Major Greenwich streetwork including Blackwall approach closure to begin Mon 7 Sept
TfL have confirmed that major work along Trafalgar Road in Greenwich to create a cycle lane plus closure of the Blackwall Tunnel slip road at Angerstein Roundabout is to begin during daytime this Monday 7 September.
Some smaller scale work has already begun along the route alongside overnight work.
The work comes barely a year after a large amount of money and disruption was caused to create a “low emission” neighbourhood. Now much of that work will be replaced.
There has been little reduction in congestion since the scheme completed. Parking enforcement has been extremely poor since completion hence cycle lanes are still being blocked daily.
Work also created pocket parks which will remain, yet elsewhere in Greenwich half a mile away the council are now looking to sell a small park according to a notice placed in little read publication Weekender this week. The only place I’ve ever seen it is libraries – and of course less people are now visiting those. They have not placed this information on their website.
The most contentious issue is closing the Blackwall slip road below the Woolwich road roundabout, with the intention to instead send vehicles to a slip road to the north passing a new school to a point beside the park now up for sale.
This is phase one of the route and work will be under way until October. A further phase will continue to Charlton where protected lanes abruptly end under this plan. Existing cycle lanes do continue but offer no protection, and vehicles park in it daily with next to no enforcement despite hundreds of requests to Greenwich Council. That is not an exaggeration.
I thought I’d check TfL cameras to see the situation right now at the time of writing. Yep, a car is parked again.
Despite this, numerous attempts to gain a response on this from council leader Dan Thorpe (Labour – Shooters Hill) on whether wands or light segregation will protect existing lanes go unanswered.
It appears cyclists will be unprotected in part and then made to share a lane with buses closer to Woolwich.
I expect much conflict between drivers, bus users and cyclists during the next month or two as these measures are installed, even though cyclists never asked for such a short-lived scheme which is lasted barely a year and now being replaced, nor to be placed on lanes with buses. Something that is not going to entice people to ditch cars for short journeys and sure to annoy bus passengers.
It’s almost as if conflict is the intention given how slow and poorly planed so much work is. Remember, Berlin drew up and installed plans in three days in the early days of the pandemic when traffic was greatly reduced. And for a previous project to last barely a year is a great waste in a time of stretched funding.
There are positive though and the awful Angerstein roundabout is to see work at last for new crossings and railing removal. Hopefully it lasts a bit longer than prior schemes. And fingers crossed someone sees sense and installs some light segregation where lanes already exists and enforces parking.
Couple of things – which I guess I’ve said before.
That slip has been closed there before – it is in its present form following pressure from residents on (a very reluctant) TFL around 2008 and previously was in a form decided by the Department of Transport in 1998. Remember that the whole design of the slips and the roundabout has changed many times from an original design where Woolwich Road went under the flyover.
The other thing about parking in Trafalgar Road – there is a very real problem in that the 19th century design means that few of the shops have rear or side access for deliveries. Intensive schemes based on deliveries only in the early hours has often failed elsewhere and white vans, as everyone knows, do what they like regardless of anything or anybody. I know this isn’t really helpful but I think you ought to look at the bigger picture.
Nobody is trying to prevent deliveries, but no one has the untrammelled right to drive to the shops and park on the high road, especially when it is carelessly done and leads to obstruction and inconvenience. I am not anti-car since I am also a driver, but I accept that it is not possible to drive everywhere and expect to park where I please.
You mentioned conflict between users of the roads not pedestrians, nor enforcement of keeping cyclists and electric scooters off the pavements.
In the old days before such changes you would see tellers counting road and pavement users, haven’t seen this at all. I don’t mind the total lack of consultation of people on these changes as consultation results usually ignored, but I would like to see fact based analysis of before and after. Covid is going to be a great blanket under which pet schemes will be pushed through.
Hm, this bus passenger is certainly irritated at the loss of the bus shelter opposite the co-op.
I’m never going to cycle on the roads but may well consider a car.
Poor parking enforcement remains the norm, hopefully the tfl camera parking enforcement will start hitting people’s pockets when they park across cycle lanes – as a car driver these selfish drivers piss me off
It’s not TfL camera enforcement as this is Greenwich borough roads. TfL have used CCTV cameras for a long time though Greenwich never have.
I hope it slows and deters traffic of all types once complete. You take your life in your hands crossing it at any point. I’m all for huge speed bumps along the way as well which might sort out the idiots who like to try and do 0-70 between the fly over and Trafalgar junction, and a proper pedestrian crossing by Sainsbury’s local, if you stand in the present island when crossing God help you. The London marathon day is the best day in the area when it’s vehicle free. I’m a driver and a cyclist and all for the disruption and end result on this stretch.
I would think Greenwich Council hate any criticism…and do not listen to any…much less listen and look at the advice….then what we see is ongoing stupidity and more criticism..
I was at the Angerstein roundabout at approximately 10am this morning. Work has barely begun yet traffic was already more than is normal for that time of the day.
Just seen Murky’s report about the accident at The Sun in the sands, so that could be why there was so much traffic this morning.