Low-traffic zones unlawful, High Court rules

Six Low Traffic Neighbourhoods (LTNs) in south London have been ruled as unlawful by the High Court as they were mainly in place to raise money.

On Wednesday Mr Justice Pepperall quashed the LTNs set up by Croydon Council, stating: "I am satisfied on the balance of probabilities that the dominant purpose for these orders making the schemes permanent was the need to safeguard the revenue raised by enforcement."

LTNs aim to reduce traffic in residential areas by using cameras, planters or lockable bollards.

Campaign group Open Our Roads (OOR) has said the authority should remove these LTNs and refund all motorists who were fined. The council has said it is "considering its position".

The judge said he first had to "untangle some knotty procedural issues" and later described the case as a "procedural dog's breakfast".

He wrote: "It is fair to say that the officer's report identified tangible, but perhaps modest, road safety and health benefits.

"Taking the relatively modest benefits of the schemes into account together with the mayor's apparent lack of public enthusiasm for the road safety or health case for these schemes, and his clear and repeated comments before and after the vote as to his hands being tied by the budgetary considerations, I am satisfied on the balance of probabilities that the dominant purpose for these orders making the schemes permanent was the need to safeguard the revenue raised by enforcement."

In this 34-page judgement, Mr Justice Pepperall cited Conservative mayor of Croydon Jason Perry's criticism of the schemes in while in opposition, stating he would like to remove all LTNs on his first day in office.

After his election in May 2022, the judge wrote how Perry's stance changed due to budgetary considerations.

Perry "didn't think he was in a position to remove the schemes because the previous administration had predicated their budgets on assumed income from the schemes", the court judgement stated.

Perry later added: "I did not at any point say that I would remove all the [LTNs] because I just knew it was not a pledge that I could uphold... any future schemes coming forward should not be based on fining residents in order to achieve it."

As well as demanding a suspension of schemes, OOR is calling on Croydon Council to "set out a clear process for refunding fines issued under quashed orders" and to "reassure residents who received penalties while the council acted outside lawful powers".

In January, the Court of Appeal ruled that Tower Hamlets Council's decision to remove three LTNs was unlawful, citing a failure to re-consult among the reasons for its decision.

Last May, Lambeth Council lost in a landmark High Court decision about the implementation of an LTN in south London.

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