Menu
Picture2 for web

Dartmouth Park Area Healthy Neighbourhood

Image: Regular Gridlock on Highgate West Hill. Photo at 10.30am on 17 November 2023.

We let you know last weekend about these traffic proposals. We are now sharing an update and recommendations for engagement. 

Is this a low traffic neighbourhood (LTN) proposal? Yes: this is an LTN. With the proposed closure of Swain’s Lane, Dartmouth Park Hill, and many other roads and one-way routes, this is the largest traffic scheme proposed for this area of North London for many decades.[i]

Where can I see details? Please see the general proposal page here, where you can also register for the Councils’ in person events on Tuesday 23 and Wednesday 24 July. The main proposal document is here. The Councils have said their proposal breaks down into (i) a local traffic management plan, (ii) road safety, bus priority and cycle network improvements, and (iii) improvements to local streets.

What is the timing? The consultation for this ‘co-design’ phase started on 8 July and lasts until 18 August: six weeks falling in the main holiday period.  This timing makes meaningful “co-design” with local groups impossible. Together with other local organisations, the Highgate Society has written to both Councils and local Councillors requesting they extend this period until the end of September. The Councils responded in the first public meeting on 17 July that they would like to have started the consultation sooner but could not do so because of “election purdah” (Camden local elections and the General Election). We do not believe this is an acceptable trade-off as it will prevent proper engagement, but we need to work on the basis that the period will not be extended.

Camden and Islington Councils are trying to rush through these proposals, and it is vital residents and businesses, both inside and outside the LTN, are given the time to understand these complex proposals, make their voices heard and have specific concerns listened to. The 2024 Ipsos report (see above) notes that stakeholders feel LTNs have been “introduced in a rush”, with “limited time for organisations to be consulted and for local authorities to engage properly with residents”, leading to friction and errors (page 8). This is a major risk.

The LTN stretches from Kentish Town in the south to Highgate village in the north and will have a significant knock on effect in surrounding areas.

What can LTNs achieve? LTNs have been controversial, both nationally and in London, with some of them being withdrawn in the face of complaints and increased congestion. There are potential advantages such as safer roads in the LTN and the promotion of more sustainable transport choices, but disadvantages can include reduced mobility for anyone dependent on a vehicle, the shifting of motor traffic to perimeter roads and an increase in emissions, with longer journey times and greater congestion. 

How do we see the Dartmouth Park proposal?

  • The specific characteristics of this area of North London mean the potential advantages will not be realised, including for those within the LTN. There will be significant disadvantages, particularly for those on the perimeter and outside the LTN.
  • Camden Council’s representative (Karl Brierley) said in the public meeting on 17 July that helping Chetwynd Road has been a “main focus” of these proposals, but these traffic management proposals are out of all proportion to that goal and do not properly consider the remaining areas.
  • There has been a lack of clear data for these proposals: for example traffic count data fails to consider any data on the start and end points of journeys, which is available. This is vital for our area as many of the journeys are taken by service vehicles or drivers passing through Highgate on longer journeys. Even the average weekday traffic count data given does not cover many of the areas around the perimeter of the LTN, including the central Highgate area. No projected traffic flow data is given. Worryingly, it is unclear how far pollution data has been considered. (Camden has easy access to good information through the Airscape monitoring network throughout the borough).

We understand businesses have been consulted but there is no information on what comments were made by businesses.

Chetwynd Road at 1.36pm on 30 October 2023 showing pavement parking on both sides of the road.

Important characteristics of the area: this LTN would exist within an area of North London where a significant number of west-east and north-south journeys by vehicles happen every day in both directions. We are concerned that the aim of reducing overall traffic volumes will not be realised since many of those using the vehicles are from outside the area and will continue to make their journeys, navigating the LTN as best they can. Given the hills in the area, a switch to walking or cycling is challenging for anyone who is elderly or looking after children. Several large areas are inaccessible to vehicles (Hampstead Heath, Waterlow Park, Highgate Cemetery, and effectively Holly Lodge estate), meaning significant pressure on the surrounding roads. As a result of the proposed restrictions on movement via Gordon House Road, there will be far greater use of Hampstead Lane, with pressure particularly at the junction with the top of Highgate High Street where there is already significant congestion and pollution.

