"Hilltop" road closures going ahead

Thank you to everyone who campaigned vigorously for the THIRD time against road closures in what they are pleased to call the Hilltop area. Sadly Loakes has won third time around and the barricades will be going in shortly. Some of our members have written to the leader of the Council, Clare Coghill, begging her to stop this. Please add your voice and also sign the petition to demonstrate that there is NOT overwhelming support for these measures.

Here are some extracts from some of the letters which were sent to Cllr Coghill and copied to us:-

FROM JG

My elderly disabled parents live on Rectory Road, I am writing to you in the hope that you will reconsider the closure of at least one of the hilltop junctions. They cannot walk or cycle, they are completely reliant on their car. My dad is a severe Haemophiliac, any delay in an ambulance getting to him could have the worst possible consequences. If all of the proposed closures happen the only access into Rectory Road will be via forest road and then Hurst or Falmer Road. Please don’t try and tell me that this will not cause any delays as sometimes the traffic is gridlocked on forest road. I lived in the Village when Mini Holland was put in, last year my partner had a severe asthma attack and the ambulance could not find us and was driving around for ages before they found the only access so please don’t tell me that it doesn’t cause ambulance delays. They even said it was the road closures that meant they couldn’t work out how to access our road. I have now moved house because of this. I am genuinely scared for my parents safety if this is brought in. I understand why you want to bring in some of these changes but forcing all residents in these roads on to the already busy Forest Road as the only access point will cause huge issues. Also on Rectory Road there is a care home that’s regularly has ambulances in attendance, this is going to end in disaster. Please don’t forget about the elderly/disabled residents who have no option but to use a car, please remember that not all people can walk or cycle. By closing the roads you are going to make people more isolated than they already are. Please forward this email to whoever needs to see it.

FROM GT a lifelong cyclist, started in 1956 & still pedalling.

The proposal to block off Howard / Falmer / Hurst Roads will INCREASE traffic congestion & pollution in Church Hill & Shernhall St.

NO consultation was made with the other people affected …. Those living in: Stainforth Rd, W Avenue Rd, Folkestone Rd, Woodbury Rd, or The Drive.All of us living in those roads, as well as the imaginary “Hilltop” area will now be forced to go into the ridiculously congested Hoe St or round the long traffic-light queue in Shernhall Street if we want to go North, or West – taking longer, wasting fuel & even in a modern vehicle, adding to the pollution.

The “consultation” was fake & rigged, in a similar manner to previous occasions, where abstentions were counted as positive votes, & very restrictive fake boundaries drawn, so that many people affected did not get a voice or a vote.

FROM CB

Although I no longer live in Walthamstow I am interested to learn of the repeated plan to introduce road closures in the Church Hill area. Four years ago I lived at 9 Howard Road, and knew the area very well, as I used to cycle a lot. At that time I was opposed to a plan to seal off the area by road blocks onto Church Hill as part of the Mini Holland scheme. On the evening of 20 September 2016 after a meeting at the Ghousia Centre in Grove Road, ironically a meeting of Waltham Forest Streets for All, I suffered a haemorrhagic stroke. An ambulance was called immediately, which should have reached me quickly. Unfortunately, the way into the Village was complicated because of the Mini Holland road blockages. The driver of the ambulance eventually had to follow instructions given over the phone by a member of the group. The arrival of the ambulance was greatly delayed. I was taken to the Royal London Hospital and just survived, but I am still much affected, not least because I can only get around with difficulty. In consequence I have had to move from the house where I had lived for twenty years because I could not move up or down the stairs. I am struck by the fact that implications of this seem to have found no place in the repeated discussion of this issue, and further road closures are again being pursued.

FROM IW

I urge you to read and act upon this especially as this latest attempt appears to promote segregation of the road use between residents in the houses and those on estates. In addition to the attached I would like to highlight the first responder safety concerns that residents (I have spoken with in the area) have around the road closure area, especially to the estates along The Drive and Atlee Terrace in Walthamstow E17. Here the actual response time, (not the average response time) of first responders are of concern.

In April 2020 an ambulance was called to Howard Road, it came from the Ambulance station on Wadham Road, this ambulance came up the Howard Road from Forest Road end. If that road had been closed the ambulance would have had a longer journey. Any delay (that could be prevented) is unacceptable. Any changes to roads in the area should not have a negative impact such that health and safety are put at risk.

Waltham Forest Housing has created the Building Safety Task Force (made up of a wide group of council staff, residents, London Fire Brigade etc.) to improve residents safety in their homes in response to the Hackett report following the Grenfell Tragedy. Housing is reaching out with a level of engagement to all stakeholders which will ensure all voices are heard and play a part in this vital work. There is concern that the efforts by Housing will be negated by the proposed road closures if when first responders are required, they take longer to arrive, have to take a convoluted route to provide further care, reduce pursuit of potential criminals by law enforcement