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Vehicles moving through Waterlow Park snapped by New Journal readers |
Anger at cars in the park
THE peace and safety of Camden’s parks is being shattered by an explosion in the number of cars and trucks driving on the footpaths, according to campaigners calling for a clampdown on vehicles.
Regular users of Waterlow Park, in Highgate, have sent the council – and the New Journal – a dossier containing dozens of pictures of minibuses, cars, 4x4s and trucks driving on the narrow footpaths.
Park user Simon McReynoldson said: “Camden’s parks are full of vehicles: trucks, vans, tractors, cars and 4x4s. There were none until two years ago. The council claims they are needed. But the borough’s main parks and open spaces managed perfectly well with none for over 100 years. It is not safe for children and dogs to run around safely and freely. Owners and parents have to always be vigilant, even more so than in the outside world, where pedestrian and vehicle routes are clearly separated.”
Noise, safety, pollution and cost are all concerns for park users, who question the need for fleets of contractors’ vehicles to work in the parks as well as a tendency for businesses and members of the public to use Waterlow Park in particular as a cut-through.
For Highgate businesswoman Avril Castellazzo, who says she has walked in Waterlow Park every day for 12 years, the increase in the number of vehicles is “unbelievable”.
Ms Castellazzo said: “Sometimes there are more vehicles than people in there. It is only a matter of time until something happens. It’s time to stop the talk, and stop the vehicles.”
And Fiona Campbell, who takes her five-year-old to the park regularly, said mothers were increasingly concerned. “The place where we go to get away from the traffic is now full of traffic,” she said.
The volunteers at Friends of Waterlow Park have taken the matter up with the council in recent weeks, according to chairwoman Ceridwen Roberts. “We have made our representations to the council and we believe there has been an improvement. The Friends would want to keep motorised vehicles in the park to an absolute minimum.” |
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