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Ian Duncan Smith (image CC licensed by Number 10 via Flickr).jpgIain Duncan Smith calls for rethink on Walthamstow Mini Holland scheme
Iain Duncan Smith, Conservative MP for Chingford and Woodford Green, says the consultation for the £33 million Mini Holland scheme in Walthamstow was carried out ‘incorrectly’ and has called on the council to ‘rethink and reconsult’. The London Evening Standard reports that hundreds of people gathered to protest against the scheme as councillors debated it at the town hall earlier this week.
Waltham Forest Council says that a key element of its Mini-Holland project is a reduction in traffic using residential streets.
A road closure trial was carried out in the Pembroke Road area last month. According to the council’s website, over 67,000 vehicles travelled through the area from September 15 to 22 with over 80 per cent of traffic in some streets, including Orford Road and Pembroke Road, considered “rat running through traffic.”
The council aims to cut that number “dramatically” through introducing strategic road closures, while still enabling locals to access their homes and workplaces. However, local resident Aarif Gearay, speaking at the council meeting, said that businesses were losing “50 to 60 per cent of their business.”
Iain Duncan Smith, Conservative MP for Chingford and Woodford Green – a neighbouring constituency where many will regularly commute through Walthamstow – told the Waltham Forest Guardian that the consultation for the £33 million scheme and the enforced 20mph speed limit had been carried out ‘incorrectly’.
“My constituents are up in arms and I call upon the council to rethink and reconsult on this issue. For a matter so important as this, it would be wrong for Labour to force a whip on something that the council should rightly adopt an impartial stance and the local residents should decide and have their voice heard.”
London’s cycling commissioner, Andrew Gilligan, said last week that those opposing the Mini Holland projects in Waltham Forest and Enfield would be embarrassed once they saw the completed schemes.
"You always get this when there's any kind of scheme to take away traffic: people say they'll lose business and they absolutely never do, all the evidence shows the exact opposite. I've said in Waltham Forest I think people will be embarrassed they ever opposed it.”
The depth of feeling among those protesting outside the town hall was expressed by Theresa Anderson of the Ratepayers Action Group, who said: “We’re going to stop this. I’ll chain myself to the railings if I have to.”
Asad Yaqub, a local charity worker, said people had not been consulted: “I’m all for cycling but this isn’t fair. It’s causing more traffic on the main roads. A 10-minute journey can take 45.”
At the same time, a smaller group turned out to support the scheme. One of their number, Paul Gasson, said: “This is visionary. It’s tackling a lot of issues like health, obesity and climate change. I see happy people on the streets.”
In September, pro-motoring protesters disrupted the launch of the scheme, which was attended by Dutch ambassador Simon Smits. Around 60 protestors gathered, shouting “streets for all” through megaphones and carrying a coffin to symbolise the “death” of Walthamstow village.
Since then, two petitions have been launched – one in favour of the Mini Holland scheme, the other against it. At the time of writing, the ‘Stop Mini Holland in Walthamstow petition had attracted almost 4,000 signatures while ‘We support Mini Holland in Walthamstow’ was trailing on around 2,600.
Alex has written for more cricket publications than the rest of the road.cc team combined. Despite the apparent evidence of this picture, he doesn't especially like cake.
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22 comments
This sort of highlights one of the downfalls of the democratic system. When we consider the issue of rat running motorists it's inevitable that the majority of interested parties are rat runners rather than residents or people that are otherwise interested in reducing rat running.
I think that discovering people from Chingford hate this scheme will do wonders for its appeal to those the other side of the north circ.
Ian Duncan Smith has no credibility. The fact that a majority of Chingford constituents voted for him tells you all you need know about them and whether you should actually listen to anything they have to say.
I'm a constituent of IDS and i'm certainly not up in arms.
Ian has a house. In the roof of the house, he has an attic room. In a corner of the attic room he has a safe. In the safe there's an envelope. Inside the envelope there are polaroids of a future Prime Minister having relations with a pig head. And that's why this loathsome, incompitent, oaf of a man has a job.
Oh the irony! Love it.
the rest of the cabinet must have a copy too as there all loathsome human beings.
The local libdems are also trying to exploit the issue. Remember, it was a condition of all the minhollands that the councils had to have cross party support for their proposals so as to avoid this sort of opportunist political crap.
Funny thing is, I think it was the libdems that were more instrumental on the scheme in Kingston (subject to later Tory watering-down, tho' I dunno what the latest version now looks like). Still, there's no accounting for individual politicians/vote chasing as the case may be..
It was, and the Kingston LibDems are still very supportive.
In general the LibDems have always been a very good party for cycling, but the problem is that at a local level all too often they'll junk their principles to exploit an issue for political gain. I hope that local group is now getting their ears bent by LibDems elsewhere.
LOL. What a halfwit.
As danthomascyclist said also, if it's a 10 minute journey, get on a flippin bike!
This is like the Daily Mail suggesting one way to avoid the 5p carrier bag tax is to take your own bags. Exactly! Avoid the traffic by getting on your bloody bike!
I hate to break this to you, but if it regualarly takes 45 minutes, then it is a 45 minute journey, isn't it? If it's such a short distance, then stop your whinging and get on your bike if your time is so important.
The local pro Facebook group for those who want to get involved.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1871202223105387/
Politicians react to how many constituants complain or support something.
Currently the anti Mini-Holland group are making lots of noise, so if you are local you need to make the noise in support (If you live in Chingford and Woodford Green then write to IDS and express your support, enough people do that he would change his tune).
Improvements for cycling are going to be hard fought, so you need to make sure your Councillor/MP knows your support, because the people who will try and block such schemes will be contacting them.
"Is that a bandwagon going past? Better hop on!"
Well, it's nice to see MPs taking an interest in their constituency's affairs... no, hold on, it's not even his turf.
It's clear that WF council should have consulted more in the local area, and there have been teething troubles, but the benefits are speaking for themselves. Sometimes, the role of government (local or national) is to tell people to put up *and* shut up.
No - his constituency is the one next door, so his constituents are the very rat running commuters that this scheme is supposed to stop.
The right hon MP for the rat-runners!
ISD can FRO!
Ah the Irony of IDS calling out consultations for being improperly carried out. The DWP has been an absolute shambles under this abomination of a human being, so he can fuck right off as far as I am concerned. RIGHT OFF. Go on Iain, no-one wants you here and no-one likes you - yes that's right not even your own mother.
shock horror, change is resisted. If you want people to stop using cars and polluting the environment carrots only get you so far. At some point the stick that your journey is taking an extra 35mins will be the only wake up call.