Living Streets protest – Parents and children ‘take their lives in their hands at Holloway danger junction’

Published: 19 March 2010
by PETER GRUNER

DOZENS of parents with children joined  an impromptu demonstration on Monday afternoon, calling for safety improvements to a “death-trap” Holloway junction.

The group, from Drayton Park Junior School, protested at the junction of Holloway Road and Drayton Park, where there have been several serious traffic accidents over the past few years.

Caroline Russell, chairwoman of local pedestrian pressure group Living Streets, said that parents were fed with waiting for another road accident at the black spot junction before there are improvements.

She added: “There are no lights or Green Man telling you when to cross. Traffic is turning in every direction. Hundreds of parents and children converge on this junction twice a day every day and take their lives in their hands when they cross.”

Parents from the school said that plans to install a lollypop crossing person to escort children across the junction were scrapped when it was realised that the traffic went too fast.

Transport for London has proposed a right-turn ban, but parents do not consider this sufficient to slow traffic down.

Ms Russell said she would like to see an all red light phase at the junction, allowing pedestrians time to cross in safety.

“It might be as simple as TfL rephasing existing lights,” she said.

School parent governor Andrew Myer, who is also standing for the Green Party in Highbury East, said: “We’ve been battling for a safe crossing here for three years. 

“You certainly wouldn’t allow a young child to cross here on their own. Talk to any parent at the school and you can see how worried they are.” 

A TfL spokesperson said: “TfL has been working to improve pedestrian crossing facilities to best accommodate the needs of all road users between Horsley Road and Drayton Park on the A1 Holloway Road. Various factors need to be considered, such as the potential impact of displaced traffic from the junction onto local streets. 

“We intend to    carry out a public consultation on the proposals later this year.”