Tower Hamlets Council to scrap LTN road closure scheme

Most road closures in a London borough introduced under low traffic neighbourhood (LTN) schemes are to be removed, the council has decided.

Tower Hamlets Council introduced the traffic calming measures in Bethnal Green and other areas during the pandemic.

The decision was made despite a survey showing most residents in affected areas wanted the measures to stay.

The council said it would instead invest £6m in "active travel" schemes.

The aim of LTNs is to reduce motor traffic in residential areas by using either cameras, planters or lockable bollards.

Lutfur Rahman, mayor of Tower Hamlets, said the LTNs had divided communities.

He said: "While LTNs improve air quality in their immediate vicinity, they push traffic down surrounding arterial roads, typically lived on by less affluent residents."

The final decision to scrap the scheme was made by the council's cabinet on Wednesday.

Protestors gathered outside the town hall ahead of the meeting to call for the LTNs to be retained.

The council said it would remove the restrictions in Columbia Road, Arnold Circus, and Bethnal Green while the road closure on Canrobert Street would be retained.

The mayor had already decided to keep the bus gate restriction in Wapping due to "exceptional" support in a consultation last autumn, a council spokesperson added.

Jane Harris, a campaigner with Save Our Safer Streets, said: "We are utterly dismayed by the mayor's reckless and dangerous decision today.

"He has shown absolute contempt for the health of children and older people in the borough."

She said the council had "decided to ignore" the majority of residents.

Cabinet papers published last week showed 58% of local residents living in Bethnal Green were in support of keeping the traffic calming measures, while 41% wanted to see them removed, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).

In Brick Lane, 59% of residents who took part in the public consultation wanted to see the closures stay, with 41% wanting to see them removed.

Dr Emma Radcliffe, a GP and vice chairperson of the Tower Hamlets Local Medical Council, said the schemes were "absolutely the best thing for public health in the borough".

Mr Rahman, of the Aspire party, which won the local election in May 2022, previously said the LTN scheme was "botched" by the previous Labour administration and pledged that he would reverse the programme.

The council said the scheme has had "adverse impacts", including hindering access to emergency vehicles and residents reliant on cars.

Follow BBC London on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected]