Harrow could benefit from new cycle routes, 20mph limits and bus service support under a citywide transport improvement scheme.
Councillors on the traffic and road safety advisory panel (TARSAP) outlined four main priorities for localised funding from Transport for London (TfL).
Harrow Council hopes to secure £100,000 in grants proposed by TfL but this has yet to be confirmed.
If the full amount is allocated, £40,000 will support cycling and walking routes in Harrow by connecting the TfL cycleway from Station Road to Kenton Road.
A further £30,000 will cover a review of the junction layout at Roxeth Hill, Lower Road and Shaftesbury Avenue to “improve bus movement” while £20,000 will be used to create a 20mph zone in Royston Park Road, Pinner, through speed reduction measures.
The remaining £10,000 would be spent on a dial-a-ride service in Harrow town centre’s Havelock Road.
Cllr Peymana Assad (Lab, Roxeth) told a TARSAP meeting yesterday (Tuesday, March 2) that these suggestions, allocated by the borough’s Labour Group, represented a “balanced” use of the proposed funding.
She said: “This will help people get out on their bikes more but also looks at bus routes.
“Rat races in Royston Park Road will be alleviated and a new dial-a-ride will support our disabled constituents.”
Cllr Ameet Jogia (Con, Canons) supported the call for anti-speeding measures in Royston Park Road since residents have reported several “incidents” in this area.
Anoop Shah, a panel advisor representing Harrow Cyclists, also backed this decision but urged the council to install significant speed humps as part of the scheme as opposed to ‘narrow speed cushions’ which are “ineffective” as drivers can often straddle them.
Alongside these measures, Cllr Jogia said the Conservative Group in Harrow would favour a review of all pelican crossings in the borough at a cost of £20,000.
He suggested these two priorities be put forward at this stage and called for a further discussion once the amount of funding has been finalised.
“We have had a spike of incidents [at pelican crossings] during the lockdown and this scheme is relatively small in cost. Plus, will buses be as much of a priority as we come out of lockdown?” he said.
However, the panel, which has a Labour majority, supported the suggestions put forward by Cllr Assad.
TARSAP members also noted a proposed £30,000 review of the signalling at Kenton Library to support buses turning right could be carried out in the event TfL issues surplus funding, while any decisions will need to be reviewed if anything less than £100,000 is offered.
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