Almost 1,000 people have signed a petition opposing the introduction of a new low-traffic neighbourhood (LTN) in Newham.
Woodgrange and Capel LTN is in the exploratory stages of development and Newham Council is surveying residents for their views on its proposals.
LTNs restrict vehicle access to certain residential roads in a bid to reduce traffic and improve the environment.
Mo Miah is one of a group of residents from Woodgrange Estate who are opposing the proposed LTN.
He has created a petition which asks the council "to re-consider the proposed plan and cease to implement a Low Traffic Neighbourhood Scheme in this area".
According to Mo, more than 600 people have signed a paper version of the petition and the online petition has 325 signatures.
Mo said the proposed changes would impact "the main carriageways like the boundary roads, Romford Road, Woodgrange Road, Capel Road".
He said: "These are busy roads as it stands - if you’re pushing traffic onto those roads then you are prolonging journeys for people, for working people, for people who take their children to school and so on so it’s a direct impact on people’s lives."
Mo claimed the proposed LTN would decrease the number of exits from the estate from five to two.
The council disputed this claim, arguing the LTN would leave the estate with three exits.
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Mo questioned how the scheme would benefit residents, adding: "[There are a] huge amount of service related, regular use facilities that will all be impacted because [we’ll be] just closed in and become a prisoner of our own area."
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According to Mo, the petitions, both online and physical, are aimed at being an alternative way to get information to people living in the area as he believes the council’s survey is not accessible to everyone.
He continued: "The survey is so difficult that not everyone will be able to fill it out.
"Not everyone has access to the internet, or the ability to navigate the internet, [there is] the language barrier – [the survey is] not recognising the community it’s trying to engage.
"I’m not trying to take sides. I wanted to give my view. That’s fine. Everyone is entitled to give their view.
"Whether you’re for or against, get your view across. If you’re finding it difficult, let them know by other means."
Cllr James Asser, cabinet member for environment and sustainable transport, said: "The consultation process on the proposal for a new low-traffic neighbourhood in the Woodgrange Estate is open at the moment and has already received a very high number of responses from residents, which is welcome as the more feedback we have the more detail we get to ensure that any proposals are addressing all issues.
"To clarify – this is a pre-implementation consultation – and the results will be carefully considered and assessed before any final scheme is put forward.
"The current plans suggest three and not two exits... from the Woodgrange Estate and we are listening to the feedback from residents on this and all other aspects of the current proposal."
The deadline for the consultation on the Woodgrange and Capel LTN has been extended until March 5.
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