FAQs

Yes. We have a statutory obligation to consult residents and businesses within the project area on the design of the scheme prior to the implementation of the Permanent Traffic Orders (PTO).

There will be a phased approach to engagement and consultation, as detailed below:

• August and September 2021 - Early engagement on the proposals: we will share the proposed plan with the community, explain the rationale, and respond to questions.
• September and October 2021 - Statutory consultation: in line with our statutory requirements, a statutory consultation will open ahead of the implementation of the PTO for at least 21 days. Residents can provide objections or representations to the traffic order in writing to healthystreets@enfield.gov.uk or mail to ATTN Healthy Streets team, Enfield Council, Silver St, EN1 3XA.

When the design is completed and the relevant draft PTO are advertised, a statutory consultation will take place. During that period, anyone will be able to formally object or make any representation relating to the order, stating the grounds on which their objection or representation is made. Responses to individual objections will not be provided, but any issues raised will be addressed in a formal report that will inform the decision-making process. The report will be publicly available and will be uploaded to the project page at http://letstalk.enfield.gov.uk/nmh-ati.

More information can be found in the Communication, Engagement and Consultation Plan which can be downloaded from the project page.

There will be a range of assessments that will need to be balanced when judging the overall success of the project. Assessments will include:

• Residents views on how the benefits of the project compare against the disbenefits
• Data on the number of cycle journeys that make use of the route
• Data on the volume of motor vehicle movements in the area
• Data on the speed of motor vehicles in the area
• Impact on the primary roads surrounding the area
• Air quality considerations
• Bus journey time considerations through discussion with Transport for London
• Outcomes of ongoing dialogue with the Emergency Services

More information can be found in the Monitoring Plan which can be downloaded from the project page.

Information about key project dates can be found in the Key Dates section on the right-hand side of the project page.

A modal filter is a road closure for motor vehicles, which continues to enable people to walk and cycle through the closure point. Two main types of modal filters will be used:

• Standard modal filter:

Large bolted-down planters and bollards typically placed within the traffic lanes to close the road to through motor traffic. People cycling are allowed to travel between the planters, but all motor vehicles, including mopeds and motorcycles, cannot proceed through the filter.

• Camera-enforced modal filter:

Large bolted-down planters typically placed at the side of the traffic lanes to reduce the width of the road. There is no physical barrier, such as a bollard or gate, placed between the planters to stop the general traffic passing through the modal filter. Instead, a closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera is used to enforce the ‘Motor vehicles prohibited’ signs which are placed on each side of the modal filter. Sufficient gap is provided between the planters to allow through access for cyclists and exempt motor vehicles such as emergency services. Any other motor vehicles travelling through this modal filter would be captured by a CCTV camera and issued with a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) for not obeying the traffic restriction.

The camera-enforced modal filters will make use of suitable signage as prescribed by the Traffic Signs Regulations and directed by the Traffic Signs Manual. This consists of:

‘Motor vehicles prohibited’ signs
‘Reminder to drivers that traffic enforcement cameras are in use’ signs

As per the Highway Code, signs with red circles are mostly prohibitive. Specifically, the Highway Code mentions that “Red rings or circles tell you what you must not do, e.g. you must not exceed 30 mph, no vehicles over the height shown may proceed”. Therefore, the ‘motor vehicles prohibited’ signs indicate that motorised vehicles (including cars, vans, lorries, motorcycles, and mopeds) are not permitted to drive past them. Emergency services are exempt from this rule and are therefore permitted to drive past the ‘motor vehicles prohibited’ signs.

Road users have an obligation to know and apply the rules contained in the Highway Code, which includes, among others, the signs that will be used for camera-enforced modal filters. Please refer to the Highway Code at the following link for more details: https://www.highwaycodeuk.co.uk/road-signs-giving-orders.html

‘Motor vehicles prohibited’ signs
‘No entry for vehicular traffic’ signs

The purpose of the camera-enforced modal filters is to prevent drivers from travelling through them, whilst allowing emergency vehicle access.

The ‘motor vehicles prohibited’ signs give effect to a Traffic Regulation Order that prohibits the use of a road by motor vehicles except for the emergency vehicles. On the contrary, the ‘no entry for vehicular traffic’ signs prohibit all vehicles, including emergency vehicles. This is in compliance with the legal requirements of The Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 2016, Schedule 3, Part 3, Paragraph 11.

'No entry for vehicular traffic’ signs could for example be seen at entry points to one-way streets, where access to all vehicles, including emergency vehicles, would not be permitted. Hence this type of sign would not be appropriate for camera-enforced modal filters.

A point closure (sometimes referred to as a ‘point no entry’) is a restriction for motor traffic travelling in one direction at a specific point along a road. It still allows traffic to proceed in the opposite direction. With a point closure, two-way traffic remains on the sections of road either side of it. Unlike a more traditional one-way road, the point closure only restricts motor traffic travelling in one direction at that precise location (and therefore crossing the point closure).

The benefit of a point closure is that it reduces through-traffic, while maintaining two-way traffic on both sides of the road.

A bus gate is a point on the road where only buses, cyclists, and other exempt motor vehicles such as emergency services can pass through. They are typically enforced by a closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera, meaning that any other motor vehicles travelling through this modal filter would be captured by the camera and issued with a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) for not obeying the traffic restriction. The purpose of a bus gate is to reduce private traffic passing through a certain point, whist ensuring that a bus service is not impacted in the way it would be if the road was physically closed.

