Changes to the Dulwich LTNs: have they made any difference?

We asked local businesses, vulnerable residents, and carers if the changes Southwark Council made in February have resolved any of the serious problems caused by the Dulwich LTNs

The Council says that the changes they made to the Streetspace measures in February show that they’ve responded to local concerns. Changes include reducing the timed restrictions, and improving access for Blue Badge holders – although the Dulwich Village junction still allows access only for emergency vehicles. The final scheme, they say, represents a good compromise.

So we asked local businesses, an NHS community midwife, an elderly Blue Badge holder, a social care provider and the parent of a disabled child with special educational needs whether the changes have made any difference.

Their comments confirm that the Dulwich LTNs are continuing to cause considerable harm to vulnerable residents and risk permanent damage to the local economy. Here’s what they said:

Dulwich Village Association (representing local businesses)

“Southwark Council claims to care about the future of the business community. But its actions demonstrate a blatant disregard for what is actually happening.”

“Reducing the hours hasn’t made much difference. The damage had already been done. Customers who were stung by fines haven’t come back and business remains flat. There are long periods of the day when the junction and the main street are empty. At times it’s like a ghost town.

“The Council’s publicity material says that there is continuing consultation with local businesses. But that’s not true. Neither our local councillors, Margy Newens and Richard Leeming, nor our MP Helen Hayes have contacted the businesses in Dulwich over the last two years.

“The only meeting that took place, right at the end of the consultation, was at our request. Nearly all the independent businesses in Dulwich took it in turns to spell out the damaging impact of the road closures and restrictions. These were ignored. In the final report, Council officer Dale Foden said to decision-maker Cllr Catherine Rose, a Dulwich Wood councillor, that ‘there is no evidence currently to suggest that the Dulwich Streetspace measures have had a negative economic impact on local businesses.’ Our efforts to correct this error were also ignored.

“As for the Council saying in newsletters to residents that they’ve given millions of pounds in grants and financial support to local businesses, nothing has been received, apart from small Covid support grants from central government.

“Southwark Council claims to care about the future of the business community. But its actions demonstrate a blatant disregard for what is actually happening.

“The continuation of the LTNs will lead to businesses closing, jobs being lost, essential services like the chemist and post office being put at risk, and would-be customers staying away.”

An NHS community midwife

“I’ve written to Cllr Rose repeatedly about my concerns over how these road closures have impacted my work as a community midwife and how this inevitably causes a serious risk to health for women and babies when there are home births during the hours that the roads are closed.”

“Nothing has changed really except that I try to arrange my day so as not to be sitting in stationary traffic in Croxted Road at the start of the day. The reduced hours do make a dreadful situation marginally better. The road closure at Court Lane is infuriating. If that was closed only at those peak hours it would be so much better.

“I have paid my fair share of fines to Southwark. One on Townley Road on the New Year bank holiday when I was working. I got a ticket which I appealed as a key worker but they did not accept my appeal, so that was any extra money I had earned for working over the Christmas holidays gone.

“I’ve written to Cllr Rose repeatedly about my concerns over how these road closures have impacted my work as a community midwife and how this inevitably causes a serious risk to health for women and babies when there are home births during the hours that the roads are closed.

“I wrote again to her after she said in the local paper that people should contact her with specific cases where it had a negative impact on them, but I never heard anything back from her.

“I’ve had to cancel post-natal appointments because of the traffic congestion caused by the road closures. I can only imagine what might have happened if I had been travelling to attend a home birth. The woman might have birthed alone, potentially having a serious haemorrhage, the baby might have been in distress needing resuscitation – the risks are endless.

“We do not have a blue light on our cars and rely heavily on the London Ambulance Service to be able to attend and to help transfer into hospital in an emergency. The opening of the barrier at Court Lane to emergency services is an improvement but it’s very hard to notice. When you are driving in a stressful emergency situation it needs to be simple and clear so your stressed brain can easily absorb the information.

“The road closures are a shameful discrimination, mainly against women I feel, along with the elderly, disabled, disadvantaged and unwell.”

