Recorder editor: TfL scheme is an insult to this borough

Transport for London's plans to improve safety at Gallows Corner (Image: Archant)

Users of the roundabout take their lives in their hands, if you cross the flyover you are never sure if you will make it in one piece and there’s hardly a time when drivers aren’t held up there. Even the name is not that welcoming!

So the news that Transport for London has taken three years to decide on an “improvement” scheme which is nothing more than tinkering around the edges is desperately disappointing for all.

The scheme appears to focus solely on the accident toll at the junction. That, of course, is important, and must be one of the priorities.

But it is about more than that. The roundabout is the principal cause of accidents, but the rickety old flyover built as a temporary structure has surely had its day. How long before it just collapses causing a major incident?

Surely slowing traffic approaching the junction – designed to cut down on accidents – will cause even more delays. Romford MP Andrew Rosindell hits the nail on the head when he says it needs a long term plan and “serious investment”.

The report from TfL, again astoundingly three years in the making, is an insult to Havering residents and businesses. It seems to reflect the view long held by councillors that the borough is consistently overlooked when funds are dished out.

TfL and the occupants of City Hall might like to consider that a prosperous Havering can only be good for London as a whole.

The Recorder is joining politicians in the borough in demanding a review of the plans and for a viable investment plan, which considers the full implications of the junction to Havering’s future prosperity, to be produced.

Over to you Boris.