In Covid-19 Recovery, London Bets Big on Low Traffic
To curb cars and boost biking and walking, the city is rolling out low-traffic neighborhoods, with streets closed to non-local drivers. Not everyone is a fan.
A cyclist passes murals on shop shutters at the junction of Coldharbour Lane and Atlantic Road in the Brixton district of London. To curb cars, the city is establishing several “low-traffic neighborhoods” in the area.
Photographer: Olivia Harris/Bloomberg
Sarah Berry didn’t learn how to ride a bike until last year, when she was 27. For her, London didn’t feel like a safe place to ride. Except for one day each year — on Car-Free Day, when her block in Brixton closed to through-traffic and made room for a huge block party. “A neighbor asked, ‘Why do we only get this one day a year?’” she says. “It’s clearly the best day.”
In 2018, a group of neighbors gathered to investigate the idea of establishing a “low traffic neighborhood” (LTN), where vehicular passage is limited to residents. A handful of similar schemes had existed in London for years. In Waltham Forest, dubbed London’s first “Mini-Holland,” cycle- and pedestrian-friendly infrastructure in the Dutch style were introduced in 2015, along with measures to curb car traffic. Plans for the Railton LTN were submitted to Lambeth Council, which oversees the southwest borough where Brixton lies, and a timeline was set for consultation and implementation.