Partingdale Lane will be controversially reopened with a 20mph speed limit without being voted on at Barnet Council's planning and environment committee tonight, as previously arranged.

Councillor Brian Coleman, cabinet member for environment, is to use his powers under the new cabinet system to pass the plan without a committee debate, after council officers looked again at the new legislation.

Partingdale Lane has been closed since March 11, 1997 because the narrow, twisting road with no pavement was seen to be dangerous by the Labour-led council.

The Conservatives opposed the decision at the time and it was a manifesto commitment to reopen the lane, although no date has yet been set.

Barnet Council now disputes that the road is dangerous, although 'carriageway narrowings' are 'recommended'. There will also be a 3.5 tonne weight limit to prevent large lorries using the lane. No date has been set for the reopening.

Mr Coleman said: "It reverses four years of total injustice. It improves life for all our residents, particularly in Woodside Park and Mill Hill, and makes that place a more pleasant area to live. It rights a wrong, reduces pollution and congestion."

Mel Simpson, a Partingdale Lane resident concerned for the safety of his young children, said: "We were all ready to speak tomorrow [at the meeting], to totally silence us, that's dreadful."

Objectors also cited the Government's Traffic Advice Leaflet 09/99 which says that the council's plan for a speed limit of 20mph would not work on a road such as Partingdale Lane without traffic calming measures.