An elderly Blue Badge holder living on the eastern side of the closed junction

“I can go through the cameras in other parts of Dulwich but I can’t go through the junction. They say it wouldn’t be safe for the cyclists.”

“The changes made to the restrictions haven’t made any difference. I can only walk a few metres and the amount I can walk is reducing almost weekly now, as it gives me back pain. My doctor is in Burbage Road, so it used to only take me a few minutes to get there in my little electric car. Now it takes me up to half an hour.

“I used to go to the chemist in the village by parking at the end of Court Lane but since they’ve painted the double yellow lines there, I can’t do that any more, even with a Blue Badge. I shall now have to drive to Sainsbury’s for my medicines because they have disabled parking.

“I’ve lived in Dulwich all my life, as did my parents and grandparents. Because of the junction closure I very seldom go to Dulwich Village any more which saddens me. The Council have ruined what was nice about living here. I can go through the cameras in other parts of Dulwich but I can’t go through the junction. They say it wouldn’t be safe for the cyclists. Before they closed it, the junction was known as one of the safest in the borough. I would be pleased if I could get through.”

A local social care provider

“The changes have not had a significant impact.”

“The changes have not had a significant impact. Calton Avenue’s closure adds appreciable travel time to carers’ journeys and morning care calls are still affected by the morning time restriction.”

The parent of a disabled child living on Croxted Road who attends a SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) school

“We explained to Cllr Jasmine Ali, Cabinet member for Children, Young People and Education, that the taxi costs to send our son to his SEND school had risen because of the Dulwich LTN. Her only suggestion was changing schools.”

“The reduction of hours has made no difference. My son and his carers still have to travel during the restricted hours, there’s only one car per Blue Badge, and there's no exemption for private carers.

“In Southwark News in January, Cllr Catherine Rose said, ‘Of course walking and cycling aren’t always possible for some people […] but we can’t make changes based on unspecified claims. We need residents to contact us with specific cases of where this has had a negative impact on someone [so] we can look at how best to mitigate against that.’

“So we contacted the Council. We explained to Cllr Jasmine Ali (Cabinet member for Children, Young People and Education) that the taxi costs to send our son to his SEND school had risen from £40 to £50 as it takes about 10 minutes extra just to get through the Herne Hill junction because of the Dulwich LTN. Her only suggestion was changing schools! I explained there isn't a school in Southwark that can meet his health needs.

“She asked what solutions I had. I suggested changing the restriction on Burbage Road to start at 9am instead of 8am. Taking the pressure off the Herne Hill junction would reduce the delay to the five or six SEND buses that routinely get held up in traffic. She didn't think the problem was bad enough to do this. I asked if they could remove the speed bumps on Burbage Road so it was better suited for wheelchair passengers. She didn't like that idea either.

“The Council says that ‘the benefits of the Dulwich Streetspace schemes outweigh the harm that these may cause’ but they haven't worked who to benefit and who to harm empirically. My son’s condition means he is unlikely to live beyond his early twenties and the extra pollution generated by the congested traffic affects his life expectancy. Her response was ‘that's why we're doing this. If we reduce the people driving it frees up the road for people like your son. We had to do something, we're in a climate emergency.’

“I had a similar conversation with Cllr Newens, who said they couldn't change the Burbage Road restriction or remove speed bumps as they wanted to keep it a safe route . But when I asked what was dangerous about it and how many people were being kept safe, as few cars travel along it during the restriction, she said she didn't have the data on that. She also refuses to believe the LTN restrictions are having any effect on Croxted Road, insisting the congestion is caused by the traffic light sequencing at the Herne Hill junction.

“So they are pressing ahead with the LTNs with no regard for the negative consequences it has on some people.”

It’s clear that the minor changes made to the Dulwich LTNs in February have made almost no difference.

A council that pushes ahead with a road scheme that damages local business, threatens the health of mothers and babies, and causes distress and harm to vulnerable local people, both young and old, has seriously lost its way.