Where do local candidates stand on the Dulwich Village LTN?
Over the past few weeks, we contacted the Village Ward candidates from all political parties standing in the council elections on 7 May to ask them what their position is on the future of the Dulwich Village LTN and what they commit to doing about it if elected. We also specifically asked them if they support:
the holding of a further survey of Dulwich residents and local businesses, conducted to British Polling Council standards (as per Statutory Guidance) to gauge community support for the Dulwich Village LTN;
Blue Badge holders, parents driving children with SEND to school, and carers, community nurses, midwives and GPs on home visits being allowed access to Dulwich Village from the eastern side of the junction and vice-versa, either through the junction or via Gilkes Crescent and Gilkes Place;
the shops in Dulwich Village, by turning the Bus Gates into timed restrictions that apply during state school term time only; and
the reopening of Calton Avenue to emergency vehicles.
Broadly, the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats both support holding a review into the Dulwich Village LTN to deal with continuing concerns, and to identify and mitigate any adverse impacts - such as congestion and traffic on other roads, the effect on shops and businesses, and the harm caused to vulnerable groups.
The Green Party candidates say that the Dulwich Village scheme has already been subject to extensive consultation, debate and refinement, and the council’s priority now should be to learn from the experience in Dulwich Village and focus on other areas that have not yet benefited from similar measures.
No response has been received from the Labour Party candidates or from the Reform candidate. The last comment that we are aware of by Labour on this was from Cllr. Richard Leeming, who said last year that “The Dulwich Village LTN will not be lifted as long as Labour controls the council.”
WHAT THE PARTIES REPLIED (in alphabetical order)
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CONSERVATIVE PARTY: Tristan Honeyborne and Clive Rates
From our conversations across the ward, it is clear that the Dulwich Village LTN continues to generate deep concern. Residents consistently raise the lack of genuine consent, the absence of transparent data, and the impact on vulnerable residents, carers and local businesses.
We have not only listened - we have acted consistently over a number of years. This has included campaigning for access for Blue Badge holders and vulnerable groups, organising a petition calling for that access, opposing the proposed Turney Road extension, and most recently presenting a 600+ signature petition to Southwark Council calling for practical changes to support the high street, including term-time-only cameras and residents’ permits.
Our position is clear. Traffic schemes in Dulwich must work for the whole community, not shift problems from one street to another. They must be based on evidence, supported by residents, and be fair to all - including those who rely on vehicles. Where schemes fail these tests, they should be fundamentally reviewed and improved.
We also believe that improved public transport is the most effective and fairest way to reduce car use. We support the Dulwich Bus Campaign’s proposal for a new bus route linking West Dulwich, Dulwich Village and Herne Hill. Given the significant level of fines generated by the scheme, we believe it is reasonable that a meaningful proportion of this funding should be reinvested locally in practical improvements such as better bus connectivity.
In response to your questions:
Further survey: We support a full evidence-led survey review of LTNs and traffic schemes to ensure they are fair, supported by residents and work for the whole community. Where schemes are shown to cause harm, they should be amended or removed.
Access for Blue Badge holders, SEND families and carers: We strongly support access through the junction, or suitable alternatives. This is a matter of fairness and something we have actively campaigned for, including through a dedicated petition which we took to Southwark Council in 2022.
Timed (term-time only) restrictions: We support genuinely targeted, proportionate measures focused on school safety, including term-time operation. We have already raised this directly with the Council and will continue to do so.
Emergency vehicle access: We support ensuring emergency access is always fully maintained. This has been a consistent priority in our campaigning.
We will continue pressing the Council to publish full emissions and air quality data so decisions are based on transparent evidence.
As councillors, we would hold the Council to account, ensure residents’ voices are heard, and continue pushing for practical, deliverable changes - as we have consistently done as campaigners.
GREEN PARTY: Vincent Matley and Philip Collins
The Southwark Green Party manifesto sets out our approach to the borough's streets. We want to reduce traffic across the borough and make our air cleaner. We support "liveable neighbourhoods" and believe that these should be introduced with holistic plans that consider the impact across the whole area.
