URGENT: Northcote Road summer pedestrianisation scheme Post Reply

[LuciaHLane]

The new Labour Council has cancelled the Northcote Road summer pedestrianisation scheme. PLEASE sign the petition to try and stop this coming into effect. [color=var(--fg-primary)]Not only will this be a huge blow to the vibrancy and fun of the area, but also to the local businesses already struggling under extortionate rent costs. [/color]

wandsworthconservatives . co . uk / form / northcote-road-petition

For context, as shared by a Conservative Councillor for Wandsworth:
[color=var(--fg-primary)]- The original scheme never cost the Council anything - it was funded jointly by the Northcote Road businesses and Covid recovery money from central government
- The central Government money would of course end one day, which is why the Conservative Council set aside infrastructure funding from Developers Levies to install gates and bollards, which would have made it much easier to pedestrianise the road on weekends, and crucially without any the ongoing costs to the Council
- It’s crucial to point out that Developers Levies are legally ringfenced for infrastructure - they can’t be spent on things like cost of living payments, school uniform vouchers, etc - so it’s not a question of the barriers and bollards competing with alleviating cost of living hardship
- The pedestrianisation scheme could itself be considered a cost of living measure - it has literally saved over 120 jobs on the road and businesses who would otherwise have been driven into insolvency through Covid (and are now facing high fuel and goods prices)
- It’s a benefit to the community and businesses, all paid for by developers.

I’m honestly astonished that the new Council wants to rip it up, without even any alternative ideas for how to spend the Developers Levies. It’s heartbreaking.[/color]

[pie81]

I’d like to sign but can’t find the petition. Please could you re post it?

[LuciaHLane]

https://www.wandsworthconservatives.co. ... ianisation

[chorister]

Why not ask the Council for an explanation first?  I know that there were considerable issues with the re-routing of bus routes and inconvenience for people who relied on buses.

[SW11 Resident]

I'm all for the end of pedestrianisation. On the w/es, all the traffic gets backed up onto Bolingbroke Grove and the congestion is awful adding delays to journeys that need to be made beyond Northcote Road, not to mention the air pollution from idling cars.

Also, should I need to deliver/pick up large items from Northcote Road by car, the pedestrianisation prevented this which ss a right royal pain and naturally led to a drop off in w/e trade for such shops; remember that not all shops on Northcote Road are restaurants and bars, so it seems terribly unfair why they should suffer.

I can see pedestrianisation was necessary during the pandemic to give a lifeline to the bars and restaurants, but those days are long behind us...thank God!

[FrankJ]

Adding to the above comment, hearing from non-restaurants, they are generally unhappy with the road closure. They get less footfall in their stores.

[Elenita4ever]

I posted the reply below on another thread just now. However, despite this decision now being confirmed, Jonny Dyson did say the Lucia Lane’s petition is the most widely signed in recent history and signatures were continuing to pile in. So if you are in favour of the pedestrianisation, I would suggest adding your signature if you haven’t already. Also according to Jonny, the four surveys with local residents showed overwhelming support for the scheme.

“According to two long posts from Jonny Dyson on NextDoor the decision to permanently scrap the pedestrianisation was ratified at the council meeting on 29th September. The rationale given was that the council essentially wanted to invest in other, “less affluent”, parts of the Borough. According to Jonny, it’s a myth that such funding can be redirected directly to help residents with cost of living increases or improve social services. The money used for pedestrianisation comes from a “capital projects” fund that must be used for other similar infrastructure and/or “business support” initiatives. The Council has decided that such capital funding would be best invested in other areas of the Borough such as Tooting (this is the example that was given). If you are interested, Jonny Dyson’s full account on NextDoor is very comprehensive. Please don’t shoot the messenger here - just trying to summarise Jonny’s two posts.”

[Tigger]

In fairness the traffic on Bolingbroke Grove has been terrible on the weekends for years, a long time before the closure of Northcote. Only this last Saturday I sat there for half an hour as the traffic lights on the junction with Battersea Rise change so quickly that it only allows three or four cars across.  During the week they are phased differently which allows far more cars across the junction.  As for collecting large items, can't you collect during the week or park on one of the side roads? Alternatively if they're that big, most of the businesses there will arrange delivery.

[JD777]

Welcome to the wonderful world of a Labour Council! Next stop, big increases in council tax.

[RexD]

Congratulations to the Tory activists, they’ve done an excellent job of stirring up passions around this issue online while blurring the facts.

The developers levies can be used for any infrastructure purpose in the borough. They are not ring fenced for use on Northcote Road, contrary to the implications in the various online posts.

Secondly, there is absolutely no evidence that the pedestrianisation of Northcote Road ‘saved’ 120 jobs. That’s just spin. Balham High Road wasn’t pedestrianised and businesses survived there in Covid. The pedestrianisation scheme was a pleasant one but caused significant external issues to do with access, Congestion, etc in surrounding roads.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t have strong feelings either way about the scheme but would like a sensible debate rather than hyperbole and spin, and Wandsworth Conservatives using this issue as a political football

[Teddyfoster]

The summer pedestrianisation scheme for Northcote Road should be continued indefinitely.

This scheme serves residents in particular and creates the village atmosphere needed for a more holistic and balanced lifestyle.

This is a key task for the local authorities and has been neglected for far too long.

The shared pedestrian/ public transport (and deliveries) operating on St John’s Hill should be extended to Northcote Road.

Multi-Level underground parking should be built close to Northcote Road too to attract shoppers to the street to support great brands that serve the community.

[Claphamlocal]

Whoever does these nonsense petitions should do some home work before.

We, the surrounding businesses and residents have been fighting the closure for the past two years with not much luck until labour finally started to listen to us, we even had to get the MP involved.

You want some facts, here are some:
For every job they claim to saved we have lost 3.
For every pound they claim they made there we have lost 4.
For every improvement in the area I give lots more anti social behaviour, such as fights, broken glass and throwing up on our doorstep and many more,
These are facts and are available to anyone interested to know just like they have been available to the local cllrs

Covid grand was used to fund this scheme whilst other businesses got no or very little support and some didn’t survive, total misused of funds and they should be held accountable.

Can you please advise the genius Cllr that I voted for, covid grand is tax payers money, also the 2.5mil needed for the barriers was going to come from the local budged, leaving other areas short.

[Katie100]

Thankyou I am glad this is ending very terrible fir those who want to get the bus where it has to move around alternatively very tricky for me to get an elderly man out when bus route diverted . Gald the pandemic is over and summer as it was nice fir a bit and needed but in winter I'm glad it's been stopped as I qnat to travel a route which best suits me and not be put out.