Responses to Freedom of Information requests sent to ambulance trusts across the UK should finally put to bed the myth that low traffic neighbourhoods hinder ambulance response times. According to the responses, which include the London trust, all low traffic neighbourhoods were implemented with their prior knowledge and there has been no delay in response times. None of the trusts supported the withdrawal of the schemes.
Four ambulance trusts, including London, expressed explicit support for the impact of low traffic neighbourhoods on preventing road traffic injury. This is supported by recent analysis of low traffic neighbourhoods in Waltham Forest showing that after implementation there was a 70% reduction in the number of injuries in those areas, with no additional injuries on main roads.
Given the huge strain on the NHS due to the pandemic, it is vital that we continue to roll out the People Friendly Streets schemes across the borough to relieve some of the stress on our emergency services and emergency rooms. The question regarding the impact People Friendly Streets have on emergency services has been definitively answered.
