Background to this: TFL has previously narrowed access on Southampton Row causing congestion on that road trailing back to Guilford St; The access to Euston Rd has also been diminished by other works leading to Tavistock Sq and thence Euston Rd; TFL previously tried to close Judd St and failed because the consultation was against it. On this occasion that consultation has not been repeated or if it has it was not publicised in the same way and was deliberately reformed. Residents hereabouts are increasingly cut off from access to Euston Road by TFL who have no concern or for the needs of local traffic. The previous scheme was defeated because it did not recognise local need for eg access to the west or for those without walking ability to reach UCH. This decision appears calculated to achieve road closures for the good of none congestion traffic on Euston Road without adequate consideration of residents and their needs. It is undemocratic and retrograde to conspire to defeat previous objections in this way. Please provide the technical justification for it together with the consultaion which did not appear locally. It is noted that a warning about proposed works was delivered here but not any consultation

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Dear

TfL Ref: FOI-2055-1819

Thank you for your email received by Transport for London (TfL) on 6 November 2018.

Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy.  I can confirm we hold some of the information you require. You asked:

TfL has previously narrowed access on Southampton Row causing congestion on that road trailing back to Guilford St; The access to Euston Rd has also been diminished by other works leading to Tavistock Square and thence Euston Rd; TFL previously tried to close Judd St and failed because the consultation was against it.

Please provide the technical justification for it together with the consultation which did not appear locally. It is noted that a warning about proposed works was delivered here but not any consultation.

There has been, and continues to be, a number of road schemes going on in this area including;

1. Southampton Row – London Borough of Camden lead scheme.

    

2. Tavistock Square – London Borough of Camden lead cycling scheme.

    

3. Judd Street – Midland Road including crossing of Euston Road is part of North-South Superhighway and is a mix of TfL and Camden’s work.

For the TfL and Camden schemes at Euston Road/Midland Road/Judd Street and Midland Road, the public consultation was carried out between 15 February 2016 to 20 March 2016. Please see the link to the public consultation here: https://consultations.wearecamden.org/culture-environment/midland/  

The joint TfL/Camden public consultation exercise for these combined schemes was comprehensive. A total of 19,384 consultation letters were distributed to residents, businesses, local and statutory groups and Ward Members in Camden. The consultation was available online through the WeAreCamden.org portal, where respondents could submit their feedback via an online questionnaire. A total of 754 online and postal responses were received from areas spanning across the UK. 235 (31%) of these were from within the London Borough of Camden and 118 (16%) were from residents and businesses south of Euston Road and 116 (15%) from the north (both still within the borough).

On balance the outcome of the public consultation was positive and a decision was taken by Camden to proceed with the scheme on 27 June 2018. The reasoning for this decision is contained within this decision report located here: http://democracy.camden.gov.uk/documents/s69629/Midland%20Rd_Judd%20St%20Consultation%20Report.pdf  

Following this, a traffic order consultation was carried out by TfL in September which advertised our intention to close Judd Street to non-emergency traffic. For the traffic order, eight laminated traffic order posters were placed on lamp posts and traffic signal posts at the Euston Road-Midland Road-Judd Street junction on Thursday 6 September and remained in situ until Friday 28 September. Adverts were also displayed in the Camden New Journal newspaper on 6 September which is standard practice for Traffic Order consultations.

A total of 9,936 letters were sent by TfL to local residents on 2 November letting local residents know of the decision to build the schemes at Euston Road/Midland Road/Judd Street and Midland Road.

There is a strong technical justification for these connected schemes. The key drivers of the changes to the Euston Road/Judd Street junction and Midland Road are to encourage more walking and cycling in London. The shift towards more people walking and cycling in the area will result in less congestion for those who need to drive. These projects are in full alignment with the Mayor’s Healthy Streets agenda and the target in the Mayor’s Transport Strategy to raise the share of trips made by sustainable modes of transport to 80% in 2041. Please see the hyperlink to the March 2018 Mayor’s Transport Strategy here: https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/mayors-transport-strategy-2018.pdf   

A safe cycle route will be created in both north/south directions from Bloomsbury to Camden Town which will result in a large increases in the number of cyclists travelling between these locations. Currently cyclists cannot travel north from Judd Street to Midland Road as Midland Road is four lanes southbound. The changes planned (and approved) by TfL and London Borough of Camden will open up a northbound contraflow cycle facility along the western side of Midland Road. They will also tie into the recently opened Cycle Superhighway Route 6 which runs down to Farringdon, Ludgate Circus, Blackfriars Bridge and Elephant and Castle. Currently there is a ‘gap’ in cycle provision between Bloomsbury and Camden Town which will be filled by the proposed changes which the TfL and Camden schemes at Euston Road/Midland Road/Judd Street.

The changes to the highway network in the area should improve road safety for all users at this location. Currently there is no signalised pedestrian crossing facility on the west arm of the Euston Road/Judd Street/Midland Road junction. A ‘green man’ facility will be installed on the west arm which will be of benefit to those who wish to visit the British Library. The closure of the northern end of Judd Street to motorised traffic except cyclists will be of benefit to pedestrians visiting Bloomsbury from King’s Cross and St. Pancras Stations. Changes to this junction will also aid visually impaired persons and those who are visiting the RNIB offices further south on Judd Street.

With regards to Southampton Row and Tavistock Square, these are not within TfL’s highway network and I would recommend you contact the London Borough of Camden for their answer.

If this is not the information you are looking for, or if you are unable to access it for some reason, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal as well as information on copyright and what to do if you would like to re-use any of the information we have disclosed.

Yours sincerely

Eva Hextall

FOI Case Officer

FOI Case Management Team

General Counsel

Transport for London

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