Section 2 - Avenue Road (north) – London Borough of Camden section

Overview

Avenue Road to the south of Swiss Cottage would remain fully open to motor traffic. However, our proposals for the removal of the Swiss Cottage one-way system are likely to lead to a significant drop in the amount of traffic using Avenue Road, making it a much quieter and more pleasant environment to cycle, walk and live.

Proposals include:

• New mandatory cycle lanes on Avenue Road
• Closure of Queen’s Grove to general traffic at the junction with Avenue Road
• Removal of one parking bay on Queen’s Grove
• Changes to parking and loading on Avenue Road

Click here for a larger version of the above map (PDF)

Detailed proposals

New mandatory cycle lanes on Avenue Road

• We would provide a continuous 1.5 m wide mandatory cycle lane on both sides of Avenue Road
• The centreline road markings would be removed to encourage slower vehicle speeds
   

Closure of Queen’s Grove to general traffic at the junction with Avenue Road

• Queen’s Grove at its junction with Avenue Road would be closed to all traffic except cyclists, to improve safety and prevent it being used as a through-route by motor vehicles
• The carriageway of Queen’s Grove would be narrowed at the junction, and a bollard would be installed
• Elsworthy Road would remain fully open to all traffic

Removal of one parking bay on Queen’s Grove

• The closure of the junction of Queen’s Grove with Avenue Road  would require the removal of a single residents’ parking bay on Queen’s Grove to provide sufficient space for a turning  circle

Changes to parking and loading on Avenue Road

• Surveys have shown that demand for parking on Avenue Road is generally lower than the current provision, so we are proposing to reduce the number of parking bays available to ensure that the new mandatory cycle lane is available for cyclists to use. The changes proposed are:
   

Eastern side of Avenue Road in Camden

• The existing 46m residents’ parking bay outside the UCL Academy would be reduced to 26m and inset into the footway at footway level. (Permit holders only Mon-Fri 8.30am – 6pm)
• A new inset bay with single yellow line restrictions would be introduced just north of the entrance to Swiss Cottage School, to allow school drop offs. (No waiting Mon-Fri 8.30am – 6pm)
• The existing 45m residents’ parking bay outside Swiss Cottage School would be replaced with two inset residents’ bays of 11m and 5m (Permit holders only Mon-Fri 8.30am – 6pm)
• All single yellow lines would become double yellow lines, with no waiting permitted at any time
   

Western side of Avenue Road in Camden

• The existing 9m residents’ parking bay on the western side of the road outside Avenue Lodge would be reduced to 5m and inset into the footway. (Permit holders only Mon-Fri 8.30am – 6pm)
• All single yellow lines would become double yellow lines, with no waiting permitted at any time
   

How will this impact traffic?

These proposals would mean that journey times for general traffic and some bus routes would change. Some journeys would be expected to improve at certain times of day, particularly southbound traffic during the morning peak. Others would be expected to be longer at certain times of day, particularly around Swiss Cottage. The changes to the road layout and to park access would mean that some traffic would take a different route to get to its destination. Some borough roads would be likely to see an increase in traffic because of these proposals, while other borough roads would see a reduction in traffic volumes.

We would take a number of steps to ensure that the changes made along the route are balanced. TfL is investing in advanced traffic signal technology to allow us to better manage traffic depending on differing conditions at any given time, and we are working to improve road user information so people can make informed journey choices before they travel.

More detailed information on the traffic impacts of the CS11 proposals, including tables of the likely journey time impacts, can be found here.