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Whats in Wapping

Olympic barriers isolate Wapping ahead of TfL schedule

by What's in Wapping on July 22, 2012 in Wapping Life

Olympic barriers isolate Wapping ahead of TfL schedule

Puzzled Wapping residents have been checking their calendars. Olympic Route Network (ORN) barriers on the Highway appeared overnight Friday and were firmly in place yesterday morning, 21st July.

Although the ORN lane will not be operative until 25th July the fixed barriers mean Wapping drivers must divert as if they were.

Vehicles exiting Wapping island are forced to turn left at junctions with the Highway – where left and right turns are prohibited to traffic already travelling on the Highway.

TfL has lied and misled Wapping

All TfL communication has and continues to clearly state that restrictions such as banned right turns will commence from 6am on Wednesday 25th July.

“I think there has been (at best) somewhat underhand dealings with us, (at worst) downright intention to mislead and hide the facts”, says one local resident.

Technically the ORN will only be operative from 6am to midnight, but TfL have told us:

“It is not feasible to remove and reinstate these obstacles on a daily basis.”

So the Olympic Route Network has been delivered to Wapping five days ahead of the published TfL schedule and is already operative 24/7.

“I do not believe this has ever been made clear in any communication. If it has, please can you guide me to this information?” asks one resident of TfL.

TfL have not replied other than to say: “The operation of the network, i.e. enforcement and the issue of PCNs for contraventions, will be from 25 July to 14 August and 27 August to 11 September as advised before.”

Fixed Olympic barriers isolate Wapping

These pictures were very intentionally taken during a short period of quiet traffic yesterday, 21st July to help show how and where just some of these fixed barriers have appeared:

Fixed barriers on the Highway E1 forces traffic ahead only

Fixed barriers on the Highway E1 forces all traffic ahead only from 21st July 2012

 

Left turn only out of Cannon Street Road onto the Highway

Left turn only out of Cannon Street Road onto the Highway because of fixed TfL barriers - traffic is forced to head east

 

No left or right turns at Vaughan Way junction with the Highway in London E1

No left or right turns at Vaughan Way junction with the Highway in London E1

 

Fixed barriers in place all along the Highway force traffic heading east to the busy Tower Hill gyratory

Fixed barriers in place all along the Highway force all traffic heading west to the busy Tower Hill gyratory

 

TfL must be held accountable to Wapping

The fixed barriers look very fixed to us, but TfL must still be held accountable to Wapping for cutting E1W off ahead of schedule and for longer than the official ORN/PRN period.

Businesses for example have planned night deliveries around TfL’s published dates, understanding there would be no right turn restrictions when they were made.

Less mobile residents have planned for help during the ORN and PRN periods only – but pedestrian crossings are already restricted or closed.

Emergency vehicles are also physically prevented from turning by the fixed barriers. Will lives be put at risk?

Emergency vehicle on the Highway physically prevented from turning

Emergency vehicles on the Highway heading east or west are physically prevented from turning by the fixed barriers 24/7

 

Last, but certainly not least, how will these unexpected and permanent changes affect the 2,500 troops moving into Tobacco Dock in Wapping Lane who need to travel and provide essential security at Olympic venues?

The army too can only to turn left and head west to the Tower Hill gyratory from Tobacco Dock in Wapping Lane:

Fixed barriers on the Highway force traffic out of Wapping Lane to turn left

Fixed barriers on the Highway force traffic out of Wapping Lane and Tobacco Dock to turn left only and head west

 

Olympic route diversions [view here] have been implemented ahead of TfL’s published schedule for Wapping and will operate 24/7 until the end of the Games. We have tried but been unable to find anyone locally who was aware this was going to happen – including us.

TfL must be held accountable to Wapping and explain why these permanent fixed barriers were never mentioned in any of their consultation documents.

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  • Dave

    Leon Daniels have you advised Wapping residents, that you are expecting an £80,000 plus bonus, provided the Olympic lanes & Olympics go OK? This may impact, why you have imposed ahead of schedule restrictions upon residents.  I presume you haven’t.

  • Susshmm

    Flagging this as a reply.

  • Susshmm

    Leon – George is talking about the fact the 100 buses were terminating at Aldgate last week without any warning.  Not all of them, but enough to get a lot of people very upset – including me (I’m the cripple who had to drag myself home as a consequence). 

    This was not part of the advertised diversions and your helpline had no idea why it was happening. I still haven’t heard back from TfL despite promises that there would be a follow up.

  • http://www.whatsinwapping.co.uk What’s in Wapping

    Leon, firstly thank you for taking the time to comment here and for trying to help people, it’s much appreciated.

    In our view, the issue remains that TfL didn’t consult the local community or make sure that information was received ahead of the changes but like you are very happy that baring odd incidents (like that at London Bridge/Cannon St last night) public transport is coping well.

