The Scrutiny Panel was scheduled to consider a community call-in regarding a decision made by the Kingston and North Kingston Neighbourhood Committee concerning traffic management orders in King's Road, New Road, and Crescent Road. The panel was also due to agree on the procedure for the meeting.

Call-In of Decision on North Kingston Area Study Traffic Management

The main item scheduled for discussion was a community call-in concerning the Kingston & North Kingston Neighbourhood Committee's decision on 29 January 2026 to make permanent, with modifications, the Experimental Traffic Management Order (ETMO) for King's Road, New Road, and Crescent Road as part of the North Kingston Area Study.

The call-in request, signed by 782 residents, argued that the decision was inconsistent with established policy and that a material consideration had not been properly considered. Specifically, the request highlighted that the committee approved an amended version of the officer's recommendation for Crescent Road, restricting it only during weekday mornings (7:30 am to 9:30 am) rather than all day. This amendment was noted to potentially diminish the scheme's effectiveness by approximately 50%, contradicting the council's stated Healthy Streets vision and objectives.

Further grounds for the call-in included the alleged failure to consider a petition with 505 signatures from the Kingston Residents' Road Group (KIRG) opposing the Crescent Road restriction. The request also contended that equality and discrimination impacts raised by respondents were not properly assessed, despite the report identifying Perceived inequality & social division as a dominant theme. Additionally, concerns were raised about the reliance on traffic modelling with acknowledged limitations, particularly for the Manorgate roundabout, which the report stated underestimated congestion.

The report pack outlined the options available to the Scrutiny Panel: either reject the call-in, allowing the original decision to proceed, or agree, wholly or partially, with the reasons for the call-in and refer it back to the relevant committee for review.

The report from Matthew Hill, Director of Highways, Transport and Regulatory Services, addressed these points. Regarding the inconsistency with policy, it was stated that the amended restriction on Crescent Road still addressed through traffic and reduced overall vehicle volume, aligning with Healthy Streets principles, and that committees must consider community views. On the matter of the KIRG petition, the council stated it was not formally submitted through the defined channels and that statutory consultations on Traffic Management Orders are handled separately from the Petition Scheme. The report also noted that while equality concerns were raised, housing type or wealth are not Protected Characteristics under the Equality Act, and an Equalities Relevance Test found no significant adverse impact, though a full Equalities Impact Assessment (EQIA) was being undertaken to provide further reassurance. Concerning traffic modelling, officers expressed satisfaction with the Kingston Hill/Queen's Road junction modelling, while acknowledging limitations with the Manorgate roundabout model, but noted that real traffic survey data was also provided. The report also highlighted that the committee's resolution to monitor the situation for a year after permanent implementation acted as a safety valve.

The report also included an EQIA for the North Kingston Area study, which indicated no significant adverse impact, and detailed the traffic data, air pollution modelling, and queue length analysis related to the experimental traffic management orders. The analysis suggested that while traffic on internal roads had fallen, there was no corresponding severe spike on main roads, indicating traffic diversion or mode change. Air quality modelling suggested negligible changes to NO2 levels. However, the modelling for the Manorgate roundabout was noted as inaccurate, underestimating congestion.

The report also detailed the enforcement of the Crescent Road restriction, including initial administrative errors with Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs) and the subsequent trend of declining contraventions. It also noted that the Metropolitan Police had no objection to the trial measures and Transport for London (TfL) indicated no negative impact on bus journey times.

The report summarised findings by proposal, noting strong support for the King's Road and New Road one-way systems, but significant opposition to the Crescent Road exit only restriction, primarily due to perceived discrimination against residents of Kingsnympton Park and Cumberland estates and concerns about increased congestion on Kingston Hill. The report concluded that while the King's Road and New Road schemes were broadly successful, the Crescent Road measure was unpopular, but appeared to be working as intended in relation to the experiment's objectives and council policy. The officer's recommendation was to make the experimental traffic orders for all three roads permanent, as they form an interconnected system.

Scrutiny Panel Procedure

The panel was also scheduled to agree on the procedure for the meeting, as outlined in Appendix B. This procedure detailed the order of speaking, including a representative of the call-in request, questions from the committee, and input from members responsible for the decision and relevant officers. The Chair had indicated a willingness to allow residents of the Kingston and North Kingston Neighbourhood to speak, with up to five speakers registering in advance.

Minutes of Previous Meeting

The panel was also due to confirm the minutes of the previous meeting held on 15 March 2023.