Mystery of the street signs appearing in Ealing
OFFICIAL-LOOKING NOTICES WARN OF ‘RAT ROUTES’ OR ROADS CLOSED TO CHILDHOOD‘
MYSTERIOUS anti-driving signs have popped up around Ealing warning that roads are “closed to childhood”.
The signs appear legitimate, with the layout and font of official road signage, but their messages suggest otherwise.
They created a lot of discussion among Ealing residents, many of whom were so convinced by them they initially thought the council was involved.
The signs appear to aim to raise awareness about the impacts of pollution and travelling by car.
A few examples of the signs which have appeared on Ealing’s roads include: “Road closed to childhood. Too many cars” and “Idling in Ealing emits toxic fumes. Switch it off.”
More examples included: “Alternative Route. 66% of Ealing’s car trips can be cycled in under 20 minutes”, “35% of car trips from Ealing are under 2km” and “Rat Route. Not stopping for anyone. One waze.”
Initially people thought the council had put up the signs.
Residents thought the move might be due to the removal of many Low Traffic Neighbourhoods in the borough, a scheme where residential roads are blocked off to encourage walking and cycling and reduce pollution.
One tweeted: “Looks like Ealing Council is trying ‘nudge theory’ after removing the filters. Will it have an impact?”
Ealing Council voted to remove most of the borough’s LTNs in September after a public consultation found the majority of residents opposed them.
The council also has its School Streets scheme, where roads near schools are closed to traffic when children will be travelling to and from school to encourage active travel rather than car journeys.
On Ealing Council’s School Streets web page, they state similar statistics to the ones on the signs.
The first paragraph on the page reads: “One quarter of London’s morning peak hour traffic is made up of families on the school run. In Ealing, 84 per cent of primary school aged children live within one mile of their school.
“This distance takes approximately 20 minutes to walk or five minutes to cycle. The health benefits of active travel are well documented.”
However, it has become clear that the council didn’t put up the signs. Instead, it seems to have been some unnamed activist.
Existing campaign groups including Ealing Cycle Campaign and Ealing Better Streets have said they are not responsible.
The true culprit remains to be found.
The signs were popular and a source of amusement for some residents, but others weren’t so impressed.
One said: “Like people are gonna listen to these signs in Ealing”
Another wrote: “Nobody wants to cycle in the winter”
MyLondon have approached Ealing Council for comment.