[Airbag]

Hi

Thanks for the replies and informed opinion is always useful.

Friends of the Earth are providing support and the London Bat Group to date to my knowledge but the organisers of BSCAEG will know of others . We have over 600 signatures at time of writing and counting. Guess the numbers are going to level out soon, our area is a very small corner of Barnet, but we filled the community centre at the last meeting.

As for living in Barnet to only sign or you dilute the message - well fair point. I would especially hope to attract interest from residents of north London / Hertfordshire - a pretty big area - as we all benefit from the Green Belt if we live in those locales.

Please be mindful that I have invited people to the myspace page so they can read all the articles and editorials and decide about signing the petition. Pros & cons is right - that's why I chose the word 'decide' in my post.

The linear pathway liked by bats I get but I believe some roosts will be vulnerable. But lets not forget small mammal road kill, light pollution into a half-mile stretch of wooded area and the severing of a brook. That to me seems a disrupted green corridor. An ecologist reminded me that vehicles also bring with them alien seeds which will contaminate the ecosystem there. I laughed because really the cars will be coming from Golders Green and Finchley. But on reflection, the intensive truck & lorry traffic as they demolish the old school then ship in materials to contruct the new buildings will be contaminating. Materials don't get locally sourced & lorries from all over the UK will be trundling pass the wood.

The weight of traffic problem is very tricky because the proposal will draw the traffic right past our primary school which throws our own green travel plan inititives - ie walking school bus into jeopardy as the route will now be so dangerous & utterly fume filled. The roads in the immediate vicinity are narrow enough get blocked with just one car parked on one verge. The new school is proposing it's own Green Travel Plans but these are not binding conditions and are only applicable to year 4 + . These facts aren't being reported in the press. Unless they're made binding all green travel plans proposed are only 'aspirational'. The double whammy really is that if the school actually did implement their GTP then the new road will be unnecessary.

My own, very personal angle is the Green Belt creep. Once that road gets built on the playground - well it'll only be a matter of time. I guess you got to live in a London Borough to know a) how very precious any green space is & b) how vulnerable these valuable ( & I mean in £££ too) areas are as well. Just got to fight for them & argue for greener travel initiatives.

But, as I say, the last bit is my pet angst - for others in the campaign it's the knowledge that the new road just will not alleviate the almighty traffic mess that's about to descend on us, that the new road will mean they won't bother with a Green Travel Plan. For others it's more the affected green corridor.

We all have our reasons & it's why the campaign is packing out halls.

Thanks again for discussing the post

Kind Rgds

Airbag of Barnet