    If there are any more leaflets distributed ahead of the Paralympic period, it would be great if you are able to send them to us so we can share here as like many others, we never receive those from the distribution company and lots of people have reported that they find the GAOTG website difficult to use – sure the information is there, but finding it is not always so easy.

    Many thanks

  • Leon Daniels

    Again I’m sorry but 25th July was always the date for the Olympic Route Network to go live in full but there were millions of changes across London in the three weeks before that all of which was clear on-line and on publicity. Those changes were partly because the work is so extensive it took a long time to do, and secondly because our biggest challenges were in fact during w/c 15th July when most of the Olympic Family was here yet schools were not yet closed for the holidays.

    We are doing our best to keep everyone informed and much of that is through the Borough. I am sorry if people feel they didn’t get as much information as they expected but there has been a loud message for a considerable time about planning ahead and information in great detail has been available.

    Most importantly it is all working well and there has been none of the ‘chaos’ trumpeted by the media.

    Happy to discuss further of course

  • http://www.whatsinwapping.co.uk What’s in Wapping

    Leon
    Aside from how the changes are impacting Wapping, the issue remains that TfL implemented the changes ahead of the published date of 25th July which businesses, residents etc planned for. The only explanation we have received from TfL is that residents living within 400m were TOLD of this alteration just 3 weeks previously (it hasn’t as you say always been clear). We’ve been unable to find anyone who got a letter through their letterbox about this either. Also the early implementation affects residents living more than 400m as much as those within – neither groups, nor us were aware of the early implementation. The majority of residents in Wapping have NEVER received any of the leaflets TfL claim to have delivered although the delivery company appointed by TfL claims near 100% successful deliveries for the area. TfL said they would investigate this some time ago and also redeliver leaflets to Wapping ahead of the Games, but neither happened. We are frequently hearing on Twitter that residents have contacted TfL using the contact details on the GAOTG website with questions but most never receive a reply. We have the same experiences and it took a Freedom of Information request and 6 months of failures by TfL to meet the statutory requirements before we finally received a reply by which time many of the decisions had already been made.

  • Jhussain

    Hi Leon can you please advise me on my route please. I live in Jardine road, prior to this mess i was able to da a right turn from the highway which has now been closed or come onto the highway from butchers row and turn in left which has now been changed into a bus only right. Which means i am having to go into the limehouse link and come back on my self with every journey i take, this is very fustrating, time consuming and costly at the same time. Am i under any jurisdiction allowed to take the riht from butchers row onto the highway? And the the right turning in operation 24hr a day?

  • Leon Daniels

    George – what do you mean buses “terminating ahead of schedule”?

    Is this about the change to routes D3 and 100 from Friday 20th July?

  • http://profile.yahoo.com/4VKG4YYWXC5TS2AJZA7BFH4JFY George

    Leon, the buses have been terminating early, which was not advertised either previously or on your website, travel information telephone lines or anywhere else on the day.  This is our lifeline into Wapping and you’ve been cutting this off too.
     
    I spoke to the lady who was calling TfL in tears as she limped back with an injured foot last Monday and she said she still hasn’t been told why this occured despite promises by the TfL customer service operator that someone would get back to her.
     
    I’m also struggling to find where you told us you’d close us in ahead of schedule? 

  • Leon Daniels

    As the person responsible for this, the arrangements have always been clear. It isn’t physically possible to do all the work overnight at the last minute so changes have been made over 3-4 weeks. We left the Wapping arrangements until the very last moment. Bus service changes went in on the Friday and indeed there were signs along the route saying this a week ahead.

    Leon Daniels
    Managing Director Surface Transport TfL

  • http://profile.yahoo.com/4VKG4YYWXC5TS2AJZA7BFH4JFY George

    You can write but it will get completely ignored. The lady I spoke to the other day said she called their main enquiries number – 0843 222 1234 – selected the bus option and complained there.  She insisted on getting a response by telephone immediately but I don’t know that she got anywhere. 

    Otherwise, our local member should be helping us with this.  Call Jim Fitzpatrick’s office – 020 7219 5085/6215 - and demand help. 

  • Geoff – Thomas More Street

    Has any found out if the crossing at Glamis Road, Garnet Street and Wapping Lane will be opened between the Olympics and the Para-Olympics – I suspect not.

    Does anyone how we get in touch with TfL or LOCOG to discuss these issues.  

  • Bloss11

    I live in Gordon House on the corner of Glamis Road and The Highway and  our lives are hell. 24/7 we have cars and commercial vehicles beeping their horns at traffic trying to turn at the Glamis junction (it is now AHEAD ONLY), Already 5 accidents, one hospitalised. They have reset the crossing lights to 4.2 seconds, so only Hussein Boldtcan make it across safel. I simply don’t understand the fixed boolards in the centre. It is very unnerving seeing emergensy vehicles, stck in traffic with no exit. What absolute idiot decided on them with consultation?????

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