Streatham Green News

Tuesday, 27 September 2016

Could you monitor local air pollution?

Are you concerned about air pollution in Streatham? Local Green Party councillor Scott Ainslie is seeking volunteers to monitor nitrogen dioxide outside their home or place of work between October 2016 and April 2017.

When Cllr Scott Ainslie carried out a similar exercise in 2015, pollution levels in Streatham were found to me more than twice the EU legal limit.

Further monitoring now will show if air quality is improving or getting worse. The data collected will help strengthen measures to cut air pollution in the future.

Lambeth Council has teamed up with University College London's Mapping for Change project to provide the diffusion tubes to residents and businesses along with training in how to use them.

The deadline for applying to take part in this project is October 14th. Applications should be made by email to: lovelambethair@mappingforchange.org.uk, stating:

The address where you want to locate a diffusion tube and whether it is your home or where you wor
Problems and concerns with air quality in this location and why you would like to carry out the monitoring
Your ideas to improve air quality in your local area

If you are selected, every month you will change the diffusion tube, returning the old tube to Mapping for Change, who will send the tube to the lab for analysis.

At the start of the project there will be a workshop to explain how a diffusion tube works and a demonstration of how to change the tube each month. There will be another workshop six months later to discuss the monitoring results.

In 2015 Cllr Ainslie and his team placed diffusion tubes were place in 15 monitoring sites across Streatham. After four weeks the diffusion tubes were collected by UCL's Mapping for Change project and analysed. The results can be seen here http://new.communitymaps.org.uk/#/project/26?center=51.4926:-0.0625:12&layer=1

More information on taking part from October: http://mappingforchange.org.uk/2016/09/love-lambeth-air/

More stories on air pollution in Streatham:

https://lambeth.greenparty.org.uk/news/2015/05/21/air-pollution-study-reveals-streatham-no2-levels-vastly-exceed-eu-safe-limits/

http://streathamnews.blogspot.co.uk/2015/02/mapping-air-pollution-in-streatham.html

http://streathamnews.blogspot.co.uk/2015/02/petition-to-get-clean-buses-not.html

http://streathamnews.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/streathams-air-pollution-monitor-back.html

http://streathamnews.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/questions-to-london-mayor-about-air.html

Mosque plans on display at library

Plans for a new mosque building on it current site opposite Streatham Green are on display this week in Streatham Libary.

The proposals from South London Isalmic Centre for a better equipped space for prayer along with a café, meeting halls, classrooms, gymnasium, inter-faith library, funeral services and a nursery, are currently seeing planning permission from Lambeth Council.

SLIC is seeking views from the wider community on their plans. Currently space for prayer and meeting is very cramped inside the former fire station with many having to kneel to pray outside in its carpark.

Around 1600 people attend Friday prayers currently and there had been concern locally that a beautiful new mosque building would attract greater numbers and increase traffic congestion around Mitcham Lane and St Leonard's Junction.

At a meeting of Streatham Action's transport committee last week, Chair of the SLIC's trustees, Mohammad Aslam Ijaz, gave reassurances that the new building would provide better and more suitable facilities inside, reducing the need for people to spill out onto the pavement. He also confirmed results of a travel survey indiciating that 17 per cent of mosque users currently travel by car.

He said the vision for the new building was that it would provide a safe, open and friendly space for the wider Streatham community, with non-Muslims welcome to use its facilities.

The plans will be on display at Streatham Library until Monday 3rd October and can also be seen - along with a Q&A online here.

Feedback from local people is actively sought. You can contact the mosque with your feedback here.

Friday, 23 September 2016

Mayor to face question over treacherous junction

Green Party London Assembly Member Caroline Russell is to question the Mayor over the decision by Transport for London to reject plans for a pedestrian crossing for St Leonard's junction - notoriously dangerous for pedestrians.

Ms Russell, who sits on the London Assembly's transport committee, joined local resident Barbara Hartnell, whose neighbour was killed at the junction, and members of the Safer A23 in Streatham campaign to see for herself where two people have been killed and 39 injured - five seriously - in the last five years.

"It was shocking to see this junction which is designed entirely for the benefit of motor vehicles while people have to take their chances looking for gaps in the traffic as there is no green man signal," said Ms Russell.

"It is not fair that Londoners have to take their life in their hands just to get across the road. I was saddened to hear Barbara speak of her neighbour who sadly lost their life at this junction.

"I am tabling a question to the Mayor asking him to assess this junction using a healthy street check score and revisit the decision to avoid installing a crossing in the light of the assessment."

Local resident Jonathan Bartley, who was recently elected co-leader of the Green Party, invited Ms Russell to Streatham after news broke on Wednesday that TfL has rejected proposals for a new pedestrian crossing at or near the junction. Proposals for a new crossing were displayed in Streatham Library in November 2015.

The reason given by TfL team leader for traffic infrastructure Mark Griffiths in an email answering questions from the Safer A23 Campaign is that a new crossing would cause "increased congestion to traffic beyond an accetable level".

