Stroud Green Lib Dem Councillor Laura Edge has welcomed a commitment from Haringey Council to put down new road markings in Denton Road N8, warning drivers to watch their speed. The much needed road markings marks are due to be put in place in the next four weeks. However Laura Edge says more needs to be done to improve safety in the road and crack down on dangerous driving given the large number of children travelling to Weston Park Primary School, situated on the road.

The road has been nicknamed “the Big Dipper” by some residents because of way some drivers use it. Motorists travel up Oakfield Road, cut straight across Ridge Road and career down steep Denton Road. Local residents have told Cllr Edge that there have been an astonishing nine incidents in recent years where cars have shot across the T-junction where Denton Road meets Weston Park at the bottom of the hill. Several have ended up in the front gardens of houses on Weston Park.

Local residents raised the issue with Cllr Edge and Crouch End Councillor Dave Winskill in January of this year when another car ended up in the garden of a house in Weston Park, stopping just short of the front door and destroying a parked car on its way. They are worried that the situation is a disaster waiting to happen, threatening not only residents in Weston Park, but school children crossing the road to attend the popular Weston Park Primary School.

Cllr Edge has pledged to keep a close eye on the situation to ensure that the new markings are introduced within four weeks as promised. But she has also pledged to continue to work with local residents to lobby Haringey Council for more substantial measures to control speeding drivers.

Cllr Laura Edge (Stroud Green) comments:

“Progress has been made and I welcome the new measures planned by the Council. This is just a start though – more substantial safety measures need to be implemented in the area to ensure that residents, pedestrians and considerate drivers are not endangered by a minority of dangerous motorists. We will maintain the pressure until we reach a satisfactory conclusion.”