I am writing to tell you just how much I do not want Elmwood Road, where I live, to be included within a CPZ.
I will of course be completing the questionnaire in the consultation pack (which, I would like to point out, has a fundamental flaw in that the reference to Q3 within Q7 makes no sense) but I would like to take this opportunity to make it crystal clear that I object in the strongest terms to the suggestion that extending the CPZ to my road and those near it would improve the lives of those who live and work in the area. Here's why:
1. There is no parking problem near my house.
2. Surely CPZs are the opposite of helpful as far as small businesses are concerned?
3. The park opposite my house (Sunray Gardens) is used by many families with small children as it has a playground that is particularly suitable for preschool (much better than Dulwich or Brockwell Park). The majority walk but some drive there. Where would they park?
4. Most parents whose children attend the Half Moon Montessori at the corner of Beckwith Road and Half Moon Lane walk with their children to nursery, but sometimes they have to drive and park nearby, as do the staff on occasion. What do you suggest they do?
5. Many of the teachers at the Charter School park at the end of Elmwood Road, where there is plenty of space as there are no houses at this end. Presumably they drive because the public transport system is expensive, indirect, unreliable and slow. Where would they park?
I mostly walk around the Dulwich area, but sometimes, particularly in the winter, if it is raining, or if I'm on my way out of town, I drive to the library with my two small children and I can always find a free parking space near the library. If I couldn't drive then I wouldn't use the library as much, and this is probably how people who drive to Sunray Gardens feel. Wouldn't you rather live in an area where people are encouraged to walk, cycle or use public transport but where it is also understood that sometimes people need to drive, and therefore also to park? I object to the scaremongering approach that you are taking, namely 'if there is a CPZ on an adjacent street wouldn't you want one on yours?'.
I would also like to complain about the tone of the consultation, which is massively biased towards the extention of the CPZ. There is an entire page devoted to the 'benefits' of a CPZ and nothing on the problems and costs to the residents, which are many and varied.
I have a few questions relating to the consultation pack received today. I would be grateful if you could answer them:
Who is conducting the parking survey? What exactly is it that they are surveying?
Is it the case that either the whole of the area outlined in red becomes a CPZ, or none of it?
Will we be told the outcome of the consultation on a street-by-street basis, ie will I be able to find out if the majority of households on my street object to the creation of a CPZ?
What 'transport-related improvements' is the council considering, specifically for the proposed CPZ extention area, bearing in mind that there are no car parks in this zone, no need for additional school crossing patrols and extra speed bumps have already been planned and presumably paid for. I would like to know what the £50,000+ generated each year by the residential parking permits will be spent on. How much will go to the privately-owned parking management company (I can almost here the ker-ching as the contract is signed) who will oversee the CPZ I wonder?
Please can you also provide more information regarding the 'feedback indicating that parking problems have increased in nearby uncontrolled roads', namely which roads and how many households are involved.
Yours sincerely
Charlotte Judet
Elmwood Road
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