Hammersmith and Fulham Council’s plans for Weltje Road have received push-back from neighbouring Hounslow due to concerns about displaced traffic
A new traffic scheme preventing out-of-borough drivers from accessing a West London cut-through is to be introduced in October, it has been revealed.
Weltje Road, which connects the A4 with King Street in Hammersmith and Fulham, will see ANPR cameras installed as the local authority looks to improve safety, as revealed by the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) last week. The restrictions will be in place on a trial basis, to run for up to 18 months before a final decision is made on the road’s future.
The plans had led to opposition from neighbouring Hounslow Council even before the latest announcement, due to concerns about traffic being displaced elsewhere. A Hounslow officer had written to residents and councillors reassuring them the authority would object to any order published for Weltje Road.
Hammersmith and Fulham Council argues the scheme, which mirrors one introduced last year at nearby Rivercourt Road, will help reduce congestion, pollution and safety issues.
It says the route is used by more than 2,000 vehicles a day, more than 90 per cent of which are driven by people who do not live in the borough.
In an online post in which it announced the October launch of the trial, Hammersmith and Fulham Council noted the Weltje Road/King Street junction is named the fifth most dangerous in the capital by the London Cycling Campaign.
All borough residents will still be able to drive down the road, with visitors and deliveries to addresses on the route to be automatically exempt from fines. Residents in other streets will need to gain access using RingGo.
Access will also be maintained for Uber, Bolt and Addison Lee drivers picking up and dropping off passengers, as well as emergency services, black cabs and some other users.
Local businesses will be able to apply for a Business Access permit, enabling their staff, customers and deliveries to be booked via RingGo.
The post also drew attention to the Rivercourt Road scheme, which the council says has cut vehicle numbers by 75 per cent.
The plans for Weltje Road have been criticised by some in Hounslow, with the Conservative opposition group running a petition opposing the restrictions.
They wrote that for drivers from areas such as Chiswick, Acton and Ealing, Weltje Road is “their only convenient route onto the eastbound A4” at that point.
“This is an unreasonable approach that disregards the needs of local motorists from outside LBHF’s [London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham] boundary who have used this road for decades,” the group claimed.
Hounslow has submitted an objection to the traffic order introduced for Rivercourt Road, and if one is published for Weltje Road, it’s understood they will do the same.
Cllr Nicole Trehy, Hammersmith and Fulham’s Cabinet Member for Climate Emergency and Travel, previously told the LDRS: “Twelve residential streets between Chiswick and Hammersmith Broadway were, historically, connected to the A4. Over the years, all have been closed off to make the streets quieter, safer and less polluted – apart from Rivercourt Road and Weltje Road. They had to remain open to allow buses to transport children to and from local schools.
“This, unfortunately, created heavy traffic, congestion and pollution, which has been exacerbated by sat nav guidance systems, on what should be quiet residential streets. Over 2,000 vehicles – more than 90 per cent of which are from outside the borough – now use Weltje as a cut-through every day.
“For many months, residents on Weltje have been asking for action to make their street safer for schoolchildren, walkers and cyclists, less congested and less polluted for the families who live there.”
Cllr Trehy confirmed the trial at Weltje Road was being considered “to make this residential road safer – not a cut-through – and a nicer place to live”.
“The smart camera technology also offers Hounslow Council the opportunity to reopen Chiswick streets, exclusively for their residents to access the A4, if they so wish,” she added. “We would be happy to share our learnings and experience with Hounslow.”
The access restrictions will form Phase One of the council’s plan to improve the safety of Weltje Road.
Phase Two, which it says will be rolled out later this year, will see a number of alterations at the junction with King Street.
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