Clapham Shortcut Concerns Families After Road Closure Diverts Traffic

Robert Firth wrote this article. People on a street worry about speeding drivers. They fear someone will get hurt by cars. Families live on Elms Road in Clapham. They say more cars use their 20 mph street now. Last year, TfL closed a nearby road to drivers.

TfL stopped right turns from the A205 onto Klea Avenue. Drivers used Klea Avenue to dodge a busy junction. TfL says Lambeth Council asked for this change. Klea Avenue residents complained for years about speeding.

Elms Road residents say the change made things worse. Now more cars use their street to avoid the junction. Joel Roach lives on Elms Road. He thinks an accident will happen soon. He worries about kids crossing the road.

Mr. Roach is concerned about his two children. He almost got hit by speeding cars himself. He says traffic doubled plus more people are speeding. Linda Carling also lives on the street. She says drivers ignore requests to slow down.

She worries about a school nearby. She thinks an accident is likely. She is frustrated the council seems to ignore them. Before the Klea Avenue change, sat navs sent cars there. Klea Avenue connects to the A24 using side streets.

Mr. Roach said sat navs now reroute cars. Cars now turn onto Rodenhurst Road. Then they use Hambalt Road, Elms Crescent, and Elms Road. After that, they arrive at the A24.

Some want to stop right turns onto Rodenhurst Road. Mr. Roach wants slower traffic on Elms Road. If traffic slows down, sat navs might change routes. They will notice Elms Road takes longer.

Councillor Alison Inglis-Jones takes this seriously. She wants action and a timeline. Rezina Chowdhury said she wants to fix traffic. The council will watch traffic during spring.

A TfL person said they helped Lambeth Council. They restricted traffic on Klea Avenue. Now, they will help lessen traffic on local roads. Residents claim drivers use their roads as a shortcut.