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Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!

Haringey Council seems intent on closing more of Wightman Road than necessary to prevent an increase in traffic on the ladder roads which sounds laudable (providing you live on a ladder road.)

If traffic can no longer go down Wightman Road, it will have to find an alternative route like Turnpike Lane or Green Lanes. This will significantly increase the traffic on those roads and cause more congestion which could be relieved if the ladder roads were open to traffic.

If my local main road was closed, I should expect more traffic to come down my residential road temporarily and why not?

Poorly thought out road works have played havoc with both public and private transport largely due to poorly thought out arrangements pandering to nimbyism.

 Surely it would be best to simply close the smallest section of Wightman Road possible which would be one ladder road north and south of the bridge?

Tags for Forum Posts: traffic, wightman bridge, wightman bridge closure

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I think the problem is that everyone will go down Wightman as usual then when they get to the closure they will use the horizontal Ladder road there causing traffic to be backed up for miles and also causing issues where that ladder road meets Green Lanes.

For the northbound ones you might have a point in that it would relieve northbound traffic on Green Lanes if Wightman was available to travel northbound.

The council should look more broadly to reopening all road closures to ensure a spreading of traffic - for example the Garden Roads and Hermitage Road which would allow transit through to Seven Sisters. The ladder has become a default for traffic weight for too long and the Council needs to even out the burden; on my particular ladder road the usual traffic is already extreme and I've seen it worsen steadily over the 20 years I've lived here. To ask the Ladder to absorb the closure of a B road that is expected to behave like an A road was obviously seen as unacceptable by the Council. This is not nimbyism it is the council failing to think through their bigger picture.

I  agree completely. Also if returning from Muswell Hill if you drive down turnpike Lane you vacant then turn right into Green Lanes - does anyone involved in this decision actually drive around the Borough?

We'll see what the impact is when residents return from their Easter Holidays as a lot of people seam to be away.

you can turn right at Green lanes from Turnpike lane. I've just done exactly that on my way home tonight?

They should indeed open Wightman for traffic towards Turnpike Lane. This shouldnt be too hard to enforce. There is no need to have it closed in both directions

Patrick, I completely agree with you. It's the most absurdly large and disruptive closure, and it's a pain in the arse for ladder rung residents who drive too. Only the bridge should be closed in my opinion, with lots of signage that the road is closed.
In all the discussions so far nobody has said why all these car journeys are so essential.

For some people public transport is simply not accessible and a car is the only way for them to get to work, Peter.     

Would you like a detailled break down of all these peoples myriad responsibilities, jobs, finances and impairments in order for you to understand why people make the decisions they do. Most of us are trying to make a living and care for our families - in the best way we can with the resources we have. there has been far too much judgementalism on these threads about people using cars.
i work for a business on the ladder. Our customers come from far afield and often in cars. These arent rat runners and there will be a significant loss of business due to this disruption. I also work around the borough. I need to travel and take equipment with me. I need to keep my business afloat and I need to feed my children. This situation has a huge effect on my livelyhood.
Now am I a bad car user? Am i a ratrunner? Or am I a neighbour - who lives very close to the ladder and contributes to the local economy? Or as some have suggested elsewhere stupid for basing my working life around car dependence ( not that any choices were open to me!)
In an ideal world i would have a whole host of community friendly policy. But this isnt the world I am living in and trying to make a lving in.
To me it feel like a huge us and them wall has been put up - between people who i consider fellow local residents.
Are you defending the closure decision as pragmatic in the light of the situation or are you after a bigger anti car statement here? If that is what you are suggesting will every ladder resident go the whole way and gets rid of their cars too? Everyone is a rat runner when they are driving down a street that isnt their own.

I don't think it makes much difference how much of Wightman Road is closed. Either way cars will end up on the alternative routes few as they are (Green Lanes). I did enjoy cycling on Wightman Road on Tuesday evening - totally selfish. Its a painful process but we need to learn to live with less reliance on private cars. I own a car but drive it very rarely to be honest as I am put off by the level of traffic at certain times. 

what he said exactly.. thomas hawkins. 

Sold my car a few weeks ago as a build up of repairs didn't warrant keeping it, I used it about once a week and the stand alone costs of £1000pa were not really making sense. The impending 5 mth closure of Wightman and the council's planned change re Inner/Outer WG zoning helped make that decision. Not saying I won't consider another car in future but there would have to be good reasons.

Getting used to not having a car is interesting as obviously have to do things differently, walking more, cycling, occasional taxi, food shopping is delivered with local top-ups, other items largely bought online with some trips to shops in central London (via tube). Local services like hair dressers, clothing repairs, bars & restaurants are all walkable.

Re taxis I think I may be using uber more in future. There are 50,000 uber cars in this city, never more than a few minutes away.

Your needing a car for business makes sense of course and it's more difficult is do things differently. Traffic situation seems much better today, 24hrs on from the changes to the road layout so hopefully things will improve for you Melissa.

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