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THREAD: Some of you will have seen the article in The Times earlier in the week announcing Ealing Council have decided to remove the Road Open signs after an assessment found they were confusing to drivers.
I've just been informed that Lambeth Council will also be removing the signs from planters after receiving the same assessment. Though, because they are brilliant, the signs will still be displayed in some form -- just in different locations.
I think, at this point, it's probably pretty likely that other councils around the country will follow Ealing and Lambeth.
While I hope some councils will choose to keep the signs in pedestrian only places, I'm sure many won't go to that effort.
While I hope some councils will choose to keep the signs in pedestrian only places, I'm sure many won't go to that effort.
The fact that "confused motorists" are the reason behind the removal of these signs is a blow -- because anyone who knows their story knows they were never designed for motorists. They were for the rest of us.
The Road Open signs were made for the cyclists, pedestrians, scooters, wheelers, skippers, rollerskaters, football players, runners, skateboarders, and all the other road users who, for far too long, have been ignored on our streets.
They were for the millions of road users in the UK who don't have a driver's license or have access to a car.
For those, who through lack of funds or because of disability or personal choice, never found themselves in a driver's seat but always found themselves on a road.
For those, who through lack of funds or because of disability or personal choice, never found themselves in a driver's seat but always found themselves on a road.
They were for all of those who have ever had the convenience of a driver put ahead of their own convenience. Those who have found themselves tapping a beg button in the rain while dry motorists sped past, not even trying to avoid the puddle.
They were for all the cyclists who have ever chosen a longer route because the most direct path to their destination just felt too dangerous.
They were a way of telling all of those people that those streets belonged to them too. That they weren't made to be dominated by cars, they were made to be lived on and enjoyed by the people who called those streets home.
But here's the thing: something has changed between when these signs were designed and now.
Thousands more people are cycling on London streets. All over the country, groups are demanding better conditions for pedestrians and non-driving road users.
Thousands more people are cycling on London streets. All over the country, groups are demanding better conditions for pedestrians and non-driving road users.
My own neighbourhood is unrecognisable from what it was before our LTN was introduced.
Everytime I go outside, I'm guaranteed to see more people walking, running, and wheeling than I am driving a car.
Everytime I go outside, I'm guaranteed to see more people walking, running, and wheeling than I am driving a car.
Councils can take down these signs if they want to. But it's not going to change the fact that millions of people all over the country now know that those streets belong to them -- regardless of if they use a car to navigate them.
The UK is a country that is, slowly but surely, moving away from car dominance. Taking down these signs won't change that.
Taking down these signs won't take away the sense of ownership that pedestrians, cyclists and wheelers now feel for their streets.
Taking down these signs won't take away the sense of ownership that pedestrians, cyclists and wheelers now feel for their streets.
Tonight, I feel more hopeful about the future of our streets than I have at any other point in time.
Because when we made these signs, we did so dreaming of a time when our streets wouldn't just be for cars. And that time is here. That time is now.
Because when we made these signs, we did so dreaming of a time when our streets wouldn't just be for cars. And that time is here. That time is now.
The signs have succeeded in what they were designed to do. Removing them now can't take that away, as much as some hope it can.
I'm not giving up. And I hope you'll stick with me in the fight against car dominance.
I'm not giving up. And I hope you'll stick with me in the fight against car dominance.
