Hackney's Main Roads (and how we can make them better for everyone)
Main roads are vital transport corridors for bus users, pedestrians, cyclists, commercial motor traffic and those people who have no other option but to use a car.
They are also often high streets with shops, cafes and bars, or roads with community uses such as schools and community centres.
Finally, they are residential streets too, where around 10% of people in Hackney live.
There is an unavoidable need for some roads in Hackney to carry relatively large flows of motor traffic. People sometimes say we could reduce main road traffic by opening other convenient routes to drive, for example by opening up LTNs. However main roads in Hackney have been busy for decades and this long predates recent LTNs.
They are also often high streets with shops, cafes and bars, or roads with community uses such as schools and community centres.
Finally, they are residential streets too, where around 10% of people in Hackney live.
There is an unavoidable need for some roads in Hackney to carry relatively large flows of motor traffic. People sometimes say we could reduce main road traffic by opening other convenient routes to drive, for example by opening up LTNs. However main roads in Hackney have been busy for decades and this long predates recent LTNs.
People protesting heavy traffic on Graham Road in the 1980s, up to 40 years before recent LTNs. © Rio Cinema / Hackney Archive
Newspaper extract from Hackney People's Press #46 July 1979 showing residents protesting traffic on Graham Road (c) https://archive.org/details/hpp-46-july-1979/page/n1/mode/2up
All the evidence shows opening other routes would only encourage more car journeys overall, blight more roads and lead to growth in car use and greater harm over time.
However, in order to protect health and quality of life, to provide a safe and pleasant environment for residents and road users outside motor vehicles, and to ensure efficient movement of all forms of transport, it is vital that avoidable traffic is minimised on main roads.
What counts as a main road?
Main roads are those roads that have been classified by the Department for Transport.
DfT say: ‘The system of roads classification is intended to direct motorists towards the most suitable routes for reaching their destination. It does this by identifying roads that are best suited for traffic.’ You can read more here.
Examples of ‘A’ roads in Hackney would include A10 (Kingsland Road / Rectory Road), A104 (Balls Pond Road / Dalston Lane) A1207 (Graham Road) A102 (Homerton High Street). ‘B’ road examples include B108 (Queensbridge Road) B111 (Northwold Road) B104 (Church Street).
Main roads have usually been adapted over many years to make them more suitable for motor traffic. Adaptations can include pedestrian crossings; signalised junctions; enforcement cameras; stopping restrictions; bus lanes; cycle lanes and more.
However many main roads are lacking necessary adaptations and offer a poor environment to those outside motor vehicles. Far more could be done to improve main roads in Hackney, as we will explain below.
What principles does Low Traffic Hackney want to see in designing our main roads?
They should be safe. This means air pollution should be minimised and always kept within legal limits. People should not be killed or seriously injured by motor traffic on main roads and we should aim for ‘vision zero’ (a strategy to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe injuries). Speeds should be strictly controlled. People on foot or bicycle should be able to use main roads without danger.
They should be accessible and comfortable for people outside cars. Main roads should not just be motor traffic sewers. People should be able to walk wheel or cycle them with ease and in comfort, without difficulty or inconvenience
They should prioritise public transport over private and commercial motor traffic. Main roads should prioritise buses over other traffic both in the allocation of roadspace and in other priority measures such as signal timing.
They should allow essential motor traffic to move in a controlled way that minimises the harm it causes. Main roads need to work for motor traffic and to allow essential commercial and domestic motor vehicle journeys. Main roads should be highly controlled environments which are treated to minimise the harms that essential motor vehicle journeys cause.
How can we make sure main roads meet these principles and work for everyone?
How to make main roads safe:
How to make main roads accessible and comfortable for people outside cars:
How to ensure main roads prioritise public transport:
How to ensure main roads allow essential motor traffic to move in a controlled way.
To improve main roads and to reduce congestion, we need to take a network-level approach to tackle sources of traffic. This means:
However, in order to protect health and quality of life, to provide a safe and pleasant environment for residents and road users outside motor vehicles, and to ensure efficient movement of all forms of transport, it is vital that avoidable traffic is minimised on main roads.
What counts as a main road?
Main roads are those roads that have been classified by the Department for Transport.
DfT say: ‘The system of roads classification is intended to direct motorists towards the most suitable routes for reaching their destination. It does this by identifying roads that are best suited for traffic.’ You can read more here.
Examples of ‘A’ roads in Hackney would include A10 (Kingsland Road / Rectory Road), A104 (Balls Pond Road / Dalston Lane) A1207 (Graham Road) A102 (Homerton High Street). ‘B’ road examples include B108 (Queensbridge Road) B111 (Northwold Road) B104 (Church Street).
Main roads have usually been adapted over many years to make them more suitable for motor traffic. Adaptations can include pedestrian crossings; signalised junctions; enforcement cameras; stopping restrictions; bus lanes; cycle lanes and more.
However many main roads are lacking necessary adaptations and offer a poor environment to those outside motor vehicles. Far more could be done to improve main roads in Hackney, as we will explain below.
What principles does Low Traffic Hackney want to see in designing our main roads?
They should be safe. This means air pollution should be minimised and always kept within legal limits. People should not be killed or seriously injured by motor traffic on main roads and we should aim for ‘vision zero’ (a strategy to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe injuries). Speeds should be strictly controlled. People on foot or bicycle should be able to use main roads without danger.
They should be accessible and comfortable for people outside cars. Main roads should not just be motor traffic sewers. People should be able to walk wheel or cycle them with ease and in comfort, without difficulty or inconvenience
They should prioritise public transport over private and commercial motor traffic. Main roads should prioritise buses over other traffic both in the allocation of roadspace and in other priority measures such as signal timing.
