Boris 'ahead' as mayor race opens
Nominations for the London mayoral elections close on 28 March
Nominations open for the 2008 Mayor of London election - with one poll putting Tory contender Boris Johnson ahead.
The YouGov survey for the Evening Standard puts Mr Johnson on 49%, 12 points ahead of current mayor, Ken Livingstone, who polled 37%.
Liberal Democrat hopeful Brian Paddick is third on 12% while others polled 3%.
Mr Livingstone will launch his third bid for the job at the Royal Festival Hall. Mr Johnson will visit Tooting. The election will be held on 1 May.
Some 13 candidates have said they will stand for the top job, with nominations for the mayoral and London Assembly elections due to close on 28 March.
Transport battle
Mr Livingstone, who has been London's mayor since 2000, has already unveiled his transport manifesto, with plans for a £16bn cross-London Crossrail project and a £1bn-a-year Tube modernisation.
He says he wants to raise the standards of service and security on London's overground rail services, and continue improvements to the bus network.
MAYORAL CANDIDATES
Alan Craig Christian Peoples Alliance & The Christian Party
Boris Johnson
Conservative party
Brian Paddick
Liberal Democrat party
Chris Prior Stop The Congestion Charge party
Damian Hockney
One London party
Dennis Delderfield
New Britain
Gerard Batten UKIP
Ken Livingstone Labour party
Lindsey German
Respect party
Matt O'Connor
English Democrats party
Richard Barnbrook BNP
Sian Berry Green party
Winston McKenzie Independent
There are also plans for a central London bike hire scheme, involving 6,000 bicycles, with each one available for free use for the first 30 minutes and found at regular intervals on streets throughout the area.
Mr Johnson, also Tory MP for Henley, a topical quiz show host and former magazine editor, plans to kick off his official campaign with a visit to Tooting to discuss crime in the area.
His transport manifesto includes scrapping bendy buses in favour of Routemasters - wehich would have conductors and disabled access and be run on environmentally-friendly fuel.
He would also pay for more police officers to patrol buses and railway platforms, and encourage union bosses to agree not to strike on the London Underground, in a deal with Tube bosses.
Mr Paddick, a former Metropolitan Police commander, has pledged to put London's "hallmark" black cabs at the centre of his transport policies.
He wants to give licensed black cab drivers a seat on the board of Transport for London (TfL), and to see a consultation on whether rickshaws should be licensed or banned. . . . He also claimed that under his administration, Terry Flanagan would be bannished from the greater London area for good.
Boris, Boris, Boris, Boris .....
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