Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
cyclists misusing the widened pavement on Endymion Road
Hello
At the start of the pandemic, the council realised that some pavements were too narrow to allow proper social distancing, so it asked for suggestions for temporary widening. The stretch of Endymion Road leading up to the vehicle entrance of Finsbury Park was one such area identified (and the council has now applied for this temporary measure to be made permanent: https://www.haringey.gov.uk/parking-roads-and-travel/travel/transpo...). Shortly afterwards, temporary barriers appeared, meaning that it was possible to encounter families going in the opposite direction while maintaining a 2m gap. All good, then...
Except in recent weeks, renegade cyclists have begun to move the first barrier so they can cycle up the widened pavement. I keep closing the gap (as does at least one other pedestrian), but it keeps mysteriously opening up again.
So two things: if you're the cyclist who keeps removing the barriers, please don't. That space is designated for pedestrians, and as cases of coronavirus spiral out of control again, then it is important we are allowed to maintain our distance without having to walk into the road, especially as many of us are walking along that section of road on the way to the park with our children.
Second, does anybody have a contact at the council so I can take this up with them, please? Something more difficult to move might make the desired difference.
Thanks.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Neil Whitehead on
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Hi Phil,
I ride along Endymion to and from work each day and can see why somebody’s been moving the barrier. Though I’m pleased the council are taking action and widening pavements I don’t think that this stretch has been very well thought through.
Before the barriers were installed you could safely ride up the inside of traffic and enter the park with ease. The width of the road has now been reduced so much so that it’s impossible to safely pass slow moving or static vehicles. I now end up crawling along amongst the traffic which is fine, but not particularly pleasant. When the roads been completely backed up It’s actually been quicker to dismount at the roundabout and walk up the path. I’m not entirely sure what the solution is here, but would be fantastic if the widened pavement could be sensibly shared between pedestrians and cyclists.
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Permalink Reply by Phil M on
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Thanks for your reply (and the different perspective), Neil.
Thinking about it, I guess part of the problem is that the council has not made it clear why that bit of the road is cordoned off, so I see some cyclists could see that they have right of way there.
Maybe one solution in the longer term would be to move the dotted line down the middle of the road a little further over to the non-park side, making both sides of the road a more equal width, and thus giving more space to southbound cyclists...
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Permalink Reply by DavidJ on
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Just to back what Neil is saying here. Haringey have managed to create another cycling nightmare here - on a piece of road that is heavily used by cyclists on the way through Finsbury Park.
The road is now dangerously narrowed on one side - and it is very dangerous because of the physical barrier that makes up the pavement extension means there is no escape when a car misjudges how narrow that lane is (and cars speed down the other way).
I have never cycled up the pedestrian bit - but I can certainly understand the temptation.
Haringey seem to have done literally nothing to reduce traffic levels - despite having months to plan for this, and months of low traffic when it would have been great to have put alternative schemes in place.
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Permalink Reply by ant on
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I made the mistake of cycling up by there with my kids a while back and the pavement widening made it feel like a death trap. Its up hill so once you're a little way along you realise that its a bit of a slog for children going up the hill and that there isn't really much space for you plus the two way traffic whizzing past at 30kmh+ close passing you on the now much narrower road. But there is no way to turn around to go back so just have to carry on - you're completely trapped by the fence on top of the barricade on one side and the all traffic whizzing on the other side. Some other cyclists were complaining about it on Twitter recently. I found the experience scary enough to complain to the council about it but in typical Haringey council fashion I've never heard back.
It's not that busy a footpath here so it seems like a much better use of the space to open the barricade entrance so cyclists can use the space as a protected cycle way.
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Permalink Reply by JoeW on
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They could easily create an entrance into the Park at the end of Alroy, pedestrians can then walk through the park.
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Permalink Reply by Caroline on
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I agree I think we should be lobbying for a new park entrance wide enough for bikes and pedestrians close to the Alroy Junction. I think that this would be a much more effective solution than widening the pavement along Endymion. Also it might help to reduce the pressure on the pedestrian crossing at the main gates. I always walk along the pavement on the non park side and cross at the crossing and because the road is very wide at that point the pedestrian light is long and traffic backs up.
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Permalink Reply by Mavic Starfish on
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Another c*** up by Haringey and implemented by someone who cannot possibly be a regular cyclist, particularly bearing in mind the average driver on the roads round here. I'll get my tin hat on but I've been cycling in this borough for 10 years and its getting worse with bigger / wider cars becoming the norm, whilst the roads are never going to get bigger.
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Permalink Reply by Michael Anderson on
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During lockdown it was very busy as the New River gate on Endymion was shut - maybe it needs a rethink now things have quietened down.
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I think I was there at the same times as Michael. Between March and May or so, that pavement was very busy, to the extent that I often had to walk my children in the (less busy than normal) road because of big groups of people coming in the opposite direction. Or people insisting on walking right down the middle of the pavement
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That would be possible if it was clear that pedestrians had priority. But you only need one or two inconsiderate cyclists to spoil it for everybody, unfortunately. To be honest, I think the best solution would be JoeW's suggestion of a pedestrian entrance opposite the end of Alroy Road, which would mean there'd be no need to widen the pavement in the first place. (That, or Haringey could actually do something to discourage car and van usage. But I'm not going to hold my breath.)
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It would mean putting path straight through the American Gardens.
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If that’s what people want, fine. It isn’t going to provide a quick fix though
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