Camden has said that it will soon consult on extending CPZ hours in the CA-U zone. The Forum will stay “neutral” on the issue but is keen to see that the consultation is a fair one and that any changes that result suit the streets affected and are sensible for Highgate as a whole. Accordingly we are asking Haringey to consult so that the rules can continue to be the same on the boundary and near-boundary roads.

Opinions diverge widely and often street by street according to the pressures that areas feel. The point of this blog is to set out the various pieces of research that the Forum did (or knows of). They were all published in the Highgate Forum’s Plan (passed by referendum in July 2017) or as Forum blogs. They are listed below for ease of access given the interest in the topic.

This note from 2016 assessed parking stress in the whole forum area and concluded that streets might be seen as one of six types – some are suffering much more than others, and have issues at different times of day.

We  surveyed parking on Highgate Hill and part of Cromwell Avenue in 2013. There was persistent stress. That was followed by a similar survey of the High Street and South Grove in 2016. It showed parking at capacity, many long stayers and quite a lot of illegal parking. There was also widespread stress revealed in the Bisham Gardens survey. (An updated version is available from the BGRA.)

We are concerned by the methodology used by a number of companies and local authorities that conduct parking surveys. In essence, they are done in such a way so that there is never full capacity! In 2013 we wrote a note on a survey conducted for Channing School. Some data relating to the survey conducted for the Richardson’s site was also collected. Following those experiences, we wrote a note suggesting how such surveys should be conducted.

This note (and this 2016 blog) looked at road speeds and safety. It showed that the queues during much of the day give way to persistent speeding at night. Accidents on the main roads are too common. This blog from May 2016 reported a crash on Highgate Hill.

Islington kindly paid for both Haringey and Camden to produce surveys of parking pressures in the area close to Islington, before and after the changes to CPZ hours they made last summer. We have asked the councils to put such surveys online for all to see. When they do we will link to them from this blog. If they don’t publish them, we will, when we get the full copies and any reports written about.

Last but not least: This recent Forum blog discussed pollution and our plans for busses. And this blog was about the “hail and ride” W5. This blog from last August was about the plans for vehicle weight limits.