Plans that matter to Bloomsbury Residents             

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Important

Within weeks of the imposition of the Tavistock one-way experiment, Camden Council and TfL announced further plans to alter local road layouts.  These will interact in ways which are probably not currently predicted by the computer traffic modelling (given the unpredicted consequences of the Tavistock trial) and will have a profound impact on our community.  The changes will make ordinary life very difficult for ordinary residents, who are pedestrians and cyclists needing a safe environment; who need to be able to access their own homes; and they will impact particularly on older and disabled people, and others needing to use taxis and cars, as well as local businesses who need access for delivery vehicles.

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New traffic routes that affect you

The proposals are complicated because Camden is responsible for some roads and TFL for others. There were five relevant documents

 

• Tavistock/Torrington Place closure to westbound motor traffic (Ref 1) 

• Tavistock Place/Judd Street Cycle North-South Superhighway (Ref 2a, Ref 2b)

• Judd Street/Euston Road Junction (Ref 3)

• Brunswick Square (Ref 4)

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We have summarised these below,. Links to the documents are given after the summary. In brief-:  If all proposals are implemented:

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• There will be no vehicular access to our neighbourhood from Euston Road onto Judd Street or exit from Judd Street to Euston Road. 

• With no exit onto Euston Road from Judd Street, there will be no westbound exit from our neighbourhood. Traffic will have to go east along Tavistock Place, Regent Square and Sidmouth Street to Gray’s Inn Road and then north through Kings Cross to join the main westbound traffic on Euston Road. 

• Traffic from the east will only be able to enter our neighbourhood from Euston Road at Duke’s Road, the minor road near The Place.

• No traffic will be able to enter our neighbourhood from the south, as it will be cut off from Guilford Street. Grenville Street will be southbound only. 

• The only entrance from the west will be via Russell Square or Tavistock Place.

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The decision to close Tavistock Place to westbound vehicles has resulted in unforeseen traffic chaos in the area; the traffic modelling that was used did not predict the extent of the gridlock. 

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Detailed proposals for future changes to the local road network

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Tavistock/Torrington  Place closure to westbound motor traffic (Ref 1).

• This ‘Trial’ was introduced in Nov 2015.  

• Because it is a ‘trial’, Cllr Phil Jones (Camden’s Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Transport and Planning) was able to authorise it without public consultation. It was solely his decision.

• The trial scheme had several objectives. Its first was to ‘Reduce motor traffic levels and vehicle emissions to improve air quality’, (Ref1, p7, 4.4,1). It has clearly had the opposite effect on streets other than Tavistock Place itself.Traffic modelling did not predict the traffic jams on Judd Street, Woburn Place, Southampton Row and surrounding streets. No alternatives were considered

• Traffic data analysis (collected in May) will be available in September 2016. A public consultation period is promised. 

 

Tavistock Place/Judd Street North-South Cycle Superhighway (Ref 2a,b)

• The Superhighway would follow the existing cycle route along Cubitt Street, crossing over Gray’s Inn Road into Sidmouth Street, Regent Square and Tavistock Place and turn north onto Judd Street (ref 2a) 

• There would be cycle lanes on both sides of Judd Street (Ref 2a, Ref2b)

• It is not stated what access motor vehicles would have

• Single yellow lines would be converted to double yellow lines (no parking / waiting at any time) on Judd Street at the junction with Bidborough Street and the junction with Cromer Street. 

• It was proposed that a zebra crossing would replace the Pelican crossing on Judd Street near the RNIB headquarters.  Following demonstrations outside the RNIB in April 2016 we understand the pelican crossing will remain. (Ref 2b)

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Judd Street/Euston Road Junction (Ref 3)
 

This proposal offered 2 options

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• Option 1 – Full closure of Judd Street at Euston Road / Midland Road junction to allow a dedicated cycle crossing across Euston Road.This option states that motor vehicles would still be able to access Judd Street using other routes, but these would be very limited if all the proposals are implemented, with no westbound access at all onto the Euston Road.

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• Option 2 – Judd Street entry only for motorists going south from Midland Road, with a segregated northbound contraflow cycle track on the approach to the junction. As with Option 1, Judd Street would have no entry or exit to the Euston Road and the same limited access from other routes would apply.

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Brunswick Square (Ref 4)

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• Closure of Lansdowne Terrace where it meets Brunswick Square. Northbound motor traffic would no longer be able to access Hunter Street/Judd Street.

• All southbound traffic from Hunter Street to Guilford Street would go down Grenville Street

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The relevant consultation documents. (click to view each document as a PDF)

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Ref. 1      Tavistock/Torrington Place closure to westbound motor traffic

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Ref. 2:    Tavistock Place/Judd Street North-South Superhighway: 2a

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Ref. 2b   Tavistock Place/Judd Street North-South Superhighway 2b

Ref. 3      Judd Street/Euston Road Junction:

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Ref. 4      Brunswick Square:

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Consultations relating to proposals 2 to 4 ran from 8 February to 20 March 2016.  A public meeting was held at Camden’s Offices on 10 March at which it was acknowledged that there were serious problems with the consultation distribution.  There was no willingness to extend the consultation period despite the fact that few people actually received the relevant consultation documentation.  

All responses received to the proposals will be taken into consideration in a report due to be presented in June 2016 to Camden’s Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Transport and Planning (Councillor Phil Jones).

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Tavistock / Torrington Place Trial scheme.is currently the subject of a Public Inquiry
 

 

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