Residents vote to extend Ealing Dean CPZ!!
Council acknowledges “overwhelming” majority in five roads
The result is in, and it’s great news for all our supporters!
Residents of the “five roads” have voted by four to one for inclusion in an enlarged Ealing Dean CPZ.
The results of the official consultation, carried out a few weeks ago by Ealing Council, will now be presented to the November meeting of the Cabinet.
With 79% backing our campaign, and 19% against, the recommendation is for work to go ahead immediately on extending Zone JJ.
It appears that the design work has already begun, and the enlarged CPZ could come into force in January.
The voting figures for the consultation are very similar to the results of our own survey, when we began petitioning the Council more than a year ago.
A detailed report to this month’s Cabinet meeting notes there was an unusually high response rate of 53%, with an “overwhelming” majority of residents in favour of the CPZ being enlarged.
As a result, it recommends extending the CPZ to Carew Road; Elers Road between Culmington and Carew; Lancaster Gardens; Lavington Road from Rathgar down; Loveday Road from Rathgar down; Lyncroft Gardens; and Walpole Close.
Roads in the “outer area”, including Dudley Gardens and KIngsdown Avenue, have rejected the opportunity to be part of the wider CPZ.
Overall, 55% voted against, compared with 43% who wanted a CPZ. The response rate was 39%.
The result in these roads shows a much smaller majority opposed to a CPZ, compared with the previous consultation. We think it reflects the impact of displaced parking from Zone JJ, the cause of so many problems for our own residents.
To read more, click for the forthcoming Cabinet Meeting and see ITEM 15 ..also see our caverage in this Ealing Today article...
Reaction from CPZ Action Now
The result of the latest consultation comes as no surprise to CPZ Action Now.
Our group was formed immediately after the introduction of the Ealing Dean CPZ in July 2008, which resulted in the displacement of cars into our once quiet streets.
Overnight, our residents were faced with a parking nightmare, which has continued to the present day. Commuters leave their cars in our streets all day, making it difficult for residents to park near their homes. This is a particular problem for the elderly and mothers with small children.
The volume of traffic and noise has increased, and we feel our roads are less safe.
Vehicles are carelessly parked, and often block driveways. Cars are left dangerously close to street corners, making it difficult for delivery lorries and council refuse vehicles to turn.
Vehicles left on street corners block pavement ramps, making it difficult for the elderly and disabled to cross roads.
There is also evidence that residents of housing developments nearby, with no provision for cars, have begun using our streets for long-stay parking.
Our own survey of residents, conducted last year, showed a very high level of support for an extension of Zone JJ. Residents concluded that it was the only way to solve the problem.
Questioning people door-to-door, we obtained responses from 78% of the residents in the “five roads”…Lancaster Gardens, Lavington Road, Carew Road, Loveday Road and Lyncroft Gardens. Overall, 81% supported our demand for an extension of the CPZ. The results of the latest consultation by the Council confirm the strength of feeling on the issue.
We were very unhappy at the way the original consultation was handled, and in particular at the way a partial CPZ was introduced. A complaint by one of our members is currently being investigated by the Local Government Ombudsman.
Nevertheless, we welcome the recommendation for an extension of the Ealing Dean CPZ, and hope that it will now be implemented as quickly as possible.
We would also like to acknowledge the considerable help given by Councillor Ann Chapman, who listened to the views of residents in the area, both for and against the CPZ, and helped us to make our feelings known to the Council.