metropolitan Police

confirmed he has been bailed to appear at Bromley magistrates Court

on January the 16th, charged with entering the field of play and was

causing criminal damage. We have been hearing about the weather and

there could be disruption for football fans this weekend? Yes, a

busy weekend of football and Charlton are worried about the state

of the pitch at the Valley, not as bad as what we saw at Leatherhead

earlier in the programme but there will be a pitch inspection at the

Valley tomorrow, at 11am to see whether that match against Oxford

can go ahead. That much is still on at the moment but it is very much

doubt because of the weather. The name Matthew Flinders may not

immediately mean much to you, but he was one of our most intrepid naval

explorers. He named Australia but his grave has been a marked police

Euston Station. That is about to change. More than ?100,000 has been

raised to erect a statue of him, 200 years after his death.

Millions of people passed through Euston Station without knowing they

are walking over the grave of one of our most distinguished explorers,

Matthew Flinders. Now a statue showing the man who was first to

circumnavigate and even named Australia has been commissioned

thanks to a fundraising effort by the government of South Australia

where Flinders is already a famous hero. We have been really thrilled

with the interest and response from the British public and the project

is fully funded now, which is terrific. We have raised about

?120,000, which will make `` which means the project will go ahead.

John Flinders is thrilled his relative is about to get the

recognition his family believe he truly deserves, 200 years after his

death. We look forward to the opportunity of trying to enhance his

reputation and we wanted to put a statue in somewhere that the public

could see it and then try and ask questions more about him and what he

actually achieved. In Australia there are dozens of statues of

Flinders and his cat, trim, who travelled with him. Historian Kate

Williams says there are a number of reasons he has been forgotten here.

Matthew Flinders wasn't a self publicist. A lot of our great

heroes, Lord Nelson, look, they were. They said, I have done great

things and put it out there in the newspapers. Matthew Flanders didn't.

He died young, only 40. Only `` over the next few months the decision

will be made over exactly where the statue will go before it is unveiled

in the summer. For most of us having to queue is

part and parcel of living in London but are you prepared to stand in

line for the privilege of eating out? Well, a growing number of

restaurants insist you do exactly that as they adopt a no booking

policy in favour of customers having to queue outside. Emilia

Papadopoulos has been looking at the trend.

The last train home, waiting at the tills and not forgetting Wimbledon.

The British are famous for queueing and in London it seems it may be

going from bad to worse. The reason? More and more restaurants refusing

to take bookings. And this is the result. Here in Soho it is early

evening, wet, damp and miserable, but already crowds gathering outside

this burger bar. And it's not the only one. It's happening all over

the capital. There are rumours it's a trend that's been imported from

the states but has it been welcomed? It annoys me because sometimes in

the middle of the day you want a book somewhere where you know where

you want to go and the last thing you want is to be waiting for

something. Me personally, I wouldn't, even on a nice warm

evening. If there was somewhere I definitely wanted to go on to try at

least once, if the queue wasn't too big I would check it out. I probably

wouldn't try again. The no booking is all asleep divides opinion in

London. Many diners say it is frustrating but it has provided a

safety net for the restaurants. They say protects them from cancellations

and no shows and helps keep prices down. Queueing for dinner seems to

have become fashionable though some think there could be economic

reasons behind it. There are number of theories, one is that housing has

become expensive that many people are having to share, young people

are having to share and therefore they can't entertain at home, so

typically they will go out to eat. Many will be hoping it is the end of

line for cues, but it looks like this trend is here to stay.

And near extinct kangaroo is among the residents of London Zoo who have

been counted today as part of their annual stock take. Hundreds of

species live at the zoo and the new arrivals being counted for the first

time as a baby tapir, two flamingo chicks and the first spiny headed

lizards born in Britain. Now the weather forecast, weather

warnings in place and the Thames Barrier closing tonight.

There is a lot to think about, more met `` more wet and windy weather

tonight, a particular concern towards the south and south`west

because of a combination of rain, the high winds and the spring tides.

For us, we do have a spell of wet and windy weather to move towards us

as we go through this evening. That what is after what was a brief

respite today, you can fear that `` you can see the satellite picture

this afternoon and cloud has been advancing towards us. We have an

area of low pressure pushing another band of wet and windy weather

towards us as we speak and you will see the squeeze on the isobars which

means we're in for windy weather as we go through not only tonight but

through tomorrow as well. Wet and windy spell of weather to come

through this evening and overnight. Still dry in many places but if I

step back you can see the rain is starting to sweeping and as it comes

in it will be heavy. It clears away quickly. Gone by the early hours of

tomorrow morning. Temperatures overnight, not a cold start to

things tomorrow but a gang of showers banding together in the line

sweeping through rush hour. They will be heavy as they come through,

particularly with hail mixed in to watch for those and more showers to

come as we go through the afternoon. Dry interludes but the wind will

pick up through the day. Gusts of 30 or 40 miles an hour as we go through

tomorrow afternoon. Even in the drier spells. We will continue with

showers through tomorrow evening and into the first part of the night,

into Saturday morning. Showers keep going all the time perhaps the slot

before we reach breakfast time on Saturday morning because then this

area of rain makes its way up from the near continent and this will be

quite heavy for first thing on Saturday morning. Watch as it sweeps

through towards the north`east. A damp start to the weekend. It will

be windy, plenty of rain to watch out for. Before things start to

improve a little for Saturday afternoon. But again, like we have

just seen, it is a brief respite. We have a trough feature giving showers

in the early hours of Sunday morning and another system winding itself up

out towards the south`west, the squeeze on the isobars says we have

a web and windy spell. `` wet and windy spell. No letup for the next

few days. Tomorrow, early showers for rush hour and further showers in

the afternoon and wet weather on Saturday morning and yet more wet

and windy weather for Sunday. That is a lot of rain heading our way.

Thanks very much. The main headlines, tidal surges and

high winds are threatening coastal areas. The Environment Agency has

issued flood warnings indicating a danger to life. The Thames Barrier

will close late tonight, rising River belle is also in Surrey are

being monitored. `` rising River levels in Surrey are being

monitored. There has been criticism of the rising fares, the average

season ticket has gone up by over 3%, the smallest increase in four

years but critics say fares are rising faster than wages. Nigella

Lawson says she was last modified after distortions of her private

life were displayed in court. She was speaking during her first

broadcast interview since her two former personal assistants were

cleared of Ford last month. And the Catholic Church in Luton is

investigating the death of a priest found dead in his car in a

supermarket car park. Police believe the body of a 42`year`old Father

Joseph Williams from Luton lay undiscovered for three days. That is

it. I will be back later during the 10pm News on BBC but for now, from

everyone on the team, I do hope you have a very good evening. Goodbye.