Enfield Council have provided a written statement outlining their plans for consultation about implementing the "Mini-Holland" cycle scheme (now rechristened "Cycle Enfield") along Green Lanes and carrying out "urban realm improvements" in Palmers Green town centre. The letter clearly states that it is not the intention of the Council to "remove the Palmers Green Triangle".
As expected, the urban realm improvements will be funded using Cycle Enfield money provided by the Mayor of London. The results of the public consultation exercise that was carried in Palmers Green during March will "inform" the work of the traffic engineering consultants tasked with developing preliminary designs for cycling improvements in Palmers Green. Another input into this work will be traffic survey data which is currently being collected. The Council hope to have the preliminary design work done by November 2014, at which point they will carry out "extensive consultation with all residents and businesses in the vicinity of our proposals" (how "vicinity" is defined is not yet clear). However, consultation will actually start earlier than this, with the setting up of a Partnership Board, which may meet beginning in September. The Partnership Board will have representatives from residents and business associations and groups representing disabled people and cyclists.
The full text of the letter, sent by the Group Leader for Traffic, Road Safety & Parking to Colin Younger, Chair of the Lakes Estate Conservation Area Study Group, is reproduced below. (Hanna Salomonsson, referred to in the letter, was in charge of the March 2014 consultation.)
The recent Palmers Green consultation did not propose any measures but instead collected people’s views on what they thought was good and bad about the area. Notes were also taken of any measures suggested by consultees. As you know although Hanna Salomonsson is currently on maternity leave she is liaising with her colleagues to produce a report that will summarise the consultation findings. This report will then inform the design work that our Mini-Holland (now branded as Cycle Enfield) consultants will be preparing. The Cycle Enfield funding gives us the opportunity to fund the urban realm improvements in the Palmers Green section of Green Lanes that have long been sought.
The Council is in the process of collecting traffic survey data to assist with the preparation of preliminary designs for our Cycle Enfield proposals. When we have completed these preliminary designs we will carry out extensive consultation with all residents and businesses in the vicinity of our proposals. At present we hope to start consultation on our proposals for Green Lanes in November 2014.
In the meantime a Partnership Board will be established to allow a wide range of stakeholders to participate in the project. This will include groups such as yours and also the Fox Lane and District Residents Association, Green Lanes Business Association, Enfield Disability Action, local Councillors and representatives of other local residents associations and cycling groups. A report that recommends the setting up of the Partnership Board will be presented to Cabinet in July and we expect to hold the first meeting in September, after the summer holiday period.
Please be assured that it is not our intention to remove the Palmers Green triangle. The design that accompanied our Cycle Enfield bid was only conceptual in nature and will change as detailed design and consultation progresses.
Kind regards,
Liam Mulrooney – Group Leader Traffic, Road Safety & Parking,
Traffic & Transportation Service, Planning, Highways & Transportation Division,
Regeneration & Environment Department, Enfield Council, Silver Street, Enfield EN1 3XD
Telephone:020 8379 3550 Fax: 020 8379 8517