The LTN will greatly increase pressure on the perimeter roads and Dartmouth Park is already effectively a cluster of smaller LTNs: The perimeter roads and main junctions are the most heavily used and polluted areas. It is hard to see the case for shifting traffic onto these roads when existing traffic restrictions mean many parts of the Dartmouth Park area are already a cluster of smaller low traffic areas which do not experience the same levels of pollution. There is already significant congestion at the junctions of Highgate High Street/West Hill/Hampstead Lane, Archway and Fortress Road/Highgate Road.  We also believe there will be increased safety concerns for cyclists and pedestrians on these main roads, and for the many residents who live on these roads. For example, there are far more people living on West Hill than on the upper section of Dartmouth Park Hill which will be closed.

Diversion of eastbound traffic and the effect on the north and south ends of the LTN. The closure of Dartmouth Park Hill and the closure of Chetwynd Road to eastbound traffic is significant. It means that traffic coming from Gordon House Road must travel either north via Highgate Road and Highgate West Hill or south via Highgate Road, at least as far as Fortess Walk / Road. Eastbound travel through the area is made impossible except via Highgate Village or Fortess Walk / Road. Most of this traffic will travel north because the right turn is difficult. Queueing traffic in Mansfield Road and Gordon House Road risks becoming even worse. Swains Lane will be closed to traffic north of the Cemetery and much of this traffic will seek to travel on West Hill. With increased congestion at the top of Highgate West Hill, vehicles will short cut via South Grove, the Grove, and potentially Bisham Gardens and the top end of Swains Lane.

Data is needed to support the proposals: The closure of both Swains Lane and Dartmouth Park Hill, and elimination of eastbound traffic movement through the area will mean additional vehicles competing for road space on the remaining perimeter roads and junctions and beyond. Information on traffic movement, both existing and proposed, has not been adequately provided. Specific areas include:

  • There is no information available on origins and destinations of trips so no modelling of traffic outcomes is possible. Many trips originate from well outside the area and, many for various reasons, will not simply “disappear”.
  • No information has been provided about the types of vehicles, and the routes taken on the roads at present. Many of these are service vehicles . It is therefore not possible to make any reasoned assessment as to whether, and the extent to which, those journeys will shift to other modes of transport.
  • There is an absence of traffic data in the central Highgate area which means that there is no base line level of traffic movements against which any future numbers can be compared.

Residents and busineses in the perimeter area will be rightly concerned about an approach that relies solely on generalised assurances and anecdotal reports.

The map shows the absence of even the weekday traffic count data in the central Highgate area.

Significant complexity and issues for vehicle movement within the LTN: We understand the intention is that westbound traffic should be permitted through Chetwynd Road. It is possible there will not be any reduction in traffic on Chetwynd Road as a one-way road can be easier to navigate and do so at speed. For anyone within the LTN the labyrinthine new restrictions will cause issues with delivery or service vehicles getting access and parking, adding to delays and costs. 

Potential for increased pollution across the area: Shockingly, the proposals have been created without any reference to pollution levels. The word “pollution” appears nowhere in the consultation document. Taking the above factors into account, we believe there is significant potential for increased pollution across the area, particularly along perimeter roads and main junctions, affecting pedestrians, cyclists and residents. 

There are a significant number of mistakes within the report, suggesting that this has been carried out as a “desktop” exercise, without adequate review and consideration of on the ground realities. To take some examples: the report on page 11 onwards shows new vehicle routes with obvious errors: any route from Chester Road to York Rise via Raydon Street, Dartmouth Park Hill, Bickerton Road, Junction Road, and Brecknock Road is clearly wrong; the vehicle route from Gordon House Road to Hampstead Lane is shown as via the Gatehouse, when many drivers go via the Grove; and residents of Cholmeley Park will be surprised that they are now on the preferred route from Gordon House Road to Archway Road.

