AllisonAdler

I find it baffling that people take issue with my saying that those of us who normally walk through Cox's Walk to avoid the South Circular will be exposed to quite a bit more to pollution while it is closed off.

The Mayor's Office has decided to extend the ULEZ Zone because the South Circular is so polluted (lots of studies around and about online talking about that), and the same road has been found to be so polluted that it contributed to a young girl's death: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-55352247 https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/dec/16/girls-death-contributed-to-by-air-pollution-coroner-rules-in-landmark-case You only have to cross it briefly for most of the routes I would normally take, but with the bridge closure, I've been spending quite a lot of time everyday on it, and will have to spend even more now with the closure at the bottom. There is slightly less traffic, but really only slightly less. I can say with certainty that the pollution levels are still so high that it's actually quite uncomfortable to take in the air along it (goodness knows what it's doing to one's lungs).

Please could you have the bottom of Cox's Walk reopened asap?

Is locked at the bottom. Since work can't begin on the bridge until sometime after 10 January, this seems rather ill-advised. People are being forced to walk along the most polluted road in all of London. Cox's Walk is also the only lighted, safe, wooded area to walk on dark winter afternoons, so shutting it is very unfortunate indeed, especially in these times.

I've been going to William Rose for the past seven years, and think they are lovely, friendly, and that their meats and game are better than any of the other butchers in the area by quite a stretch. Hope everyone there is alright.

I completely agree about keeping dogs on leads in the areas of the cemetery that are in current use. The Southwark Park info, however, that is quoted above is out of date and there is no current restriction on entering wooded areas. The newest signs, though, suggest that dogs are meant to be on lead in the old parts as well, so I've erred on the side of caution and kept mine on even in the disused bits. No one else has, but...

When did it close?! It's still showing as open on the Sainsbury's website...

An absolutely huge and heartfelt thanks to James and the Council for Dulwich Park loos being reopened!

Thank you, James!

PLEASE open the loos in Dulwich Park. The Horniman has opened theirs. It's perfectly easy to maintain hygiene in the park toilets as they have hands free operation and sliding bolts on stall doors that can easily be opened and closed with one's elbow. It would be incredibly simple to install hand sanitisers above the basins until hands free soap dispensers and taps can be installed. People with medical conditions and pregnant women are really suffering. PLEASE give this more urgent attention.

Please can we have public toilets open again? Especially in Dulwich Park. Thank you!

Anyway, some kind soul clipped the closures (thank you!), so all sorted, and glad I didn't have to be the one to do it!

It's not the pub side, it's the bit that connects the London Road/Dulwich Common part of the Walk to the Sydenham Hill part, just above the footbridge. And it's very obviously not an official closure!!

Thank you, jonnyda1, and yes, alas.

Haha, and it's not the footbridge, which indeed has lots of signage, but the gate between the upper and lower parts of the walk.

Seems to have been sabotaged--it's been shut with black plastic closure bands. Presumably not official as there are no signs anywhere about it. Also not clever, as everyone, being surprised when they got there, had to climb over it, massively increasing contact. I've sent messages to the Sydenham Hill Woods LWT people and to Southwark.

I completely understand your anxieties, hellosailor, but you (all) misunderstand: I am taking this very seriously and I scrupulously keep my distance when I am out walking. I can?t tell you how many times I?ve nearly been mown down by cars, cyclists, and all and sundry trying to do so. I am not misinformed, but I absolutely don?t want people thinking I am suggesting not following guidelines, so I?ve deleted my earlier posts. I know we all feel out of control, but it's the constant lashing out that is very hard to see and not to try to mitigate. I apologise if I?ve caused distress. I lost my husband (aged 56) ten years ago to pneumonia and am a cancer survivor myself. I do not come to this callously or with any lack of due diligence in terms of serious medical research, but I see I?m not helping in the way I?d hoped.

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Exactly. The people not heeding the rules are people who are not likely to heed any threats. Speaking of punishing everyone for them is just lazy and irresponsible governing. Police the people who gather in groups and are outside not doing one of the acceptable activities, not the rest of us. This is the nation's health and sanity we're talking about in continuing to allow outdoor exercise, not a school with wayward children. intexasatthe moment Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Wouldn't it be possible for Lambeth to pay > security to man one entrance and allow access for > say parents and children ? > Lone joggers ? Similar control ? > > People working from home all week/those doing > essential work outside the home without access to > a garden must be desperate for some fresh air > ,especially those with small children .

It is easy to panic about contagion because we can't see it. It is even easier to gloss over mental health issues because we can't, for the most part, see them. However, one aspect of science has been uniformly clear: mental health is crucial for immunity. Calling for total isolation and draconian measures to keep healthy people indoors, and other such things, are understandable responses to fear, but we must counter these expressions of anxiety with rational behaviour.

Closing all green spaces is going to make us all unhealthy. It would be nice if people could just follow the guidelines and help us all to preserve our mental and physical health.

Yes, those are very good points. They actually shortened the dotted area when they last repainted for reasons that are rather difficult to ascertain. Could someone from Southwark maybe address this issue? Creating a dangerous situation for a high-use car park seems less that foresightful.

Thank you, and she said she was bruised, but nothing was broken, so a narrow miss this time. Really hoping measures will be taken to prevent anything worse from happening in future.

It was indeed. Just an update that the woman who was hit said she was alright, nothing broken, so very lucky.