Wednesday, 21 September 2016

TfL rejects crossing for treacherous junction

News reaches us that Transport for London have rejected all proposals for a new pedestrian crossing near St Leonard's Junction - site of numerous serious accidents. Two people have been killed and 39 injured - five seriously - in the last five years.

At an exhibition in Streatham Library last November TfL displayed five options for a new crossing at the junction - where Streatham High Road meets Tooting Bec Gardens and Mitcham Lane outside St Leonard's Church. It is is notoriously dangerous for pedestrians, with currently no safe crossing place as it enters "the dip" down towards Streatham station.

But in a letter sent to local MP Chuka Umunna in April - today forwarded to the Safer A23 in Streatham Campaign - TfL writes:

"Traffic modelling unfortunately shows the proposals discussed at the exhibition are not currently viable, particularly in the weekday PM peak hour that was assessed. The proposals were likely to lead to increased congestion beyond an acceptable level based on the current level of traffic demand. This was a point that TfL made at the time of the exhibition. We need to mitigate for the delays for traffic, including buses, created by the potential introduction of any proposals, including the effects on pedestrians at adjacent crossings.

"In order to address this, we need to investigate a larger area of Streatham High Road and consider complementary measures so that the corridor can work reliably for all of its users.

"Our collision data over the last 10 years for this junction does not show a significant number of collisions compared to the London average. As such, we are looking at these wider measures, but this will involve a longer timescale than the programme communicated previously.

"Some proposals, which were not presented at the exhibition, have been designed to assist bus reliability. We intend to discuss these and other findings with Lambeth Council officers shortly to determine a way forward."

It is deeply disappointing that TfL continues to place a higher priority on traffic flow than on pedestrian safety in the heart of Streatham. The diffulty of crossing the High Road near this busy junction has been powerfully highlighted in this BBC news report.

The Green Party locally will continue with its long-standing campaign, with challenges over the accident data TfL is using in its assessment of the junction safety.

Quietways road closure trial to go ahead

Artists impression of traffic filter at Streatham Common station

The trial closure of Estreham Road to northbound traffic is to go ahead, following results of the public consultation carried out by Lambeth Council.

Estreham Road is part of the proposed Quietway 5, providing a safer cycle route between Waterloo and Croydon. In Lambeth its route would run north from Ellison Rd along Estreham Road, under the rail bridge on Potters Lane and then onto Conyer’s Road towards Waterloo.

Currently, Estreham Road is used by over 3000 vehicles on an average working day and is seen by some as a rat-run to avoid Streatham High Road.

During the consultation earlier this year, local residents raised concerns about access to people's homes, congestion on surrunding roads and the design and siting of the traffic filter, which will allow two-way access to cyclists. Around 56 per cent of the 139 people who responded supported or partially supported the trial closure.

In an email to residents on 31 August, Lambeth writes:

"The scheme is intended to be introduced as a six-month trial in order to assess the impact of the changes. Lambeth Council will conduct pre and post implementation monitoring during this period.

The six-month trial period will form a further public consultation period in relation to the proposals, and any representations received during this period in support or opposition to the scheme will feed into the assessment process.

At the end of the six-month trial period, the council will take a decision as to whether to make the scheme permanent (by introducing a permanent traffic order), or to remove the one-way closure.

Construction of the scheme is planned to begin in September/October 2016. Lambeth Council will write to local residents and businesses with details of the planned works."

For a summary of the consultation and Lambeth Council’s response, click here.

Tuesday, 20 September 2016

Festival time in Streatham this week

It's festival time in Streatham this week, with the second Streatham Free Film Festival running from 17th-24th September and Little Big Peace, celebrating the idea and culture of peace, 21-24 September.

Both festivals are run by local volunteers and all events are free. The White Lion pub hosts he Little Big Peace event launch on 21st Sept and several films too. Other venues getting involved are Turnstyle Records, Batch and co.Coffee, Deli Lama and many more local favourites.

Green MP's solo challenge over Southern Rail franchise

In case you missed it, this was Green MP Caroline Lucas's lonely stance in support of long-suffering Southern Rail commuters when she called on ministers to strip franchises from the failing rail company.

On 13 September she was the sole speaker from the opposition benches in the house of Commons.

People using Streatham, Streatham Common and Streatham Hill stations, are among thousands who are suffering deteriorating services, delays and cancellations while the rail company reports profits of nearly £100m.

Transport minister Paul Maynard criticised the recent industrial action, saying Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) - the company Southern Rail works under - was forced to cut services.

But Green MP Caroline Lucas hit back saying many of the guards she had spoken to were striking “very reluctantly” and were only doing so because they “genuinely believed there are safety concerns with driver-only operation”.

Later Lucas joked in a post on Twitter: "If only it was this easy to get a seat on @southernrail"

The Huffington Post picked up Lucas' lonely efforts. You can read its report here.