FAQs
FAQs
- Old Bethnal Green and Weavers public consultations will launch on 23 Monday January and the deadline for responses will be 12 February 2023.
- A Brick Lane public consultation will launch on 30 January and the deadline for responses will be 19 February 2023.
Why is the Council doing this?
When the Liveable Streets scheme was first implemented, concerns were raised which included amongst other things, access for people reliant on vehicle use and emergency service vehicles. There were also concerns regarding the impact on local bus services, access to families and support networks, and of displaced traffic on areas surrounding the schemes’ locations.
The scheme has been in place for nearly 18 months, and this has allowed for consideration on the impacts on all residents and stakeholders. For parts of the scheme, it has reduced some traffic levels and improved the public realm in a way that makes it safer for walking and cycling. The public realm schemes on Old Bethnal Green Road and Columbia Road have resulted in reductions in traffic levels in the areas around them.
However, we have received strong feedback from residents and stakeholders reporting adverse impacts from the scheme. Data shows that there has been an adverse impact on local bus services and displaced traffic on local and boundary roads.
We are consulting on whether to implement a series of changes that have been developed following engagement with key stakeholders and data analysis.
Our key objective is to create healthier streets, with improvements to accessibility and road safety while restoring access for key services and residents reliant on their cars.
Where is the data that supports the council’s claims?
Where is the data that supports the council’s claims?
You can view documents which contain the data which supports the options presented in this consultation. These can be found in the documents section of each consultation (links below).
How will the consultations take place?
We will be consulting with stakeholders, including with emergency services, local residents and businesses in and outside of the defined areas.
If you receive a letter in the post asking you to participate, please fill in the consultation form or go online and use your reference code. If you do not live in the scheme area you can still have your say by filling in the surveys at https://talk.towerhamlets.gov.uk/liveablestreets
The public consultation for each area is three weeks. Following this, a decision will be made on whether to proceed with the proposals or make amendments.
Which residents are considered from within the scheme areas?
We have provided maps indicating the consultation boundaries on each area page. They can also be found through the links below
Brick Lane:https://talk.towerhamlets.gov.uk/4114/widgets/24042/documents/29385
Bethnal Green:https://talk.towerhamlets.gov.uk/4093/widgets/12671/documents/29386
What are the consultation timeframes?
The public consultation for each area is three weeks for Brick Lane, Old Bethnal Green and Weavers,
The dates for the consultations are:
Are you not committed to tackling the climate emergency?
The council is committed to continuing to focus and develop our response to the climate emergency.
We will be building on the work we have begun as an organisation and in our leadership role in developing the Tower Hamlets Net Zero Partnership Action Plan and establishing a Mayoral climate emergency taskforce, which will be committed to taking action on climate change.
This means introducing measures to improve air quality and tackle carbon emissions in Tower Hamlets, including encouraging sustainable transport options, planting more trees and reducing emissions from transport.
What is the point of a reference code if anyone can respond?
We are using the reference codes sent to residents and businesses as a more reliable way to determine responses from within each scheme area.
In line with all previous Liveable Streets consultations, responses are welcome from residents and groups from outside each scheme area.
I received one paper survey with one reference code but there are multiple occupants in my home who wish to respond to the consultation. How can this be done?
Your reference code is associated to your address and can be used multiple times, so all occupants will be able to respond to the consultation.
Why have you closed the consultation to those only those who live and work in the area?
Anyone can respond to the consultations. If you live outside the area and wish to respond please leave the field that requires a reference number blank. Reference numbers used in all responses will be subject to verification during the analysis of results. If you make up a reference number your response will be counted as one from outside the scheme area. In the original consultation postcode data was used to distinguish between those who were responding from within or outside the scheme area. The code system uses the same principle but in a more reliable way of verifying these responses are from within the scheme area.
Are the consultations available to only those who live and work in the area?
The consultations are open to all. If you live outside the area and wish to respond to the consultation, please leave the field that requires a reference number blank. Reference numbers used in all responses will be subject to verification during the analysis of results. If you make up a reference number your response will be counted as one from outside the scheme area.
What do I do if I do not receive my consultation pack?
