Emergency services say it would be "inappropriate" to comment on worries over a set of controversial road closures in Jesmond.
Opponents of a new Low Traffic Neighbourhood (LTN) installed over recent weeks have aired concerns about fire engines, ambulances, and police cars becoming stuck on congested main roads and left unable to respond to emergencies fast enough, with every cut-through route between Osborne Road and the Cradlewell now blocked off. In order to stop drivers rat-running through residential streets, Newcastle City Council has installed bollards on multiple roads – now including Jesmond Dene Road, in an expansion of the scheme having come into force last Friday.
The changes, which have divided locals, have been introduced on an experimental basis for 18 months, with a public consultation running until this September to help decide whether they become permanent. While the Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service said the LTN had not negatively impacted its crews yet, both it and Northumbria Police said it was “inappropriate” to comment further while the trial is ongoing.
A TWFRS spokesperson said: “We have been consulted throughout the installation of Low Traffic Neighbourhoods by the city council and so far they have not impacted on our emergency response. However, this remains a trial scheme, the purpose of which is to understand the impact it will have on communities, including any impact on the response of emergency services. It would be inappropriate for us to comment any further at this stage as we will not be able to evaluate the full impact of the LTNs concerned until that trial has concluded.”
One local resident, Charlotte Tame, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that cutting off some routes for the emergency services was “absolutely obscene and unsafe” and risked vehicles being held up by “immovable congestion”. However, supporters have argued the bollards have made the area safer for cyclists and pedestrians and pleaded for patience to allow people to get used to the changes.
A spokesperson for Northumbria Police said: “We continue to be involved in the consultation around the Low Traffic Neighbourhoods trial. This includes looking at any potential impact on our service to communities. It would be inappropriate to comment any further until this has concluded.”
The North East Ambulance Service was also contacted by the Local Democracy Reporting Service but was unable to comment. The city council said that speaking to the region’s emergency services was a “key part” of the various LTNs introduced around Newcastle.
A spokesperson added: “These schemes are trials, with public consultation running within the first six months of the scheme being implemented. Trials means we can make changes if required, as we have done with the Jesmond East scheme, and we continue to monitor the situation.”
In early March, restrictions were installed on residential roads between Osborne Avenue and Cavendish Road. But, after complaints that the LTN was causing congestion on the few remaining open routes, the council has now added bollards on Jesmond Dene Road and Akenside Terrace too.
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