Harrow in north west London has become the latest borough to take a decision to remove temporary infrastructure installed to promote walking and cycling and support social distancing during the pandemic.
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The council’s cabinet decided to take out four low traffic neighbourhoods and three pop up cycle lanes introduced under Transport for London’s ‘Streetspace’ initiative. It is also extending a trial period for so called school streets where roads become vehicle restricted at the start and end of the school day.
This follows controversy over the removal of a pop up cycle lane in Kensington High Street in December and ongoing debates within communities about the value of low traffic neighbourhoods, which aim to encourage active travel and improve air quality by limiting car access.
Meanwhile CIHT has launched a call for members who have been involved with the planning and implementation of active travel and road space reallocation schemes over the last year to share their experiences.
The intention is to produce a report to help practitioners make the case for changes to local highways in favour of sustainable modes, where positive outcomes and benefits can be demonstrated. To get in touch, contact technical@ciht.org.uk
Harrow’s low traffic neighbourhoods and pop up cycleways are set to be removed over the coming weeks, following which the council says it will look at potential road safety measures such as introducing speed restrictions in these locations.
“It is clear from a statutory consultation undertaken over the past six months that there is little support for the cycle lanes and low traffic neighbourhoods,” said Harrow Council leader Graham Henson.
“We have listened to and understand residents concerns about how the schemes were implemented. Going forward the council will do things differently – engaging with our residents to shape projects before they are implemented.”
In response, London Cycling Campaign senior infrastructure campaigner Simon Munk said: “It’s deeply disheartening to see Harrow Council take this retrograde step. Their schemes weren’t in my view designed well enough to succeed, nor communicated well and, most importantly, the vital element of political leadership on these issues appears to be missing.
“For the sake of our health and the planet, councils need to explain why these schemes are so important and champion them,” he added. “Yes, it is important residents are listened to – but to improve schemes. Consultations are not designed to be referendums or popularity contests for the loudest voices for good reason.”
Local campaign group Healthy Streets for Harrow said that by making the decision to remove the low traffic neighbourhoods, the council is “ignoring the evidence provided by the trial and is throwing away the opportunity to gather more evidence by extending the trials”.
The group added: “Actions speak louder than words, and this action has shown that the councillors’ true priority is to avoid complaints from motorists.”
(Photograph: Healthy Streets for Harrow)
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