An Islington Cycling group are celebrating a safer route through Balls Pond Road, after being put at risk for months by dangerous diversion.
Cycle Islington’s co-ordinator, John Hartley spoke about their short-term project to create a better diversion for cyclists on Balls Pond Road. The ask came after Kingsbury bridge was closed for cyclists and pedestrians.
Intense lobbying led to changes
He said, “We lobbied hard to Network Rail and Islington Council, and we finally got them to make some changes. They have put in a segregated section along Balls Pond Road which has made it not perfect, but safer.”
Earlier this year, Network Rail abruptly closed Kingsbury bridge for cyclists and pedestrians, part of one of the major cycle routes in London. After ten months of writing to Network Rail, they finally put up a segregated diversion right after Kingsbury Road towards Balls Pond Road on 7 November.
Nobody thought about the consequences
Talking about the closure and its effects, Hartley said, “The diversion they put in on Balls Pond Road was very dangerous, and since it is a dedicated route for cyclists, throwing them out of the road without any sort of protection was wrong.”
Hartley said that there were other possible solutions, so the decision to close the bridge was strange as trains still run underneath it.
He also said that Cycle Islington “understood the closure due to safety concerns but it was unfair to not warn cyclists and pedestrians about this massive change.”
Cycle Islington is a volunteer-run group that promotes cycling and campaigns for safe cycling all over Islington.
