up to the Harringay station and catch it on the other side to go down the hill again to crouch end. (quicker to walk back to the station in my opinion as less traffic on the other side = always has been that way due to the horrible light phase at Arena shopping centre).…
t after the pedestrian crossing) and last I heard traffic was backed up all the way to Wood Green High Road and beyond (and crawling). Can't imagine how long people are going to be stuck in the Arena/Sainsburys for today (if they even managed to get in).
Anyone know how long these roadworks are scheduled for?…
em seems to be the phasing of the traffic lights on the junction; the cars trying to join the queue from the front car park by Homebase; cars trying to join the queue coming out of the petrol station... in fact, too many cars - full stop! Much worse during the weekends, so avoid like the plague... Until the various retail outlets on the site get together with the Council to sort out the congestion everyone suffers - their business and our sanity. Don't hold your breath! If you feel strongly enough, write to the local MP and copy in the Council and Sainsburys PLC. Might work. Tx…
angry drivers either) You'd think sainsburys could build a cycle lane if they are truely committed to enviromental issues. I'm sure more people who use that sainsburys and live off green lanes would rather cycle than be stuck in that traffic but without a safe cycle lane I dont blame people for driving.…
en permission for trebling the sales area without ensuring that access and exit could cope beats me. The green on the traffic lights giving access to Green Lanes lasts for exactly 6 seconds which doesn't help.
God knows what would happen if there were a fire at Sainsbury's.
They won't see me again this side of Christmas.…
sidential roads as they waited to exit onto Green Lanes at Hermitage Road. Following an email to two councillors I have received two replies, the first I have already posted (Hugh maybe you can do some link thing if anyone is interested). Today I have received the following reply. I'm rather keen on Haringey officials at the moment as they are both helpful and prompt in their replies:
I have been asked to reply to your email dated 25 March 2008 addressed to Cllr Haley, regarding your concerns about the traffic problems at Williamson Road / Green Lanes junction.
Improving the traffic flow around the Arena Development is a complex issue and requires a coordinated approach by a number of stakeholders.
With this in mind Haringey council have set up a series of meetings with both Developers and their Consultants to consider ways of addressing the increased congestion around the junction of Williamson Road and Green Lanes. All parties agreed to look at a number of options to improve the traffic flow.
These include potentially rerouting traffic around the complex itself and widening Williamson Road on the approach to the signalled junction.
In the medium term Haringey Council is working together with the Directorate of Traffic Operations (DTO), part of Transport for London (TfL), who is responsible for the installation and maintenance of traffic lights, to upgrade the signals and traffic controller which will improve the efficiency of the junction, these works are expected in June/July 2008.
As a more long term solution, Developer Consultants are suggesting introducing a lay-by at the southbound bus stop by the junction with Williamson Road. This would improve traffic flows as vehicles exiting the Development would no longer have to wait behind buses at the bus stop.
With regards to your specific query, I can confirm that currently there are no plans to have a direct exit out through Finsbury Park Avenue though a vehicular exit for emergency vehicles only is being considered by the Developers in discussions with London and Quadrant Housing Trust.
I hope the above answers your query, and thank you again for taking the time to write in.
Yours sincerely,
Mike Tobin
Interim Head of Highways…
, this might seem like good news - oh good fewer people driving to Sainsbury's. But, having seen the fiasco last time Sainsbury's extended and the poor level of scrutiny of the plans by the Council I have my doubts.
What's fuelling those doubts is thoughts about who the facilities will service. I imagine the catchment area for both the online delivery section as well as the click and collect will be far wider than just Harringay.
And it won't just be Sainsbury's customers using the facility. The Click and Collect services will also be available as a Collect+ outlet for the many thousands of purchases made on ebay and 350 other brands.
So:
we'll still probably have most of the people currently travelling to Sainsbury's by car
plus, an unknown number of delivery vehicle movements of goods in (from Sainsburys, ebay and 350 other merchants)
plus, an unknown number of vehicle movements as people drive to collect purchases from an unknown catchment area
plus an unknown number of collection journeys for people using the click and collect for both supermarket shopping and Collect+ to service Sainsbury's ebay and 350 other brands.
Fuelling this concern are articles like a few I've picked up recently, pointing out how the sheer scale of deliveries and our demand for immediate regular deliveries are causing problems.
How London got rid of private cars – and grew more congested than ever - Britain’s biggest city has almost ground to a halt, thanks to the rise of Uber and delivery drivers
Delivery disaster: the hidden environmental cost of your online shopping - mountains of packaging waste and millions of transport miles
Online Shopping Was Supposed to Keep People Out of Traffic. It Only Made Things Worse
1.5 Million Packages a Day: The Internet Brings Chaos to N.Y. Streets - The push for convenience is having a stark impact on gridlock, roadway safety and pollution in New York City and urban areas around the world
How Your Amazon Delivery Helps to Clog the Streets
Crowded streets: Cities face a surge in online deliveries
Delivery vans to blame for record traffic levels
My fears around Sainbury's plans for Harringay may be totally misplaced. I do hope so. (If the reaction to them at last week's LCSP is anything to go by, I may be alone in holding them). Only time will tell.
Sadly, the deadline for opposing the planning application passed yesterday (But as of this morning, you can still submit a comment online). I've been out of the country for the past few weeks and when I heard about this at the end of last week, I hadn't realised that the deadline was so soon. So apologies for missing this one. For those would still like to see the application, it can be viewed here. There was only one objection. But TfL have withheld their blessing.
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fic flow in and around it and by reducing parking overflow for traders on Green Lanes.
One thing that's almost certain is that the new shopping space will generate more traffic - and that's my primary concern. Last time this happened - just adding a few more aisles to Sainsbury's - it caused local traffic gridlock. Things don't bode well from current indications.…