Heath Drive Gidea Park dad and newborn in near miss crash
The terrifying incident occurred in Heath Drive, as dad-of-two George Rothwell-Carr was preparing to take his newborn daughter out of the family car. The 31-year-old, who moved to the road shortly before the closure of Gallows Corner, said the speed at which cars travel down the road particularly since the project began is the main "concern". He told the Recorder: "I was getting her out of the car out there and no cars were coming past.
Then, suddenly, a car came up very fast and actually hit our open door whilst I was holding her. 
According to George, the crash knocked the mirror off the door of the driver's car, doing some other damage to the vehicle and "relatively minor damage to our car", though this was the least of the concerns held by he and his wife Rianna. Recalling the incident on their doorstep, Rianna revealed she was "fuming" after the incident. She said: "God, if he [George] had taken her out of the car, I think it would have killed her, I really do.
I was obviously fuming - he'd almost just hit my husband and baby. "At the moment, we're just having to be really careful getting the baby out. Sometimes in the morning when I'm doing the nursery drop-off I have both the children with me.
"Then I'm managing by myself and even just to get out into the road trying to wait for a clear spot, as you can imagine at like 8am, you can either stand there or hope that people see you and give you a wide enough berth." The crash earlier this year was reported to the Metropolitan Police, with correspondence seen by this paper between the Met and George confirming that the incident was being investigated. 
The Met did not give an update on the case when repeatedly asked by this paper. George and Rianna are not alone in their concerns over the manner of driving down the road, with fellow resident Paul McCabe agreeing that driving characteristics have worsened since the start of the Gallows Corner project. Paul's concerns, he told this paper, are more focused on the current state of the road, on which he has lived for more than a decade, after witnessing a crash, dangerous pedestrian crossings, speeding and more.
He too has feared for the safety of his own children, having stopped them from walking to school independently based on what he has seen. For George and Rianna, their concerns not only exist in the present but also the future. Rianna said: "Our worry is, when we moved here obviously Gallows was still open.
"Gallows has gone on and on and on now, our worry is that it's going to have changed driving behaviour around here, so people will just rat run and it will continue to be used like this. "I'd just like something to be done. We don't think that it's unreasonable that we're asking for something to be done, and the fact that there was funding there, there is obviously a problem that needs to be solved.
Our worry is that there is going to be a serious accident. "We weren't signing up to a road situation like this. Something's got to give I guess - we'd just like to see something happen."
Concerns over the use of the road date back to at least 2019. On April 24, Havering Council announced a proposal to implement a 20mph scheme that would include Heath Drive, as well as introduce speed humps along the road. George told this paper he feels that speed bumps are the "obvious solution".
He said: "The bit that is of a concern to us is the speed of cars, where it's quite a wide, straight road they come down very, very fast. "Even when Gallows Corner reopens, I expect the volume of cars will reduce but the speed is still there and to be honest, the speed is actually worse when it's quieter, early hours of the morning and in the dark and things, that's when people go really, really fast. "There are proposals of a 20mph zone, but I don't really see the point.
The current speed limit doesn't stop people from doing 40 or 50. We need speed bumps. "There's a lot of school children that walk down here in the mornings as well, loads of kids on their bikes, quite a few people with prams.
"When you've got cars approaching these corners at speeds and coaches that end up coming over the pavement a bit, it's a worry and it does feel like at some point there is likely to be a bad accident." 
On its website, the council claims it has "undertaken traffic speed and volume surveys" across the area, with results showing that speeds "generally" reflect the existing speed limits. Havering Council wrote: "The survey results show that vehicle speeds generally reflect the existing posted speed limits. "While this indicates that many drivers are complying with current limits, it also means that signage or enforcement alone is unlikely to lead to significant changes in driver behaviour or address wider concerns about the function of these roads as residential streets.
"The council recognises that a 30mph environment may not be appropriate for streets of this nature. "Lower vehicle speeds could also help discourage the use of these roads as a through-route between the A12 and Main Road and reduce the use of the area by inappropriate vehicles, including heavy goods vehicles (HGVs)." The prospective zone is under consultation as part of the Local Implementation Plan with Transport for London funding.
It has not been confirmed when a decision on the scheme will be made, with a deadline for people to share their views given as May 15.
Havering Council has been contacted for further comment.