Healthy Streets

We have committed to exploring a healthy streets area-wide approach to making improvements in Tolworth, to address traffic issues identified through working with the local community.

The community engagement on a package of healthy streets measures which were agreed by the Surbiton Neighbourhood Committee opens 12 January 2024, on our engagement portal Kingston Let’s Talk.

Due to the restrictions of available funding, we have prioritised the measures currently being consulted on so that they can be delivered in the financial year 2023/24. These are: 

Introducing double yellow lines, to prevent unsafe parking, at all junctions in the area that currently do not have them. This will impact parking within 10m of the junction.

New benches and trees in the area where suitable locations are proposed by the community. The footpath needs to be at least 2m wide to accommodate a new bench or tree, or the path can be built out into the road, although this may result in the loss of parking space. 

Four new crossings to improve safety, encourage more walking and reduce the speed of vehicles in the area. The proposed crossings are: 

• A zebra crossing with a parallel cycle crossing in Thornhill Road east of Thornhill Avenue.

• A zebra crossing in Thornhill Road east of Douglas Road. 

• A zebra crossing in Douglas Road outside the back entrance of Tolworth Junior School. 

• A zebra crossing in Tolworth Road east of Kent Way.

Your feedback is being analysed and a report will be taken to a special meeting of the Surbiton Neighbourhood Committee on 13 March 2024.

Outcomes of previous schemes

Tolworth Road LTN experimental trial

In 2020, as a result of residents’ feedback and a detailed movement study of the area, the South of the Borough Neighbourhood Committee approved a recommendation to introduce an experimental Low Traffic Neighbourhood to the area. The road closure (which applied only to motor vehicles) was put in place on a trial basis in December 2021.

Following extensive discussions, engagement and consultation about the impact on surrounding roads, Surbiton Neighbourhood Committee took a decision to remove the road LTN closure on 29 September 2022. On 24 November 2022, the council’s Scrutiny Panel met to consider the Community Call In Request of the decision of the Surbiton Neighbourhood Committee (29 September) on the Tolworth Road Low Traffic Neighbourhood. 

The committee agreed to remove the Tolworth Road closure to motor vehicles at the same time as the introduction of a timed measure (at peak hours only) to prevent traffic from turning left from Fullers Way North into Tolworth Road. It also agreed that a variety of mitigation measures would be introduced to discourage non local traffic on Thornhill Road and the surrounding areas. View full details of the decision.

As agreed at the Neighbourhood Committee, we removed the bollard from Tolworth Road, relocated the planters, and put in place a peak time banned left turn from Fullers Way North into Tolworth Road (except cycles) on a trial basis.

Banned left turn from Fullers Way North to Tolworth Road

Surbiton Neighbourhood Committee took the decision at the 20 September 2023 meeting to remove the banned left turn trial. As agreed, enforcement measures are being removed.

This committee meeting also reviewed feedback received as part of a consultation on a 7.5 tonne weight restriction in February and March 2023 and agreed that the scheme would not be implemented.

During the trial period we undertook extensive engagement to gather the views of the local community, share the work the council has done to address traffic issues in the Tolworth area and the data we have gathered. This data is available on request to to streetspace@kingston.gov.uk. This work has informed the forthcoming Healthy Streets proposals.