Last Saturday saw over 600 people meet at Broomfield Park to listen to speakers and then show their opposition to the Enfield Low Traffic Neighbourhoods by marching in solidarity through Palmers Green. As the march moved from the park it was joined by other protestors with around 1000 people lining both sides of Green Lanes as the march ended at the offices of Bambos Charalambous MP. Throughout, car drivers tooted their horns whilst shoppers and retail workers clapped in support.
A spokesperson for One Community said:“This rally allowed people who have been adversely affected by Enfield’s LTNs to show their collective voice. We heard story after story about how the displaced traffic has negatively impacted them; about how it was stopping children from getting to school on time as their buses are stuck in traffic; carers not being able to reach their patients; how blue-lit ambulances have been delayed trying to find a way through to emergency callouts; how the needs of protected groups such as the disabled have been recklessly ignored. Overall residents are outraged by the displacement of through traffic from roads within the LTN onto boundary roads where others have to now deal with increased traffic volumes and pollution”.
The spokesperson went on to say “One Community recently challenged the council about closing the Trial Fox Lane consultation on 11th July 2021 when they should have kept it open until 11 January 2022. We were successful and theDirector of Law & Governance, Jeremy Chambers, confirmed that the council will accept objections to the whole Fox Lane LTN scheme until 11/1/22. Notwithstanding, the Council has only left Enfield residents with 2 out of 6 months to be able to do so. One Community will continue to support residents who need help to write their letters of objection if they email onecommunitystopltn@gmail.com.
“This LTN started as a 6-month experimental project and is now running to the maximum 18 months. During this time the lead Council Officer for this project and Deputy Leader, Ian Barnes, told everyone that the traffic would ‘dissipate’ and it hasn’t. We hope that Enfield Council will face up to the problems this scheme has created and in a proper democratic way, respect public opinion by cancelling their LTN programme, so that no more local communities are damaged as ours most certainly has been”.
A petition signed by over 500 Enfield residents was gathered on the day and the petition will be submitted to the council.
