i) Residents' Vehicles:
The report shows that 68.9% of respondents from the consultation area (1,528 respondents, 96% of whom are Wapping residents) voted that residents south of the Highway or south of the Ornamental canal SHOULD be given access through the bus gate during operating times. Furthermore, 52.6% of ALL respondents (2,370) voted for residents south of the Highway or south of the Ornamental canal to be given access through the bus gate at operating times. Only 22% of Wapping residents voted for buses and cyclists ONLY to be given access through the bus gate. This means that 2 out of 3 Wapping residents want their vehicles to be ALLOWED through the bus gate. The Council’s decision to make only buses and cyclists exempt from the bus gate does not reflect the views of the majority of Wapping residents and total respondents.
Although 53% Tower Hamlets respondents voted for buses and cyclists only to be exempt, these respondents EXCLUDE Wapping residents and will not be inconvenienced as local residents will be by residents’ vehicles not being allowed through during operating times.

ii) Taxis:
74% of all respondents (2,370) voted that taxis SHOULD be allowed through the bus gate. 68% of Wapping residents (nearly 1,528) voted that taxis SHOULD be allowed through the bus gate. Only 26% of all respondents votes that taxis should NOT be allowed through. Again, this means that more than 2 out of 3 Wapping residents and total respondents want taxis to be ALLOWED through the bus gate. The Council’s decision not to make taxis exempt again does not reflect the views of the majority of Wapping residents nor total respondents.
49% of Tower Hamlets respondents voted that taxis should NOT be allowed through the bus gate, but this is ONLY 3% more than the 46% who voted that taxis SHOULD be allowed through and by no means indicates a majority. It is important to note again that the respondents from Tower Hamlets EXCLUDE Wapping residents and will not be inconvenienced as local residents will be by taxis not being allowed through the bus gate.

Many of the free text comments in the consultation mentioned that taxis are a vital part of travel within the Wapping area. Many residents class this mode as part of public transport. Several comments suggest that taxis are preferred to the 100 bus due to its sporadic service. This will be worsened by the increased traffic on The Highway when the bus gate comes into operation, as the 100 bus will be caught up in the tailback of vehicles who now need to make their way along The Highway to Tower Hill. The report states that a lot of respondents said if taxis were to be barred from passing through the bus gate they would be unable to get around the area with ease.

The Council's decision therefore ignores the needs and the views of the population who were consulted and does not align with the findings of its consultation report.

Many Wapping residents depend on forms of transport other than buses and bicycles to go about their business on a day-to-day basis.
These include:
* Disabled Wapping residents requiring taxis to get to and from work
* Families within Wapping dropping their children off at school en route to work
* Families dropping their children off at schools outside of Wapping en route to work
* Transportation to and from Wapping to airports since buses cannot be guaranteed to accommodate luggage and Wapping Overground station does not have elevators to transport suitcases.

While the Council is likely to argue that Wapping residents can use Wapping Lane, Garnet Street and Glamis Road as alternative routes out of Wapping, this decision neglects to consider how Wapping residents will be inconvenienced by having to join the already heavily congested traffic load on The Highway to make their way in and out of the area, which will cost them additional time and money and negatively impact their wellbeing and quality of life, and will add to further congestion.

This Petition ran from 30/10/2019 to 15/12/2019 and has now finished.

1724 people signed this Petition.