| Topic: | Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Chiswick / LBH Covid infection rate | |
| Posted by: | Paul Corcoran | |
| Date/Time: | 27/10/20 12:44:00 |
| I was following the Covid-19 infection rates for the W4 area quite closely in the weeks after the first flower market. There was no indication it led to any noticeable rise in local infections which remained quite low compared to neighbouring areas. More and more research seems to be suggesting that Covid-19 infection risk is much more limited outdoors. There were failures of organisation at the first event but hopefully lessons have been learned. The organisers need to get out of the mindset that the success of the event is measured by the number of people attending. There is quite a lot of evidence that it provided a boost to many local retailers. The High Road was very busy on the day of the market. The main worry about this Sunday is transport in my view. There is no District line to Chiswick. One of the people behind the event has made the worryingly complacent claim that very few people drove to the last market because their overflow car park wasn't used. As anyone living within walking distance of the High Road will have told them, ample use was made of the free parking available on residential streets much nearer the event than the paid for parking. A significant number of people drove to the last market and an even higher proportion will use their cars to get to this one because of the lack of a tube service. The Acton Lane closure is expected to still be in place on Sunday at the moment so traffic is going to be bad anyway. It might be a good idea for the organisers to request a suspension of the Turnham Green Terrace restriction for a day to mitigate the situation. |