The LTN may simply be a fundraising exercise for Camden and Islington Councils: The LTN plan relies on new traffic cameras. The 2024 Ipsos report (see above) found that: “From the 36 schemes that reported numbers of PCNs [Penalty Charge Notices], an average of 36,459 have been issued per scheme.” (page 6).

It is unclear what has already been spent and what implementation costs will be: There is no projection given of the overall implementation cost for the scheme. Leaving aside the large anticipated PCN income, residents of Camden and Islington have a right to know how much taxpayers’ money is being (and already has been) spent on this scheme and what is the split between the two councils? We question if any cost-benefit analysis of the plan has been done.

More implications for the parts of the LTN relegated to being in the “perimeter”:

  • There have already been serious accidents on West Hill due to the level of traffic and speeding. This is not addressed in a meaningful way.
  • The recently installed zebra crossing just outside St Josephs School will become redundant with the closure of Dartmouth Park Hill: a waste of public money.
  • The proposed northbound cycle lane on Highgate Road is likely to reduce parking spaces and put greater pressure on the surrounding roads inside the LTN which can be accessed.

How to respond and engage: 

Comments are required by 18 August. Publication at the start of the holiday period will severely reduce responses from residents and businesses and makes any serious engagement in “Co-design” impossible. Therefore sadly the emphasis has to be on objections to say “think again” because there is little time to consider constructive proposals.

We encourage you to take action immediately and make your views known.

Information can be accessed at these links: the general proposal page is here and the main proposal document is here. 

How to make comments 

These consultations rely on numbers of public responses. It is very important that as many people as possible make comments. Please use any material from this article as needed. 

Camden Highgate Ward: anna.wright@camden.gov.uk,  Camron.Aref-Adib@camden.gov.uk, Lorna.Russell@camden.gov.uk

Camden sustainability lead: adam.harrison@camden.gov.uk

Islington Junction Ward: janet.burgess@islington.gov.uk, Sheila.Chapman@islington.gov.uk, kaya.comerschwartz@islington.gov.uk

Haringey Highgate Ward:  nick.dacosta@haringey.gov.uk, Scott.Emery@haringey.gov.uk, Marsha.Isilar-Gosling@haringey.gov.uk

What is the Highgate Society doing? 

  • We organised a letter to both Councils and local Councillors that we sent on 15 July requesting they extend the consultation period for this co-design phase until the end of September. In addition to Highgate Society, Better Archway Forum, Dartmouth Park Neighbourhood Forum, Friends of Highgate Cemetery Trust, Highgate Neighbourhood Forum, Highgate West Hill Residents Association, and Swains Lane Residents Group all signed the letter.
  • We are working hard to collaborate and build consensus with other stakeholder groups where our concerns coincide. We have held meetings with other civic groups from across the area to share views.
  • We have set up a campaign website which we will announce once it is fully live to allow joint action with other groups and sharing of information. We see this campaign lasting a significant period: if necessary to implementation and beyond.
  • The Councils have organised posters within the centre of the LTN area, but this has not covered any part of Haringey, which has been largely ignored. We will run our own publicity campaign with posters and leaflets.
  • The Highgate Society working group is led by Andrew Sulston as Chair, and other volunteers are Charlotte Alderson, William Britain, Elspeth Clements, Catharine Wells and Francis Wilkinson. We appreciate many of you will be concerned at these proposals and please do not hesitate to speak to any of us.

[i] An LTN is defined as “A traffic management scheme aimed at reducing or removing through traffic from residential areas, put in place using traffic signed restrictions or physical measures such as planters or bollards.” Source: Ipsos, Low Traffic Neighbourhoods, Research Report, March 2024, p 41.

Available at:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/65f400adfa18510011011787/low-traffic-neighbourhoods-research-report.pdf.

20 July 2024

Related Posts