The Council has so far removed 1 LTN on Antill Road which was restricting residents on neighbouring roads having to take a long detour to get out of the area, so residents in these areas can only access this. There is already enough of the rich/poor divide in the area let’s not make it worse.

Now as a matter of urgency we call upon the council to remove all the Liveable Streets / Bus Gates / TfL Streetspace Plan and the DfT Emergency Active Travel Fund Schemes in the borough especially Old Bethnal Green Road as it causing severe levels of congestion and pollution on the boundary roads as many were put in place without consultation or with the views of a selected few that the previous administration admitted to. We support schemes to reduce non-local traffic, make the streets look and feel safe however not at the price of the local residents suffering. Installing a park in the middle of the road next to a park makes no sense at all.

The approach the council took previously under the previous administration was rushed and wasteful – for example, Antill Road, there was never any cut through traffic as there was a no right from Tredegar Road and mainly accessed by LOCAL residents. Spending millions on closing off Bethnal Green with increasing levels of crime as police can no longer give chase as bikes go through the road closures, drug dealers, users all over the park, emergency vehicles being stuck when on call. The data the council had, did not correlate with the plans that were pushed through, no actual pollution data was available prior to installing the LTN’s. Wealthy developers and landlords are the only ones that want this alongside the people who want to create a divide between the rich and poor residents of the borough.

The people have voted and we ask the council to stand by its commitment to listen to the residents of Tower Hamlets and deliver on the promises made. Let it not be for a few but the many. Disabled residents are having difficulty getting around e.g. taxis, ambulance transport are either taking too long to transport them or not turning up at all. Finding a parking space is taking an extra 15-20mins longer. Local businesses around the LTN’s are also suffering as passing trade is down. A few shops have closed down due to the LTN’s.

We all want to address the long-standing issues in the borough like bad health, air quality and congestion so the council needs to abolish all the absurd schemes that only benefit the few and make the many suffer. For example, Hackney Rd, Cambridge Heath Rd & Bethnal Green Rd residents are now suffering while landlords on Old Bethnal Green Rd see their property values increase. Growing numbers of families, older and disabled people have been sharing shockingly negative stories due to the schemes to their health, safety, community and quality of life thanks to the schemes.

We also propose that we move the red chairs that currently sit in the middle of the road on Old Bethnal Green Rd a few metres into Middle Green so the residents that it is a lifeline to can enjoy from there.

We need the council to verify all the completed consultations as we suspect non- resident Pro LTN groups / Cycling lobbies have been completing these. Also, the petition name “Save our safer streets in Tower Hamlets” needs to be verified. The council has a responsibility to make sure this is accurate as the residents come first.
It is the right time to take it all out, the council previously didn’t work with the people and there were cheaper and better ways to improve the streets of Tower Hamlets, so now finally listen to and address the concerns of the residents of Tower Hamlets. This will benefit everyone’s health, wellbeing and safety
Let’s rebuild Tower Hamlets once again...

This Petition runs from 28/09/2022 to 10/01/2023.

1147 people have signed this Petition.