The battle over London’s road closures
Old London pitted against new
ON SEPTEMBER 26TH a few dozen people gathered in Bethnal Green in the East End of London to protest against road closures. Whistles blew and passing drivers honked as speakers railed against Tower Hamlets council. Restrictions on driving (some planned, others already in place) were awful, they said. Banning cars from some roads merely increased traffic on others; local businesses were dying for want of customers; the disabled could not get about. It was all very harmonious, until a suspicious group of men was spotted nearby. “Cyclists!” hissed a protester. “They might be looking for trouble.”
This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “Road warriors”
Britain October 3rd 2020
- Britain’s mixed-race population blurs the lines of identity politics
- The battle over London’s road closures
- British universities may be particularly susceptible to covid-19
- Another promise to improve vocational education in Britain
- Cornish miners hope to profit from the shift to electric cars
- Rewilding in the Scottish Highlands
- The Tories launch a culture war
From the October 3rd 2020 edition
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