£400,000 blunder

A £400,000 traffic-calming scheme in Friary Park has been a complete disaster, Barnet Council has admitted.

The hugely unpopular scheme, which covered five areas around Friern Barnet and North Finchley, has caused hundreds of complaints since it was introduced in 1997 and is now to be withdrawn.

As the council backed down at two meetings held on Tuesday, Councillor Brian Coleman said: 'This has been the most appalling, shameful waste of money that I can ever remember in this borough. That is £400,000 down the drain and we have absolutely nothing to show for it.'

At Tuesday's environment sub-committee meetings, the council was due to agree the reinstatement of the much-hated traffic control measures after temporary approval expired last year. But in the face of massive public opposition, including 327 letters of objection, the council has been forced into an expensive U-turn.

Removing the remains of the restrictions will cost an estimated £20,000 and a controversial cycleway along Friern Barnet Lane will be 'left to wither' rather than have any more money spent removing it.

But restrictions in Torrington Lane, which have proved to be the one success in this traffic trauma, are to be fully reinstated.

Councillor Brian Salinger said: 'It has taken an awfully long time to sort out this god-awful mess. Far from improving the environment, we actually made measures worse. We have created one of the most dangerous roads in the borough on a road that wasn't dangerous before.'