Islington Council’s transport leader has promised to “engage” after an action group lobbied for a new cycle route to be closed to the majority of traffic.

At last night’s full council meeting, councillors were forced to debate Cycle Islington’s petition as it reached more than 2,000 signatures.

The petition concerns Quietway 10, which once built will run from Finsbury Park and through Highbury, Holloway, Barnsbury, Islington, Finsbury and end in Clerkenwell.

Cycle Islington wants to ban the majority of traffic by only allowing local access for vehicles.

Cllr Claudia Webbe (Lab, Bunhill) said: “The opportunity to bring residents with us is a great story to tell. We want to hear from all voices in the community and we will not be making this decision without fully consulting.

“We want to clean up the air, who doesn’t want that? But we want to take the community with us and we have to be able to engage.”

Sole opposition Cllr Caroline Russell (Green, Highbury East), called for a trial of Cycle Islington’s proposal. “Rather than hearsay – ‘I think it will cause more traffic in my street’ – if you put in a trial, it’s cheap and you can see the impact.

“The other thing we have to do is not just consult but engage and get a community understanding of what’s happening in Islington. We have a public health crisis in terms of obesity and lung and heart disease. I really hope we can start that conversation.”