CHILDREN will be at greater risk of road trauma because of a bungled parking scheme in Highgate, according to angry neighbours. Haringey Council has decided to remove residents parking bays in Southwood Lane and replace them with a yellow line restrictin

CHILDREN will be at greater risk of road trauma because of a bungled parking scheme in Highgate, according to angry neighbours.

Haringey Council has decided to remove residents' parking bays in Southwood Lane and replace them with a yellow line restricting parking between 10am and noon on weekdays.

Last year residents were left flabbergasted after their calls for pavement bollards were turned down, and for some the decision to take out the parking bays opposite numbers 93 to 101 has proved the final straw.

"Without the parking bays the traffic will move a lot faster," said resident Peter Cavaciuti. "It will be much more dangerous for all our children. We just can't understand the reasoning behind it."

Mr Cavaciuti says he has almost been knocked down by motorists on two occasions. Once he came out of his house to find his young daughter pinned up against the wall by a passing vehicle.

"All we wanted to do originally was have the bollards put in to protect pedestrians but the council said we couldn't have that because the pavement was too narrow. It's absolutely ridiculous," he said.

Of the five households that have been using the parking bays in question, three have children, including seven youngsters aged five and under.

Fellow resident and solicitor Daniel Toner has warned the council he is considering an application for a Judicial Review of the decision to remove the bays.

In a letter to the council, he said: "This comes exactly a year after residents were consulted about the proposals. At the time Haringey stated these proposals were intended to improve road safety, pedestrian safety and traffic flow.

"In keeping with this, your recent letter refers to the decision having been made 'with regards to road safety, particularly pedestrian safety'. However, the decision you have reached cannot possibly be justified on these grounds."

A council spokesman said the decision to take out the parking bays was based on feedback from residents in last year's consultation.

He said: "Residents made it clear to us that they wanted to be able to park in Southwood Lane during the day, but that they were also concerned about all-day parking from commuters using Highgate station.

"The revised scheme is a compromise that seeks to address these concerns by enabling local people to continue to park in Southwood Lane, other than between 10am and noon, while preventing all-day commuter parking in the road."

The council has now promised to continue reviewing the scheme to see if further improvements can be made.