Greenwich Council scraps most of its ‘sustainable streets’ CPZ schemes

Greenwich Council has scrapped most of its “sustainable streets” plans to introduce controlled parking zones across a whole swathe of the borough after five months of controversy.

The scheme would have involved introducing permit parking and paid parking, as well as space for bikes and car club vehicles in residential streets across much of the north and west of the borough. Extra street trees were also part of the proposals.

Now the scheme will only be introduced in Woolwich, with proposals for Kidbrooke, Blackheath, Charlton and west Thamesmead scrapped after a consultation showed widespread opposition. Plans for Shooters Hill and Plumstead were scrapped in the summer.

However, the council has said it may implement smaller-scale schemes in individual areas where parking is a problem. Canberra Road in Charlton and Broad Walk in Kidbrooke are named in a “parking stress survey” as streets with particular issues which would continue to be monitored.

“Feedback from the informal consultation suggested the proposals were unpopular in some areas and in some instances were not needed,” a document from council officers admitted.

The withdrawal comes five months before what is widely expected to be a bruising election for Greenwich’s Labour-run council. News was released to councillors by email on Thursday evening, with papers buried deep in the council website. A public announcement followed about two hours later on social media.

Matt Hartley, the leader of the council’s Conservative group, told The Greenwich Wire: “”I am thrilled that everyone’s hard work in opposing these disastrous parking charge proposals has finally paid off. The so-called ‘sustainable streets’ policy has been seriously flawed from the start – and I hope that Labour councillors will take this as a lesson in the risks of trying to railroad communities in the way they so often do.  

“People should make no mistake, though, that if Labour are re-elected next May they will undoubtedly try this again. We haven’t seen the last of this parking charge agenda – and  Conservative councillors will continue to oppose any attempt to impose controlled parking zones in areas where they are not needed, wherever they are in our borough.”

In a council website article, council leader Anthony Okereke talked up the introduction of the scheme to Woolwich and added: “We also recognise through our extensive consultation with residents that in other areas support was limited with some concerns raised and so we have listened and will not be progressing with proposals in those areas.”

In an email sent to Labour councillors, Okereke said he had heard residents’ views when door-knocking for the election. He said: “The discussion has engaged our communities and provided good feedback. This has been extremely useful for the transport team.”

The saga began in February with a widespread consultation about parking and what improvements people would like to see in their neighbourhoods, such as trees and better-designed streets, which 3,000 people responded to.

But when proposals were published in July, the emphasis was on permit parking – with many residents angry about losing spaces to paid parking spots as well as the complexity of the consultation process.

With the council initially unable to answer questions about the scheme, rumours and petitions against the plans spread quickly, with the scheme branded a “cash grab” by opponents – a label the council found hard to shake off. Even in Woolwich, “many believe the process is overly complex, poorly communicated, and driven by revenue rather than genuine sustainability goals”, a council report admitted.

Greenwich had hoped to raise £1 million each year from the “sustainable streets” programme by 2029, according to the budget passed in February. Annual fees in most controlled parking zones in Greenwich are between £61 and £306, depending on emissions, with the “base price” set at £102. The revenue goes into transport schemes and the council’s contribution to the Freedom Pass.

By August, plans in Plumstead and Shooters Hill were scrapped following fierce hostility to the scheme, which included a demonstration outside the town hall.

Now most of the rest of the scheme has been scrapped. The exception is Woolwich, where opposition was less pronounced. When 649 respondents were asked if the council’s plans represented what they wanted in their street, 65 per cent said “neither yes nor no”, compared with 23 per cent who said “not at all” or “not really”. Only 5.7 per cent gave a positive answer.

In neighbouring Charlton, where the scheme has been scrapped entirely, 71 per cent gave a negative answer to the same question. In Kidbrooke and Blackheath, 72 per cent gave a negative answer. In west Thamesmead, 70 per cent of respondents were negative about the ideas for their street.

Detailed designs and a formal consultation will now begin for an area stretching from the Thames Barrier to Plumstead Common, with plans to have the scheme in place by the summer.

Among the results of the consultation was a call for better public transport in Blackheath and Kidbrooke – the very area affected by Transport for London cutting the frequency of the 386 bus last month.

Plans for CPZs to cover the entire borough were unveiled by the council three years ago as part of its transport strategy. Most of Greenwich itself is already in controlled parking zones, while the consultation did not include most of the south of the borough. 

Updated and rearranged at 11.45pm with extra information and Anthony Okereke quote, and further updated on Friday morning.

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