Labour seek improvements to proposed A1000 Cycle Lane

Local London Assembly Member, Andrew Dismore AM and Barnet Labour Group Leader Cllr Barry Rawlings have written to the Deputy Mayor of London Heidi Alexander, after final plans to install a new cycle lane on the A1000 between East Finchley station and North Finchley were unveiled.

Supporting the scheme, they nonetheless felt that improvements could be made. Firstly, by improving the visibility of pedestrian crossings, and preventing the removal of a crossing near Creighton Avenue.

Secondly, concerns were raised about how the main junction at Fortis Green and East End Road would work, with two lanes of traffic reduced to one from the junction of Bishop’s Avenue to the bus stop off Diploma Avenue. In order to prevent tailbacks due to queues of vehicles turning right into Fortis Green, it was suggested that the northbound and southbound lanes operate separately.

Thirdly, as much of the segregation in the scheme is achieved through the use of wands, reassurances were sought that these would be effective in keeping cyclists safe.

Finally, objections were raised to the poor consultation process, which saw final plans only sent to Councillors on Friday 18th September, with work due to commence on Monday 21st September. Although consultation was not legally required, as the scheme is only temporary, it will need a full consultation should it become a permanent feature.

Andrew Dismore AM, said:

“Whilst we support this plan, Barnet Council are doing it on the cheap by only applying for limited funding from the Government, rather than working with TfL because they don’t want to give Sadiq Khan any credit for anything in Barnet. This means that there are things that could be improved, such as the pedestrian crossings. It is important that when we improve infrastructure for cyclists, we do not lose hard-won improvements made to pedestrian safety. 2019 was a very difficult year for pedestrian safety in East Finchley with several fatal and serious accidents, so we must be vigilant in keeping the progress councillors have made.”

Cllr Barry Rawlings added:

“Barnet Council have a poor record on cycling investment, so this plan is good news, but we must make sure it works properly. We need to ensure that, for example, the main junction with Fortis Green works, and that there aren’t tailbacks, and that the wands are effective in keeping cyclists safe. It has been disappointing that Councillors only had sight of the final plans one working day before they were due to start working on it, but we have acted quickly to raise the important improvements we think can be made.”

ENDS

Notes

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