Longer journeys by motor vehicle should be primarily on main roads, with neighbourhood streets reserved primarily for pedestrians, cyclists and public transport. We recognise that some people need to use a car, whether for work or due to a disability, caring responsibility or other reasons, and will ensure that vehicle access is always maintained for these road users.
Across Southwark, there are many neighbourhoods which would benefit from action to reduce traffic. The Dulwich Village scheme has already been subject to extensive consultation, debate and refinement, and has now been a permanent scheme for several years.
We believe the council’s priority should be to learn from the experience in Dulwich Village and now focus on other areas that have not yet benefited from similar measures, rather than reopening schemes that have already been established. We are committed to listening to residents as part of wider borough-wide planning.
LIBERAL DEMOCRAT PARTY: Richard Wingfield and Ed Hill-Smith
Our position on the Dulwich Village Low Traffic Neighbourhood at the point of its introduction was set out in March 2022. The infrastructural changes made as a result of the scheme have now been completed but, recognising the continuing concerns of many residents and businesses, the Liberal Democrats would look to mitigate the scheme's adverse impacts, particularly congestion and increased traffic levels on other roads, on businesses in Dulwich Village, and on vulnerable groups who may be disproportionately affected.
To ensure that any measures taken were evidence-based, the Liberal Democrats support and would push for a review of the Dulwich Village LTN and the impact that it has had, as well as the process by which it was introduced. This should involve full and meaningful consultation with residents, businesses, emergency services and other stakeholders.
The purpose of the review should be to identify lessons learned from the introduction of the scheme, including the consultation process, and to identify all impacts - positive and adverse - so that positive impacts can be maintained while targeted mitigations can be taken to address any continuing adverse impacts. This review should be carried out in accordance with relevant DfT statutory guidance, including on consultation, and any surveying of residents should be conducted to British Polling Council standards.
In parallel, we also support and would push for:
Modifications to the Bus Gate and timed closures so that restrictions only apply during state school term time, and with exemptions or permits for local residents and other specified groups with a particular need (e.g. Blue Badge holders, carers, community nurses, midwives and GPs).
Meaningful consultation with residents of roads that have seen increased levels of traffic and congestion, such as East Dulwich Grove and Croxted Road, to identify and agree upon measures that would help reduce traffic levels on those roads.
Improved public transport options in the area, building on our successful campaign to secure funding for a feasibility study into step-free access at North Dulwich station. We support the Dulwich Bus Campaign and would lobby TfL to ensure a more frequent and reliable P4 service, and review existing bus routes to make sure they enable people to make the journeys they need to.
Measures to support small businesses in the area, including those in Dulwich Village. We would launch a rates relief fund to support local independent businesses and revive our high streets, and work closely with the Dulwich Village Traders Association to determine what further local measures would help increase footfall.
LABOUR PARTY: Richard Leeming and Margy Newens
No response has been received from the Labour Party’s candidates, the current Village Ward councillors, to our invitation to state their position on the future of the LTN or whether they support the modifications we invited them to comment on.
However, the most recent comment that we are aware of that they have made about the future of the Dulwich Village LTN was given last year by Richard Leeming, who told a meeting of Dulwich residents that the Dulwich Village LTN “will not be lifted as long as Labour controls the council”.
REFORM PARTY: Robert Hope
Currently awaiting a response.
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As an apolitical community group, One Dulwich cannot recommend who you vote for, but we do encourage our supporters living in Village Ward to consider the candidates’ stated positions on the Dulwich Village LTN.
If you find it helpful to take public opinion polls into account, a BBC online article on 7 April predicted that Labour could lose seats to the Lib Dems and Greens in Southwark, while modelling published in the Guardian on 7 March by the data firm Bombe - which says it uses polling data from a company called Deltapoll, a member of the British Polling Council (BPC) - suggests that Labour could lose overall control in Southwark, with Lib Dems and Labour winning the same number of seats.
A poll in the Telegraph produced on 14 April by JL Partners suggests Labour will continue to have overall control in Southwark, while a prediction published on a regularly updated website called PollCheck, run by an unnamed ‘politics hobbyist’ who claims to base forecasts on published polling data, predicts Village Ward going to the Lib Dems. As Pollcheck’s data sources are obscure and it is not a member of the BPC, we suggest this prediction should be treated with caution.