Brent Council claims the measures aim to make these areas safer and nicer to walk and cycle through
Streets in two Brent neighbourhoods could soon see bollards installed and enforced with CCTV cameras as part of a project to stop drivers using them as shortcuts. The local authority hopes the measures will also improve road safety and encourage more active travel.
Brent Council has tabled plans to reduce through traffic and “promote sustainable journeys” in two parts of the borough. Changes to the Stonebridge and Harlesden Healthy Neighbourhood scheme aim to make these areas safer and nicer to walk and cycle through, particularly for children on their way to school.
The proposed improvements involve relocating or updating existing bollards – called modal filters – on roads in the Harlesden and Kensal Green ward, as well as the Stonebridge ward. Residents and blue badge holders who live within the zone will be exempt from the restrictions.
Brent Council has launched a public consultation asking residents and businesses in the area to share their views on the plans before August 14. The local authority said the changes are designed to “reduce through traffic, promote sustainable journeys, and create safer, cleaner, and quieter streets for all residents” in the two neighbourhoods.
Following two phases of public engagement in Spring and September 2025, looking at how the existing restrictions operate, the latest proposed updates to the Stonebridge and Harlesden Healthy Neighbourhood traffic management scheme are based on feedback from residents and traffic data, according to the council.
The planned improvements are split into two areas: the eastern area in Harlesden and Kensal Green, and the western area, which sits mainly within the Stonebridge ward.
In the eastern area, the existing modal filter on Nicoll Road will be moved to the junction of Nicoll Road and Craven Park Road, and enforcement will be carried out using a CCTV camera. The council claims this change is designed to offer Nicoll Road, Connaught Road and Greenhill Park “protection from northbound cut-through traffic, improve road safety and create better conditions for active travel in the neighbourhood”.
All roads will remain accessible to resident drivers, but the council has warned it “may take longer for you to reach your house”. Residents and blue badge holders who live within the ‘exemption zone’ will still be able to drive through the modal filter on Nicoll Road. The council is also looking to provide exemptions for funeral processions for St Margaret’s & St George’s United Reformed and Moravian Church.
In the western area, the existing modal filter design will be updated and enforced using CCTV cameras. The council has said this change is designed to protect Lawrence Avenue from “cut-through traffic, improve road safety for school pupils and residents walking to and from Harlesden station”, and create better conditions for active travel in the neighbourhood.
Residents and blue badge holders who live within the zone will also be exempt from the restrictions. When the consultation closes on August 14, the results will be used to decide whether the changes will be implemented.
The council added: “These aims align with [the local authority’s] broader initiatives to enhance air quality, promote children’s health, address the climate emergency, and create a safer environment for residents, adults and children, to walk and cycle.”
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