No. Vehicle access will be maintained to all roads within the area. Vehicle access may be limited between opposite ends of the road, but none of the roads will be completely closed to motor traffic, enabling access and deliveries to continue. For instance, the proposed bus gate at the southern end of Bull Lane will not allow drivers through access to White Hart Lane from the North via Bull Lane and the other way around.

Emergency services will continue to be able to access all residential streets, in some cases using different routes. The emergency services have been engaged in discussion on the proposals for this project. This has led to the design of a bus gate on Bull Lane and a modal filter on Amersham Avenue which will allow emergency access. Within the traffic orders necessary to support enforcement of such restrictions, emergency vehicles can be exempt, enabling improved access to North Middlesex Hospital.

The Council will continue to engage and discuss with the emergency services after the implementation of this project.

Yes, refuse vehicles will continue to be able to collect refuse from all residential properties. This was an operational requirement of the design. Discussions have already taken place with Officers responsible for Waste Management at the Council. Whilst they will need to maintain access, they are also clear that the number one risk to their operatives is from car drivers who are trying to pass through as they collect waste. To this end, they welcome measures to reduce traffic speed and volume.

The industrial estate will be accessible by heavy vehicles from the A406 North Circular Road as previously.

Shaftesbury Road will continue to be accessible from Commercial Road or Pretoria Road North.

The cycle route at the northern section of Bull Lane (between the A406 North Circular Road underpass and the junction with Wilbury Way) will include a fully segregated two-way cycle track.

Due to the reduction in traffic that the proposed measures will achieve for the southern section of Bull Lane, a segregated cycle lane will not be required. Instead, provisions will be made for safe on-street cycling. This will be supported by a new zebra crossing for pedestrians and people who cycle as well as traffic reduction measures, in the form of modal filters and bus gates, to create a safe and pleasant cycling experience.

Yes. Red and white warning signs notifying drivers of the road closed ahead are being proposed. In addition, a series of signs are being proposed to provide information about the bus gate.

The traffic survey data that has been collected shows that at the worst case, in which all of the following assumptions are true at the same time:

• All motor vehicles currently using the southern part of Bull Lane have an origin or destination within the surrounding area,
• The current journey of all motor vehicles passes through at least one of the points where either a bus gate or a modal filter is proposed,
• None of the motor traffic currently using the southern part of Bull Lane will use the surrounding primary road network instead,
• No people will choose alternative sustainable modes of travel,
• No traffic evaporation will take place,
• Motor vehicles currently using the southern part of Bull Lane will be evenly reassigned between Weir Hall Road and Pretoria Road, and
• Motor vehicles will not spread even further within the local area’s road network and therefore lessen the impact on Weir Hall Road and Pretoria Road,

the potential increase in two-way traffic flow at the peak hour on Weir Hall Road and Pretoria Road will be approximately between 3 and 5 vehicles per minute. This figure on an average 24-hour day drops to approximately between 2 and 3 vehicles per minute.

To further mitigate any potential traffic increase on Weir Hall Road outside the schools, we are working in collaboration with the London Borough of Haringey on developing School Streets for both Wilbury Primary School and Devonshire Hill Nursery & Primary School.

Finally, we will continue to monitor traffic and air quality in the area (including Weir Hall Road and Pretoria Road) even after the project is implemented. If the evaluation of the monitoring data reveals disproportionate negative impacts, we will consider appropriate mitigation measures. The document which sets out the monitoring and evaluation that will be undertaken in response to the implementation of the North Middlesex Hospital Active Travel Improvements can be found in the Monitoring Plan which can be downloaded from the project page.

North Middlesex Hospital will continue to be accessible for patients and visitors using private motor vehicles through multiple alternative routes depending on the origin of the journey and the preferred hospital entrance. Some of the possible routes from the South are listed below:

• White Hart Lane > Pretoria Road > Pretoria Road North > Bridport Road
• White Hart Lane > Pretoria Road > Shaftesbury Road > Commercial Road > Bridport Road
• White Hart Lane > Weir Hall Road > Wilbury Way > Bull Lane / Bridport Road
• A10 Great Cambridge Road > Wilbury Way > Bull Lane / Bridport Road
• A10 Great Cambridge Road > A406 North Circular Road > Silver Street > Sterling Way > Gloucester Road > Bridport Road
• A10 Great Cambridge Road > A406 North Circular Road > Silver Street > Sterling Way
• A10 Great Cambridge Road > A406 North Circular Road > Silver Street > Sterling Way > Bull Lane
• Fore Street > Sterling Way > Gloucester Road > Bridport Road
• Fore Street > Sterling Way
• Fore Street > Sterling Way > Bull Lane

Emergency services will be exempt from the traffic restriction of the proposed bus gate on Bull Lane and continue to be able to be able to pass through it, therefore enabling improved access to North Middlesex Hospital for critical cases.

The proposals will not impact access to the A406 North Circular Road from Bull Lane, as no restrictions are proposed to motor traffic movements along Bull Lane between its junction with Wilbury Way / Bridport Road and the A406. On the contrary, the proposed removal of a short number of parking spaces along that section of Bull Lane will enable a smoother flow of motor traffic. This is due to the parking spaces currently creating a narrow section of road where vehicles often have to stop and give way to oncoming traffic.