Forum topic: Fox Lane low-traffic neighbourhood

ROAD CLOSURES AND TRAFFIC - SOME THOUGHTS

For everyone who’s been affected by any traffic jams around Southgate & Palmers Green and think the council have finally lost the plot, here is some info I hope you will find reassuring.

OMG there’s so much traffic!
The scheme was only completed this week. This amount of traffic is totally expected for the first few weeks of a brand new low traffic neighbourhood. It won’t stay like this. Drivers will find new routes, travel at different times, or use different modes of transport - and we should end up with more or less the same levels of traffic on our main roads as before.

Emergency services won’t be able to reach people in time!
They shouldn't have any problems. All the emergency services fed into and approved the scheme design. They can enter the area via the camera ‘gates’ on Fox Lane or Meadway, or else remove a bollard with a device they carry to get through a closure.

Now I have to go the long way round...
Yes - if you’re driving. We can‘t drive directly through the area anymore because through traffic is now diverted along main roads. (To be honest, that’s where it always should have been.) But when the traffic chaos settles down it will add no more than 5 or 10 minutes to most car journeys. And if you’re walking or cycling, you get a nice, direct, low traffic route through the area - great for families on the school run.

Very nice for you lot in your posh houses on the Lakes Estate
Well, yes, it is nice seeing kids play out on their own street and hearing birdsong... but it’s not just better for residents (who don’t all live in posh houses btw), it’s better for anyone who wants to walk or cycle between Palmers Green and Southgate. If we cover the whole borough in a series of LTNs (with safe crossings to link them up) a child or elderly person could cycle safely across Enfield. And that means less driving and less pollution.

It’s making pollution worse!
It might be right now, but the effect of LTNs elsewhere has been to reduce car journeys over time and even car ownership as some people find they don’t need to drive as much. Roads being the main source of pollution in London, that’s meant fewer households exposed to illegal levels of pollution. And lots more exercise as people walk or cycle more, which is great for public health.

If you want to know more, or see links to evidence for all the outrageous claims I’m making, check out http://betterstreets.co.uk/local-areas/fox-lane-area/. And remember the whole scheme is a temporary trial using an experimental traffic order - in a couple of weeks the consultation will open and you can give your feedback to the council, who have promised to amend the scheme where necessary. See more at http://letstalk.enfield.gov.uk/foxlaneQN.

I sympathise with the people who dislike the noise, danger and pollution from increased traffic - the solution is for those that can to drive less and to walk, cycle and use public transport more. Traffic increases with the supply of road space - so the low traffic neighbourhood will help those people by encouraging a traffic decrease. I doubt anybody would sign a 'for' petition as many have already signalled their desire to end the high traffic neighbourhood through a series of consultations and surveys over the years- and of course there'll be a full consultation on this trial. Not sure why the Council would pay attention to a petition when they are setting up their own feedback mechanisms for all to complete.

Despite the LTN the roads are not completely closed to traffic so you are still unable to allow children to roam and play without zero concern. Especially with the increasing volume of delivery drivers who drive large vans and take pleasure in driving at speed. Is the expectation that the roads of the lakes estate become a playground? How would residents feel about that? It will always be more appropriate to travel to travel to grovelands / Broomfield which despite perhaps a quieter journey to get there, you are greeted with incredibly busy roads to cross at Bourne hill and aldermans hill.

An issue that is now increasingly apparent is people parking on the roads above the lakes estate e.g St. George’s road, or even across the planters on the fox lane side and then walking to where they need within the LTN. This is not only removing parking for residents of those roads but also blocking traffic to cyclists who have to mount the pavement to enter the LTN. The turn into Conway Rd from fox lane is particularly tight and despite the increase in scoots / bikes, the danger has increased with it.

I also feel for local businesses, this has to have hurt trade. Are there any measures in place to measure it? Traffic creates a stressful environment and does not make strolling up and down the high street an enjoyable experience. That’s aside from what must be increased pollution.

“This forum is meant for sensible discussion and reasoned argument. This isn't a helpful contribution. There are no arguments why you think the scheme is bad, just that people "hate it", which is not true for everyone and not a reason for abandoning the scheme.

Yes, a lot of people do hate it. A lot of other people love it, including some who don't live in the area. Many others are happy to see how it works out before deciding what they think.”

I have already given my reasons on the forum for why the scheme is so awful.

There is actually very little evidence as far as I can see, besides 2 or 3 posters on here, that this scheme is popular. All I see and hear is people that have had enough of it.

And the persistent children playing in the street quotes are just nonsense. As somebody else pointed out, there is still some traffic including the many motorcycles being pushed over the Fox Lane railway bridge before speeding off.

Let somebody start a petition to keep the scheme, then we’ll see just how loved it is. Opinion polls are biased unless they are a open to anybody to answer and are widely advertised.

So, cycling to St. Monica's has increased, and "noisy rat runners" have decreased/disappeared? Hmmmm...

Logical conclusion: The "noisy rat runners" are now riding bicycles to St Monica's.

I've had to change my route from Conway Road to Enfield Town since the LTN was introduced, going via Aldermans Hill and Green Lanes instead of through the back roads. I estimated it would add 90 seconds to my commute and this is about right. Journey time this morning was 20 minutes; 08.29 - 08.49. Not bad in the rainy rush hour.

As I mentioned above, I doubt anyone is going to start a petition just to 'prove' how many supporters there are for a trial that already exists (though plenty of surveys show at national and London level a majority support measures to encourage sustainable travel), instead they'll spend their time feeding back on the official consultation platform. I can say in my street there is a clear majority of support. And of course the removal of high traffic neighbourhoods and encouragement of sustainable travel is the policy of our elected representatives at national (Tory), regional (Labour) and local (Labour) level. And of course there is 'still some traffic' - it's a principle of ltns that every home can be reached by a vehicle, but the traffic volumes have fallen dramatically due to the absence of through traffic (a few people pushing motorcycles over the bridge is not a problem in my eyes).