Please notify us by emailing liveablestreets@towerhamlets.gov.uk.
When will the results of the 2023 consultations be made public?
The three public consultations have received significant feedback which includes responses to the surveys and engagement with stakeholders. Time is required to give this feedback its due consideration, which is currently ongoing.
Furthermore, the scale of the proposal, including the number of measures and the size of the scheme area, requires significant consideration before plans can be finalised.
Were local views excluded from the analysis of the 2022 consultation?
No responses were excluded from the analysis of the 2022 consultation on Liveable Streets. Both local views and those from outside the scheme area were included in the analysis of results.
Text analysis was undertaken for all responses regardless of location and use of the resident code. The key themes from these responses are presented in both 2022 consultation outcome reports and both 2023 consultation documents.
Each consultation document provides a summary of the more detailed analysis of responses that could be confirmed as from within the scheme area (those using the code).
Were the local responses to the 2022 consultation that did not use the code, included in the analysis of the local responses?
On page 1 of the Old Bethnal Green and page 2 of the Weavers reports, we set out how many responses had an internal postcode and did not use a code. These are expressed as percentages and absolute numbers.
Furthermore, in each consultation report, the explanatory text above each bar chart explicitly states the results are for all responses that used a code.
Why is a code needed to identify local views?
Since the introduction of the Liveable Streets programme, the results of consultations have been presented in the two categories of “all responses” and “local responses.” While all responses are analysed and included, it is helpful to track local resident responses to understand local opinion and impact.
Liveable Streets/LTNs have become increasingly visible since their inception in our borough in 2019, meaning consultations for local schemes can attract interest from outside the area, even the borough, which can provide an inaccurate picture of local public opinion.
Using only postcodes to identify local opinion leaves the process open to misuse as local postcodes are easily obtainable. The council adopted the reference code system to be able to distinguish the difference between local and non-local opinion in a more reliable way than just using postcodes.
The resident code system used is not perfect, but the council is confident it allows for a more representative view of local opinion than if it was not used.
Why are the 2023 Bethnal Green consultation documents so long (22 pages)?
When we consulted in 2022, we received strong feedback that that there was not enough information provided in support of the proposals. The 2023 consultation responds to this feedback by providing comprehensive information on the two options presented.
Is the council satisfied that consultation packs were delivered to all addresses?
The council has used the same delivery team to distribute consultation packs since the beginning of the Liveable Streets programme. The 2023 consultation was the third time they were required to deliver packs to all addresses in Bethnal Green.
When officers undertook further investigation on reports of blocks being missed, there was always confirmation that other addresses in the blocks had received packs. This was further supported by GPS verification of deliveries serving these blocks.
In some cases, people reported throwing packs away because they didn’t know what it was for. The council sent out additional packs whenever they were requested.
For the 2023 consultation we made stronger efforts to verify deliveries through video confirmation. Codes were also re-issued on request where packs were reported as lost or thrown away.
Both consultations received a significant amount of returned paper copies, far more than the original Liveable Streets consultation. The council is satisfied that all reasonable efforts were made to distribute consultation packs to all addresses in the relevant local areas.
Were TfL’s views on the scheme to remove the closure misrepresented?
Since the inception of the Liveable Streets programme in 2019, the council has worked closely and consulted with multiple departments (including TfL Buses) within TfL to identify any issues in our transport proposals.
TfL Buses have been routinely consulted on the implementation of Liveable Streets measures in Bethnal Green and other scheme areas. As a result, TfL Buses response to the consultation was captured in each consultation report, explicitly labelled as a response from TfL Buses, not TfL as a whole organisation. In no document put forward by the council was it communicated that TfL as an organisation was supportive of removing closures.
TfL raised concerns that the response to the 2022 consultation included in the report was not representative of the overall organisational stance on the proposals, rather it was the opinion of the Buses department of TfL.
Since these concerns were raised, we have worked closely with TfL to review and streamline all future consultation processes with them, including for the most recent Liveable Streets consultations, using a single point of contact for TfL consultation responses. We will be using their latest consultation response to inform all decision-making around Liveable Streets.
TfL is an essential partner for the council, and we will continue to work closely with them on future transport proposals.