Thousands of pupil’s journeys to school will continue to be safer following the decision by Harrow Council’s Cabinet to make the four Schools Streets permanent.
Harrow’s four School Streets have been given the green light. The decision was made by the Cabinet following an extensive engagement during the 18-month trial period.
The School Streets trial period saw an increase in active travel, and children feeling safer on their journey to school.
The School Streets at Grimsdyke School, Newton Farm School, Marlborough Primary School and Park High School were implemented in 2020 to improve road safety and local air quality outside schools, by prohibiting vehicle access at the start and end of the school day.
Cllr Varsha Parmar, Portfolio Holder for Environment and Climate said: “I am delighted these School Streets will now be made permanent, continuing the safety and well-being of our children and young people as they travel to school.”
“This decision follows extensive engagement with residents and the school communities – we’ve listened to local residents and made improvements to the schemes, adding more signage and moving to permanent Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras.”
Cllr Graham Henson Leader of the Council said: “During the pandemic, we’ve removed Streetspace trials that did not work as intended, and today we’ve made permanent those trials that are working well. These schemes are essentially about road safety for our children.”
“We consulted widely and have listened to residents, and the schools about the schemes. Children’s feedback was positive and spoke about feeling safer when crossing the road and being able to scoot, walk or cycle to school. They welcomed the impact the School Street is having on their well-being.”
School Streets are designed to reduce traffic and congestion around the school entrance for approximately an hour at the start and end of the school day.
Further information about the School Street schemes can be found at www.harrow.gov.uk/schoolstreets
