the Hen & Chickens pub in St Paul’s Road

• I COULD not agree more with Sir John Tusa (Former BBC boss criticises ‘shocking’ lack of consultation for road closures, September 18), especially where he says “New roads are being forced in without consultation.”

I always thought, perhaps misguidedly, that a local council was elected to carry out the wishes of the voters.

But, apparently, when you get an almost one-party council with only one opposition councillor, it seems the majority of councillors seem to regard the electorate with contempt.

I also wholeheartedly agree with Andrew Bosi on the issue of the No 277 day bus, (We can draw lessons from the Highbury Corner ‘consultation’, September 18).

I put it to Transport for London that this route could have been extended along Holloway Road and end in Camden Road where there is a terminating point outside the college.

The problem is TfL seem to have a “can’t-do” culture. I have also put to them the empty running of the No 73 bus between Stamford Hill garage going to and from.

Again, the route planners say it can’t run in service to and from the garage, which is a load of old codswallop.

Mayor Sadiq Khan says he doesn’t want empty buses running. This is a prime example of where they are falling down.

Funnily enough TfL can run a night 277 bus via Upper Street and into Pentonville Road terminating at Baron Street at the Angel. So why can’t it do this during the day?

And why if Highbury and Islington station needs anti-terrorist bollards installed it couldn’t have been done when the other road works were being done?

Sadiq Khan also keeps on blathering about making the streets safer for people to cycle and walk.

So why do we see cyclists spurning the provided cycle paths round the remains of the roundabout in both directions and instead hurtling along on the pavement?

All too often, when working in the charity shop and facing the front door, I see as many cyclists on the pavement in both directions instead of using the cycle lanes.

And when crossing the road outside the Hen & Chickens pub at the corner of St Paul’s Road you have cyclists ignoring the lights and coming down into St Paul’s Road when the lights are in favour of pedestrians.

And some drivers seemingly can’t wait for the lights to change. They sit there hooting away as if by some magic the lights will change if they blast away long enough.

As Andrew Bosi rightly says, the so-called experts and traffic engineers don’t seem to have to live with the results of ill-thought-out schemes like the Highbury revamp.

I bet, though, that if this happened in their own locality there would be outrage from them.

JE KIRBY
Clissold Crescent, N16