EXCLUSIVE The moment desperate drivers realise they've been snared by London's most-hated low traffic neighbourhood that pulls in £16,500 in fines a day

Daily Mail​

07-07-2025

These are the chaotic scenes when drivers try to avoid an 'absolutely ridiculous' Low Traffic Neighbourhood that is raking in fines of £16,500 a day for a council.
The camera-enforced LTN roads in East Greenwich, south-east London are making it difficult for locals to go to the shops, drop their children to school and get to work, they say.
And our video shows the lengths drivers are forced to go to in order to avoid a dreaded £100 fine.
MailOnline footage shows one grey van braking abruptly before hastily turning around and a Waitrose truck making an awkward diversion.
Other clips show a laundry delivery lorry driving down a restricted road before quickly backing out in a panic, cars approaching hesitantly to read the signs then re-routing and even some oblivious drivers hurtling straight through.
Between January and the end of May, the council has made £2.5 million from 47,836 notices penalty notices issued over rush-hour restrictions on Westcombe Hill, Vanbrugh Hill, Halstow Road and Maze Hill.
Irene Asah, 48, was once able to drop her nine-year-old son right outside the school gates, but is now forced to park up before Halstow Road and let him walk the rest of the way on his own.
The mother-of-two doesn't have time to take the diverted route as she also has to drop her daughter to secondary school and get to work.
'I wish I could drop him straight to the school entrance, it would be easier and more secure, but I don't have time,' she told MailOnline.
Ms Asah said the LTN is 'really horrible' and 'bad for people who drive', adding: 'It does make our journeys longer. I work in central London, so when I come back after 3pm I can't go this direction. I have to go all the way past Shooters Hill, it's a long way.'
If she was able to use the road when she finishes work, it would only take her 15 minutes to get to her son's school and pick him up at 3.30pm.
However, it now takes her 45 minutes which means she often arrives 15 minutes past the collection time.
'The school are always calling me because I'm late and can't get there in time,' she said.
Colin Gifford, 55, lives at the top of Vanbrugh Hill and mentioned how the build-up of traffic can add an extra 20 minutes to his commute.
He told MailOnline: 'My quickest and easiest way to the Blackwall Tunnel is down Vanbrugh Hill through the LTN, but I'm forced to go all the way round during rush hour with everybody else and that's making those roads so much busier.'
Mr Gifford acknowledged the LTN is good for the people living on the restricted roads, but said it 'doesn't make sense' for other locals.
'I don't think it stops people driving, they just go in a different direction,' he added.
Elsewhere, Kirsty Dunlop explained how Greenwich has always been a 'pathway to the Blackwall Tunnel', but the easy access they once had is now blocked.
The 46-year-old said: 'The LTNs sound great in theory, but for us residents it's absolutely ridiculous and there's no help what so ever.'
She added: 'I live the other side of Amber Hill, so for me to get to the Blackwall Tunnel I have to go all the way up, over and around to get somewhere that would have taken me two minutes.
'I understand there's the whole rat-run thing with people coming in, but it's just so unhelpful.'
Ms Dunlop said her neighbour recently received a £100 fine after she drove through Halstow Road at 6.59am.
But, when her friend appealed it and pointed out she had gone through just one minute before the controls start, she was told it 'doesn't matter'.
The build-up of traffic has also made bus journeys longer and even impossible at times because they can't 'physically turn down' some congested roads due to how narrow they are.
She said: 'It's a mile to my son's school and sometimes we don't want to walk in the pouring rain and get wet, so then you're waiting on a bus.
'The bus will say it's going to be 10 minutes and next thing you know it's 20 minutes. That's putting pressure on all of us and it's just not fair.'
She mentioned how teachers are unable to park on the road where they work and end up late because they have to search for a spot further away.
Ms Dunlop said: 'It's just really put us at a disadvantage. I do think something needs to happen, but I don't think this is the way forward.
'I don't think they have really thought this through for the people living here.'
The mother is 'not surprised' the council make so much money from fines, adding: 'As much as they package it up as fighting pollution and helping us, it is a money-making scheme.'
Marianne Chapman, 39, lives on Eastcombe Avenue, the first road past the Westcombe Park LTN, and believes they are 'just putting everyone in more traffic'.
She told MailOnline: 'It means everyone comes down my road and it's completely blocked.
'We've got the 380 bus and it can't come up the road because of the amount of people coming down and it's really narrow. So, the busses physically can't do the turn.'
Ms Chapman shared concerns about how the money from the fines is being used.
'Where is this money Greenwich Council are collecting from fines going? They're making this much money, but are they showing us it's going into doing something about the environment and pollution?
'Is it even being spent on something or is it just going into the councils budget? It should go towards something relevant to what it is meant to be stopping.'
Gareth Morgan, 46, said he is having to be 'very conscious' of the routes he takes and is 'yet to have met someone in favour of the idea'.
The Halstow Road resident revealed how he has to use public car parks because he doesn't currently have a parking permit for outside his property.
He added he might have been caught out by the unclear signage had not seen the consultation.
Other residents noted they avoid talking to some of their neighbours who like the LTN because of how divisive the topic is, with some asking to give their comments anonymously.
One man said: 'They have to stop this game. London is not Amsterdam. Is this some kind of money making scheme?
'The neighbourhoods that benefit from this system are the ones with beautiful houses. The square meter is way more expensive here.'
Another complained: 'I think it's a waste of time. I've had situations where taxis are not wanting to turn into this area to drop me off at home, so I'm being dropped off at the bottom of the hill.
'People are not very clear on the rules. It seems very complicated.
'I'd rather see the council spend money on actual things that are going help us with reaching net zero, like more cycle lanes and investing in better public transport, rather than these kinds of punitive measures that are there to punish motorists.
'It's damaging the council's relationship with local residents.'
Meanwhile, a few homeowners in East Greenwich - who also asked to remain anonymous - said they 'love' the scheme before hurrying away from any more questions.
Donald Reid, who is in favour of the LTN, was unafraid to declare his opinion that it is a 'good thing'.
The 65-year-old said: 'It has reduced congestion, reduced pollution, and it makes the area nice to walk around.'
'We need to get more people off the roads and using bikes or walking. There are a large number of unnecessary journeys being made by car.
'People need to change behaviour to get closer to net zero.'
He said it was 'horrendous' before the restrictions, with cars 'banked up the road with pollution running'.
Councillor Matt Hartley, Leader of Greenwich Conservatives, who requested the figures on fines from the council, told us: 'Labour's ideological war on drivers continues to hurt people here.
'The scheme was chaotically introduced, with poor signage and widespread confusion.
'The fines are now rolling in to the council and, predictably, there's no sign of the air quality benefits the council claimed.
'What we can see is that some traffic is being displaced to roads in areas outside the zone, which have been badly let down by this council.
'Labour councillors need to have the humility to listen to local people, instead of just seeing the pound signs above their heads.'