Extra 40-minute commutes, the taste of fumes in the air and ambulances stuck in gridlock: What life is like for Londoners living in 'nightmare' LTN

Furious south London residents have slammed a controversial new Low Traffic Neighbourhood which is causing such terrible congestion that buses are taking nearly an hour to travel less than three miles.

The Streatham Wells LTN has caused 'chaos' since it was first introduced last October, with residents, local business owners, and motorists branding it a 'nightmare'.

LTNS were first introduced by Mayor of London Sadiq Khan in the hopes of reducing pollution, but local residents say the latest LTN has actually made the problem worse.

A local shop owner claimed she can now 'taste the fumes' as she walks down Streatham High Road, and parents say their children are always late for school because of the congestion.

The traffic is so bad at peak times that buses are being diverted around and even through the zone and ambulances get stuck in the gridlock.

The road, part of the A23, is the main route from south London into Surrey.

Harriet De Wolff, 57, who owns a gift shop called 'The Indigo Tree' on Streatham High Road, said: 'It is an absolute nightmare.

'It's definitely not good for pollution. It's made it worse.

'I can taste the fumes in my mouth as I walk down Streatham High Road. That didn't use to be the case, but now, all the cars and buses stopped in traffic – it's causing more and more pollution.

'People who live on this street will never be able to open their windows again.'

The shop owner added that one 'often-ignored' impact of the LTN has been the change to safety on the streets.

She explained: 'I was walking home the other day and there was no one around. It was completely dark.

'There used to be cars, people – but now I feel so unsafe.

'People have been getting mugged – even kids. That's a side-effect that is often ignored.

'Crime in London is bad enough without helping the criminals.'

Her daughter Meg De Wolff, 21, said that the LTN has also affected their family business.

She explained: 'No-one drives down the road anymore for some quick errands, because it's impossible to get anywhere.

'So it's been disastrous for business.

'We also can't get deliveries anymore, because drivers don't want to come down – or they email saying we were shut, which isn't true, because they don't want to come down here.

'The other day, I was looking after a guy in here who had fallen on the road, his face was all bloodied up, and it took the ambulance two hours to get here.'

Bus driver John Monroe, 48, said the LTN has doubled his journey times.

'What was once an hour journey now takes over two hours. It's definitely quicker to walk or cycle than take the bus, but not everyone can do that.

'It kind of defeats the purpose of a Low Traffic Neighbourhood, because it's not stopping the congestion – it's creating more. There's more pollution.

'Passengers hate it too. We're not allowed to open the doors apart from at bus stops, but I have people asking all the time if they can get off – because we're stuck in traffic, and they know they'll get there quicker by walking.'

Another bus driver, Elliot Braham, has had a similar experience.

The 38-year-old said: 'It makes things impossible because I have a schedule to stick to – but it's now taking around an hour to travel just a couple hundred metres.

'It's awful when you see ambulances getting stuck in the traffic too. It's just made the congestion so much worse.'

Poamila Boneus, 65, decided to get off the bus with her grandson Anthony because of how bad the traffic was.

'We got off because of how long it was taking with the traffic,' she said.

'It's made it a nightmare every day.

'The kids are late to school each morning, and it takes us ages to get them home.

'The journey used to take around 20 minutes, now it can take a couple of hours.'

Anthony, who is only 10, said he feels the impact from the pollution.

'I can smell it in the air,' he said.

'And when you are at the top of the hill, you can see the fumes – you can actually see the pollution.'

Feroza Ahmed, 44, who was trying to run errands, added: 'It's just ridiculous.

'It's my day off, I want to get some things sorted, and it's taking hours and hours out of my day.

'It's a nightmare to get anywhere anymore.

'And it's not helped with pollution – it's just moved it all into one area.'

The estate agent said she was considering moving – both house and jobs – because of how terrible the situation is.

She said: 'It's affecting me hugely. Viewings take twice as long, and people don't want to live in Streatham anymore because of this situation.'

Her colleague Danielle Quincey, 27, added: 'It's just unbearable.

'It's added 40 minutes to my commute. I can't tell you the amount of times I've sat in my car in traffic on the way home and just cried.

'Locals are standing on the streets telling people not to go down certain roads so they don't get fined.

'We're all united on this. We hate the LTN – it's a nightmare.'

Transport for London (TfL) data shows that last week the A23, which runs along the western side of the LTN, became so bogged down in traffic that it took the bus 121 minutes to travel 2.9 miles.

It would have been twice as quick for passengers to walk the route which is only scheduled to take 29 minutes, the Times reported.

Three quarters of another bus route were diverted around the LTN during rush hour while another route forged a path straight through it, Department of Transport data shows.

Since 2020, hundreds of LTNs have been introduced across the country but there is growing controversy about the schemes.

And last summer, Rishi Sunak ordered a review into LTNs which the Transport Department is yet to publish any findings or guidance on.

Lambeth Council blamed 'ongoing roadworks' and 'recent rail strikes' for the congestion.

A Lambeth Council spokesperson said: 'We are aware of concerns regarding bus times in Streatham relating to the trial of Streatham Wells LTN, ongoing roadworks by utilities and recent rail strikes. We are working closely with TfL to monitor the situation and will make changes as needed.'

'In previous Lambeth LTN schemes, traffic fell across the neighbourhood and boundary roads by the end of the trial.

'The Low Traffic Neighbourhoods, and other measures such as those in West Dulwich, been introduced to our busy London borough to make the areas safer, more sustainable and to improve the quality for life everyone living in our local neighbourhoods.'

However, TfL's bus operations team reportedly came to the conclusion that the LTN was actually causing the problem.

The LTN's Operations Network Management Control Centre recently raised an 'incident' as they said the LTN was causing 'serious' delays in the area, the Times reported.

Tom Cunnington, Transport for London’s head of buses, said: 'We are sorry passengers continue to experience delays to services in Streatham — this is not in line with the level of service we aim to provide.'

Stephen Hall, who runs the Streatham Stuff website, said: 'It’s four months into the scheme and buses on the High Road are still regularly getting stuck for an hour in the congestion.

'Lambeth Council seems to have hugely underestimated the amount of damage and disruption the LTN would cause.'