Neighbours claims LTN has made traffic WORSE
- How have LTNs affected your local area? Email: [email protected]
Furious residents have launched a fightback against a divisive low traffic neighbourhood which they claim has made traffic worse three years after its introduction.
In the latest national fightback against LTNs, over 300 locals in the Manchester suburb of Levenshulme and Burnage have signed a petition in opposition to the most recent road closures.
They claim the latest traffic filtering planters have increased traffic and parking on smaller, surrounding roads .
The Levenshulme and Burnage traffic calming measures were introduced as part of a trial scheme at the start of 2021 and were made permanent in 2023 after the council received £7m in funding to finalise plans.
While a similar scheme in nearby Withington faces being axed after a fierce backlash, the LTN scheme in up-and-coming Levenshulme has become increasingly unpopular with residents as well.
Over 300 locals in the Manchester suburb of Levenshulme and Burnage have signed a petition in opposition to the most recent road closures as a part of LTN
Buckhurst Road at the junction with Albert Road in Levenshulme. Some residents claim they are concerned the LTs could lead to more pollution rather than less
The scheme’s intended purpose is to reduce rat-running. But campaigners against the planters claim it has funnelled speeding, congestion and parking into smaller, less adaptive streets. While they also claim it has increased pollution rather than reduced it.
What are Low Traffic Neighbourhoods?
Low Traffic Neighbourhoods or LTNs is a method of reducing the number of vehicles, in particular cars, that can travel into a residential area.
To reduce traffic, barriers, bollards or planters might be placed on the road to prevent cars from travelling through.
Although the first LTNs were introduced in the 1960s, they have rapidly increased since spring 2020.
LTNs remain very divisive with people criticising the cost to implement the scheme.
Referring to the newest traffic filters, local resident, Caroline, 57, said: ‘My mum lives on the road [Linden Park Road] and it’s concerning and frustrating me there is so much erratic parking here and on Hilbre Road, hindering elderly and disabled residents and blocking people’s accessibility.
‘I’ve even experienced abuse by people when asking them to move their cars from blocking the street and driveways.’
‘The roads were busy anyway but now it’s worse’
Some claim the traffic filters are increasing journey times on their own. One resident said: ‘My father-in-law lives on Burnage Lane, he is elderly and infirm, meaning we have to help out frequently by taking him shopping and to appointments.
‘My journey to him has increased from 300 metres to 1.3 miles. My mum lives on Slade Lane and that journey has doubled.’
‘We have a scheme that’s supposed to make it easier to get about and reduce pollution but it’s only displaced traffic onto certain roads causing slow-moving congestion and ultimately leading to more pollution – it’s just chaos really.’
Other residents are concerned emergency services, such as fire engines, might be ‘forced to turn around’ and reroute around filters.
Planters on Buckhurst Road in Levenshulme. The scheme’s intended purpose is to reduce rat-running. But campaigners against the planters claim it has funnelled speeding, congestion and parking into smaller, less adaptive streets
Jeremy Hoad (pictured) believes the whole scheme has been ‘mismanaged.’ He said: ‘This scheme should have brought people together with a fair and proper consultation but now we have people who feel left out in the community’
One local said: ‘I’ve seen cars, vans and more come to a standstill at the planters and have to U-turn at the end of the bollards.
‘There’s a lot of confusion and people are annoyed. I’m worried that in an emergency an ambulance or fire engine wouldn’t be able to get to us. It could be the difference between life and death and it’s a big concern.’
Jeremy Hoad believes the whole scheme has been ‘mismanaged.’ He said: ‘This scheme should have brought people together with a fair and proper consultation but now we have people who feel left out in the community.
‘A lot of people didn’t receive leaflets and were unaware of the consultations, it feels mismanaged.’
A number of residents are supportive of the scheme and believe it has achieved the benefits of safer cycling, walking and play on previously congested streets.
Tom, of the group Streets for People who campaigned to bring active travel to the area, said: ‘People complained about the safety of the area for years and there were dozens of responses in the consultations to that.
‘Of course, when you do something with the streets. not everybody is going to like it but it’s been done for good reasons, which people have been campaigning and calling on for a long time. There are things the council does that aren’t popular but this is.’
Backlash across the UK against LTNs has been growing steadily in recent, just as politicians such as London Mayor Sadiq Khan have repeatedly defended the deeply unpopular schemes.
Overturned planters in Rochdale which were removed just hours after they were installed
Protest against Low Traffic Neighbourhood plans in Oxford in June 2021
Last year, vigilantes in Rochdale, Greater Manchester, torched a number of planters which were used to close roads just hours after they were installed. Footage shows the boxes completely destroyed, with locals online praising the ‘freedom fighters’ for acting against the low-traffic measures.
Frustrated residents in Oxford have also taken action against the schemes, with a video emerging of a driver confronting eco-zealots policing an LTN blockade and refusing to let her pass on her way to work. They have no authority to stand guard at the blockades.
A spokesperson for Manchester City Council said: ‘The Levenshulme and Burnage Active Neighbourhood scheme is aimed at promoting active modes of travel through the area, such as walking, wheeling and cycling, as well as improving road safety. The scheme arose off the back of resident-led initiative back in 2018 to see these kinds of interventions. The two modal filters recently installed in Linden Park and Milwain road are part of this approach.
‘This part of the scheme in particular has been extensively consulted on since 2020 and has been designed to take into account the needs of everyone in the area, and how they can best benefit from its implementation. This ranges from respecting the needs of residents and local businesses, to parents making the school run in the morning, to ensuring emergency services have safe and quick access.’
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