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social distancing diagramEnfield Council has released further information about its Covid-19 Streetspace Plan, which is designed to improve conditions for social distancing, walking and cycling post-Lockdown. It is bidding for funding from both Transport for London (TfL) and the Department for Transport (DfT). The proposed interventions include pop-up cycle lanes, accelerated implementation of quieter neighbourhood and school street schemes, modal filters to block through traffic (no indication yet as to the proposed locations) and temporary footway widening.

A revised design has been developed for the Fox Lane Quieter Neighbourhood and will be shared with the community prior to implementation. The results of perception surveys for the Bowes Primary Area, Firs Lane Area and Bush Hill Road quieter neighbourhood projects have been published (see the links at the bottom of this report).

Enfield residents have used the Streetspace Ideas Map to propose numerous measures. The deadline for submitting ideas via the map is 14th June.

A condition of receiving funding is that the schemes are put in place without delay. We can therefore expect the infrastructure used to be of a type which can be rapidly installed, but could also be easily reconfigured or removed should problems arise. This means that these emergency measures can be used as trials of possible permanent changes and when residents submit comments about schemes these will be better informed - based on actual experience of the pros and cons, rather than on assumptions.

Covid-19 Streetspace Plan - 4 June 2020 update

enfield streetspace bidThe Council continue to review the suggestions from the community on how we can help enable more people to walk and cycle. We have received hundreds of responses that have helped inform future plans.

We have also received guidance from the Government that we undertake works as ‘swiftly as possible’. The Council have identified a series of projects and have now submitted a range of bids to Transport for London, which include:

  • Continued delivery of the A1010 North Cycle Enfield project
  • Creating a pop-up cycle lane to connect the A1010 South Cycle Enfield project with North Middlesex Hospital and onwards into Harringey
  • Continued progression of the Fox Lane Quieter Neighbourhood project (early engagement completed and a revised design following feedback now developed to be shared with the community prior to any implementation)
  • Implementation of an initial set of 10 modal filters across the borough, creating a series of low traffic streets
  • Implementation of an initial 10 school street projects
  • Implementation of temporary footway widening projects in town centres, including Fore Street and Enfield Town
  • Cycle parking at GP surgeries
  • Temporary wayfinding to help identify cycling routes already available

In addition to this, on Thursday 28th May the Council were informed that some funding would also be available direct from the Department for Transport. We will be submitting a further bid to the first tranche of this fund with the intention to accelerating some early delivery of the Bowes Primary Area Quieter Neighbourhood scheme.

The Council are fully committed to creating more space for people to walk and cycle, generating more capacity on public transport for those who cannot travel this way. We will look to quickly move this work forward as funding is secured. The Government is requiring councils to deliver these schemes ‘within weeks’. The necessity to work at pace will mean that the normal amounts of public engagement will not be possible. However, schemes will be delivered on a trial basis and there will be an opportunity for comments to be provided once each trial has started, helping to inform whether those trials become permanent or not.

More detail on each scheme will be released as funding is confirmed.

Source: letstalk.enfield.gov.uk/covid-19-streetspace-plan

The term "modal filters" refers to the use of obstacles (eg bollards) to prevent cars and lorries from using a street as a through route, but letting through people on foot or riding bikes.

ideas map palmers green areaPart of the Covid-19 Streetspace Ideas Map showing locations where residents have made suggestions

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