St Peter’s and Canonbury East people-friendly streets neighbourhoods made permanent

Both schemes were introduced in the summer of 2020 as 18-month trials, and were the first of seven people-friendly streets neighbourhoods to be put in place by the council to help create a more equal Islington by making it easier to walk, cycle, scoot, and use buggies and wheelchairs.  

Since then, the council has been monitoring the impact of the neighbourhoods and listening carefully to public feedback, both of which reflect the schemes achieving their objectives. Traffic in both neighbourhoods fell during their first 12 months, with air quality improving within the neighbourhoods and on surrounding boundary roads between 2021, the last year where data was available, and 2019, the year before the neighbourhoods were introduced.   

Local people in both neighbourhoods told the council how it was easier to walk and cycle for short trips in both neighbourhoods, and how they felt safer using streets during the day.  

A cleaner, greener, healthier future for Islington  

Cllr Rowena Champion, Islington Council’s Executive Member for Environment, Air Quality, and Transport, said: “The COP27 festival has led to renewed focus on tackling the climate emergency, and making the St Peter’s and Canonbury East people-friendly streets neighbourhoods permanent is a crucial step in our efforts to create a cleaner, greener, healthier Islington for all.  

“Since their introduction two years ago, both schemes have achieved their objectives by making it easier for local people, where possible, to walk, cycle, scoot, and use buggies and wheelchairs as environmentally-friendly alternatives to driving. The feedback we’ve received from local people reflects the positive impact the neighbourhoods have made, with our Blue Badge exemptions making it easier for disabled people to travel.   

“With 24% of Islington’s streets covered by people-friendly streets neighbourhoods, we’re committed to continuing to deliver more pleasant, greener streets for all.”  

Making it easier for Blue Badge holders to travel  

To make it easier for disabled people to travel, Blue Badge exemptions have been introduced across all of Islington’s people-friendly streets neighbourhoods.   

The exemptions – which more than 300 people have benefitted from in St Peter’s and Canonbury East – will remain in place in the two neighbourhoods as they are made permanent. A report on the impact of the exemptions in St Peter’s and Canonbury East, which shows that both neighbourhoods are continuing to deliver positive results, has been published on the council’s website, alongside reports on monitoring data and resident feedback.  

The council is committed to supporting disabled people, and is listening carefully to feedback. A new “individual exemption policy”, which will compliment and go beyond the existing exemption, is currently being developed and will be rolled-out across all of Islington’s people-friendly streets neighbourhoods. Further details on the new policy are expected to be announced in the New Year.   

The future direction of travel  

Despite the positive impact of the people-friendly streets neighbourhoods, the council’s mission to make St Peter’s and Canonbury East cleaner, greener, and healthier is far from over.   

As part of an Islington-wide effort to green the borough, the council will soon be announcing ambitious plans to create more green space on Elmore Street, Cleveland Road, and Wilton Villas. Meanwhile, the council is also working on improvements to Charlton Place, including traffic reduction measures, greening, and pavement improvements.  

Decisions on the long-term futures of the Canonbury West, Amwell, and Highbury neighbourhoods are expected to be taken in 2023, with monitoring data and resident feedback showing how the schemes have created more pleasant, environmentally-friendly streets.   

Liveable Neighbourhoods  

Through people-friendly streets, people-friendly pavements, and greening projects, the council is striving to make Islington’s streets more environmentally-friendly, to help tackle the climate emergency. The council is currently working on long-term plans to tie these initiatives together through “Liveable Neighbourhoods”, so that even more people can benefit from cleaner, greener, healthier streets.   

Liveable Neighbourhoods will help make it easier to walk and cycle, and will make communities more pleasant through improvements such as cycle routes, better crossings, and improved public spaces to remove barriers to cycling. They will also include wider improvements to help communities flourish, such as additional green spaces, improved pavements, public realm improvements, and unique placemaking features.  

All Liveable Neighbourhoods will be subject to extensive consultation and engagement with local people before being introduced. Early engagement on Liveable Neighbourhoods in Mildmay, Barnsbury Laycock, and the Cally is expected to begin before the end of the year, and will help shape the designs of the proposed neighbourhoods, which will then be subject to consultation. It’s anticipated that the introduction of Liveable Neighbourhoods would begin during the 2023/2024 financial year.