After several weeks of fruitless attempts at
communication, Norbury residents in Oakhill Rd finally had a meeting on
Thursday 18 July in the street with John Algar, the Council officer overseeing
the street lighting replacement contract.
As a result a redesign was agreed so that two of
the new lamp posts scheduled to be by the boundary walls of four houses will be
placed on the kerbside. Residents concerned with light infiltration to front rooms
can ask for back guards to be fitted. This also applies to streets where new
posts have already been installed. Algar says: ‘Residents can call the
contractor Skanska at any time who will investigate any issues on and a case by
case basis. In addition, each road is surveyed after works are formally
completed to gain feedback from residents.’
During the meeting Oakhill residents made it clear
that while the contractor Skanska will want
to minimise expenditure and maximise its profits, it was the Council’s
responsibility to ensure that residents concerns were addressed. At first Algar
insisted that there was no obligation to consult and no room for change to the
design.
Oakhill Rd is an unusual road. It only has houses
on one side. Opposite the houses is a primary school’s green space. It is also
a rat run road in both directions between Stanford and Croindene Rds. Because
there are no parking restrictions a street where commuters and London Rd
workers and visitors park.
Residents have stressed that whatever the overall
design approach being used there has to be flexibility to take account of
special factors.
There are unresolved issues.
Light
Effect on Birds. Because of the school’s grounds with
gardens in Stanford and Croindene backing onto it, there is a greater number of
birds which can disturbed by the light in Oakhill thinking it is dawn and making a noise into
the early hour - disturbing people’ sleep; a problem experienced elsewhere.
Algar does not appear to be taking this issue seriously. He has simply
responded: ‘The new lighting uses a white light which research has shown to
have a low impact on Wildlife and much lower than the current orange lighting.’
Power Cuts. Algar
explains that the existing street lights are powered by a dedicated system.
This is failing and the Council decided to decommission it as part of the
renewal programme. He acknowledges that as a result the street lighting go out in the event of a
power failure in the street, along with power to people’s homes. This of course will leave a street in complete darkness. However,
he says that information is not
available on how many localised power failures there have there been in Croydon
is each of the last three years up to 31 March 2013.
Crime Prevention. Another
unresolved issue is whether the new lighting posts will adequately lit the
pavement running along the school ground. In the months when it gets dark
earlier and light late, the light from across the road will create shadows and
areas of poor illumination behind cars and vans parked on the school side of
the road. It is possible that this will make it easier for potential car
thieves and robbers to operate in semi-dark on that side of the road. Algar insists
that the light will be sufficient, and he has ignored a request to further
consult crime prevention experts. He may of course be right, but we will not
know for several months when dark sets in early.
What Have We
Learnt?
1.
Residents
with concerns about the replacement programme in their streets should not give
up if they do not get satisfactory responses.
2.
They
should persevere and insist on a meeting in the street so that particular
problems can be discussed.
3.
There
is room for a flexible approach in order to meet particular concerns.
4.
Always
keep your local Councillors informed, including copying them into emails.
5.
Keep
up the pressure feeding any additional questions and concerns to Algar.
John
Algar can be contacted at:
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