Linstead Street and Netherwood Street Safe and Healthy Streets consultations

Overview

The Covid-19 pandemic changed how communities live, travel and work. We want to transform our streets, so they have more, safe space for everyone to walk and cycle, for children to get to and from school safely, for you to be breathing cleaner air, to reduce carbon emissions from road transport, and for businesses to flourish. We want to ensure that our streets support recovery from the pandemic and provide a lasting legacy of greener, safer, healthier travel, helping us to deliver our wider Transport Strategy objectives.

To help, we have been making changes across Camden as part of our Cycle Permeability Programme. This included making trial changes on Linstead Street and Netherwood Street in October 2020, when we introduced measures to help cyclists travel more easily and safely between the two streets, helping make the streets safer and healthier.   

London Borough of Camden is now consulting on making the trial changes permanent and creating a safer and healthier street environment by removing barriers to cycling.

About the Linstead Street and Netherwood Street Safe and Healthy Streets scheme

The northern end of Linstead Street was closed to vehicular traffic for many years with a continuous pavement on Netherwood Street prior to the trial cycle permeability measures being introduced. This was the case for many years – since at least September 2009 according to Google Maps, but probably much longer. The trial scheme has made both streets more accessible to cyclists by providing a cut-through across/through the pavement where the two streets meet. This provides better connections and links to Hemstal Road, Palmerston Road, Sherrif Road and Kilburn Grange Park, and to key centres and transport interchanges in Camden - eastwards to West End Lane and West Hampstead stations (and beyond), and westwards to Kilburn High Road and Brondesbury Station (and beyond).

The scheme was designed to make it easier and safer to travel by bike between Linstead Street and Netherwood Street, in line with Camden’s ambition to improve cycling access and priority across the borough. To do this, during this trial we have:

• Dropped a section of kerb on the Netherwood Street pavement and added a small ramp on the Linstead Street side to minimise level disruption on the narrow pavement.
• Relocated 2 cycle parking stands to the northern side of Netherwood Street.
• Removed an 8m section of permit holder only parking space on Netherwood Street at the junction of Linstead Street.
• Designated a 24hr waiting prohibition (including for loading/unloading) along the above stretch of Netherwood Street and at the northern end of Linstead Street.
• Removed a short panel of pedestrian guardrail.
• Added footpath markings to highlight the cycle cut-through (see photo below).

The designated parking places on Linstead Street are unaffected by the scheme.

Image description: A dropped kerb on the Netherwood Street pavement allows cyclists to travel more easily and safely between Linstead Street and Netherwood Street.

Image description: On the other side of the footpath a ramp is provided to minimise level disruption to the footpath for cyclists/users. This was necessary to protect tree roots.

We implemented the scheme as a trial in October 2020, under an Experimental Traffic Order (ETO) which came into force on 24^th September 2020, as part of Phase 1 of our Cycle Permeability Programme. The decision report related to this ETO (and another scheme) was approved on 4^th September 2020 and is provided in the Related section at the bottom of this page.

This decision report noted that a further consultation, after approximately 12 months of the trial scheme, would take place relating to any proposed permanent changes. The trial scheme went live in October 2020 and during this period, the scheme has been monitored and comments from local residents and stakeholders have been received.

This consultation now asks local residents and stakeholders to give their views on whether the scheme should be made permanent after the end of the 18-month trial period. The proposed permanent scheme would remain unchanged from its trial version.

Feedback during the Experimental Traffic Order (ETO) Period

Residents and stakeholders were able to provide Camden with feedback via the “Safer Travel in Camden” Commonplace map and the Safer Travel inbox (safetravel@camden.gov.uk).

Two emails relating to the scheme were received from local residents and stakeholders during the trial ETO period. 

• 1 email expressed support for the scheme.
• 1 email did not support the scheme.

The respondent who was not in favour of the trial scheme expressed a concern that mopeds would use the cut-through, and that this could constitute a hazard to pedestrians.
 

What are we now consulting on?

Based on officer observations, feedback received from residents and stakeholders during the trial period, and in line with policies and objectives set out in our Camden Transport Strategy, Climate Action Plan and Clean Air Action Plan we are now consulting on making the trial changes to Linstead Street and Netherwood Street permanent.

The proposed permanent scheme will remain unchanged from its trial version.

You can view the final scheme drawings in the Related section at the bottom of this page.

Why your views matter

As 40% of households in the area do not have access to a car and public transport patronage levels remain lower than before the pandemic, we know that safe and easy walking, cycling, and scooting routes are more important than ever. Supporting and encouraging those who are able to walk and cycle, by creating safer streets will ensure that there is more space available on public transport and on our roads for those who need it the most.

The previous changes were implemented as a trial under an Experimental Traffic Order (ETO) for 18 months. We committed to undertaking a public consultation after around 12 months of the trial scheme to seek the views of local residents and stakeholders on making the trial scheme permanent after the 18-month trial period.

Your views are important in providing feedback both on the proposed scheme as a whole and elements of it, and we would therefore welcome your responses on the pages that follow. To view the plans and find out more about the proposals, click on the links in the Related section of the online consultation front page.

The Council will be pleased to hear your views on the proposals as well as any alternative suggestions or objections you may have to any aspect of what we are proposing.

What happens next

After the consultation, a decision report will be produced and published online via our website. Local residents and stakeholders will be notified of the outcome. The report will consider a broad range of information including officer observations, consultation responses, feedback received during the trial period, relevant policies, and other data/information.

The report will then outline if at the end of the trial period, the experimental scheme should be made permanent, modified, or allowed to lapse. Subject to the decision to make the scheme permanent, officers will continue to monitor the scheme and will consider additional measures if necessary.

These will be progressed and publicly consulted on as part of a separate scheme.