They should allow essential motor traffic to move in a controlled way that minimises the harm it causes. Main roads need to work for motor traffic and to allow essential commercial and domestic motor vehicle journeys. Main roads should be highly controlled environments which are treated to minimise the harms that essential motor vehicle journeys cause.
How can we make sure main roads meet these principles and work for everyone?
How to make main roads safe:
- 20mph speed limits should always apply, which are adequately enforced including by regular speed cameras and CCTV to reduce collision risks
- Main roads in Hackney are already subject to ULEZ to reduce emissions of vehicles that use them, and to improve the air for residents and pedestrians.
- There should be regular well-designed signalised crossings for pedestrians and people wheeling and cycling who need to cross the road.
- Side-road crossings should be made safe, with pedestrian priority and design measures to prevent excessive speeds. LTNs should be used to reduce traffic turning from side roads to main roads wherever possible as these points have high collision risk
- Lane width should be reduced to the minimum necessary as this discourages speeding and allows easier crossing. In most locations there should be no more than one general traffic lane in each direction.
- There should be effective enforcement against dangerous and illegal behaviours
- In order to incentivise cleaner smaller vehicles which use local main roads, local parking charges should have an emissions surcharge to discourage high emission vehicles and a size/weight surcharge to discourage dangerous excessively large cars.
How to make main roads accessible and comfortable for people outside cars:
- Pavements should be widened and traffic lanes narrowed to maximise space for those outside cars
- High quality side road crossings should be provided to every side road, which prioritise pedestrians and are comfortable for disabled people to use
- Excessive waits for signalised pedestrian crossings should be avoided. Avoid crossing ‘islands’ and two-step crossings which make pedestrians wait twice to get across a road.
- Provide protected cycle lanes to separate cyclists from general motor traffic and buses. Painted lanes do not offer protection or encourage inclusive cycling.
- Use trees, greening and seating to provide pleasant comfortable environments and separate people from vehicles.
- Avoid street clutter on the pavement (signs, advertisements, digital screens etc) as such items can affect pedestrian experience and cause obstruction for disabled people
- Enforce against pavement parking
- Enforce speeds to no more than 20mph to reduce noise and improve perceived safety.
How to ensure main roads prioritise public transport:
- Bus lanes should be provided wherever possible and should operate 24/7.
- Signal priority should be given to buses at junctions where possible
- Use of bus gates where possible, or timed bus gates at peak times (recognising main roads are necessary to move general traffic, many will not be suitable for bus gates, but there are some good examples of roads that were suitable in Hackney such as B104 Church Street and B144 Shepherdess Walk).
- Removal of parking which causes obstructions and delays, especially all parking in bus lanes.
- Loading bays to be on side roads were possible or use of technology such as ‘bookable loading bays’ to avoid them being occupied by parked cars
- Comfortable bus stops of sufficient size with shelters/seating provided.
- Where cycle lanes and bus lanes interact, the latest government guidance should be followed to ensure inclusive bus stop bypasses which prevent cyclists from delaying buses and protect pedestrian accessibility
How to ensure main roads allow essential motor traffic to move in a controlled way.
To improve main roads and to reduce congestion, we need to take a network-level approach to tackle sources of traffic. This means:
- Congestion charging / road pricing to control demand
- LTNs on non-main roads to reduce local car use and turning from side roads to main roads
- Parking controls including CPZs and permit caps to discourage local car ownership and use
- Measures to discourage school traffic (school streets)
- 20mph speed limit, strictly enforced
- Provision of high quality effective and reliable public transport to offer alternatives
- Incentivise greener commercial alternatives such as use of cargo bikes
- Enforcement of traffic offences such as box junction offences, banned turns or stopping on crossings
How is Hackney currently doing on main roads?
Overall progress has been reasonable in some respects but poor in others and certainly too slow on traffic reduction. ‘Main road first’ policies like congestion charging and ULEZ have had an effect however there is much more to do.
Traffic in Hackney is down over the last two decades and down since 2019, although it has slowly crept up since the post-pandemic low in 2022.
Overall progress has been reasonable in some respects but poor in others and certainly too slow on traffic reduction. ‘Main road first’ policies like congestion charging and ULEZ have had an effect however there is much more to do.
Traffic in Hackney is down over the last two decades and down since 2019, although it has slowly crept up since the post-pandemic low in 2022.
Traffic on main roads is generally lower than it was before recent LTNs, including on the roads that people sometimes seek to blame LTNs for traffic increases. DfT publish figures for main roads such as:
Traffic on main roads is generally lower than it was before recent LTNs, including on the roads that people sometimes seek to blame LTNs for traffic increases. DfT publish figures for main roads such as:
DfT Traffic Counts on Balls Pond Road
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DfT Traffic Counts on Graham Road
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DfT Traffic Counts on Homerton High Street
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Hackney has successfully used bus gates on some main roads including A107 Amhurst Road, B104 Church Street and B144 Shepherdess Walk. These have had a dramatic effect on those roads. You can watch a video about the impact of Church Street Bus Gate here:
Hackney has successfully used bus gates on some main roads including A107 Amhurst Road, B104 Church Street and B144 Shepherdess Walk. These have had a dramatic effect on those roads. You can watch a video about the impact of Church Street Bus Gate here:
Air Quality on main roads in Hackney has also dramatically improved as the impact of ULEZ, switch to electrical vehicles, improving engine emissions standards, and local car reduction policies have taken effect. LTNs have not made main road pollution worse! It is much better than it was before the 2020 schemes and has continued to improve (click the image for full data):
However there are too many roads in Hackney which are far too dominated by motor traffic and fail to offer inclusive accessible safe or pleasant environments. Using policies described above, this can change!
Low Traffic Hackney is putting pressure on Hackney’s politicians to do much more for main roads.
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