South Circular Road, London

Last updated

UK road A205.svg
South Circular Road
London north-south circulars.svg
The route of the South Circular Road in Greater London, with the North Circular Road and Woolwich Ferry
Route information
Length20.5 mi [1]  (33.0 km)
Major junctions
From Woolwich
Major intersections
To South Ealing
Location
Country United Kingdom
Constituent country England
Road network

The South Circular Road (formally the A205 and often simply called the South Circular) in south London, England, is a major road that runs from the Woolwich Ferry in the east to the Chiswick Flyover in the west via Eltham, Lee Green, Catford, Forest Hill, Dulwich, Tulse Hill, Clapham Common, Clapham Junction, Wandsworth, Putney, Barnes, Mortlake and Kew Bridge. Together with the North Circular Road and Woolwich Ferry, it makes a complete ring-road around Central London and is a former boundary of the Ultra Low Emission Zone. The South Circular is largely a sequence of urban streets joined together, requiring several at-grade turns, unlike the mostly purpose-made carriageways of the North Circular. As a result, it is frequently congested.

Contents

Originally planned as a new-build route across South London, construction of the first section of the South Circular near Eltham began in 1921 to a high-quality specification. The remainder of the road was supposed to be of a similar standard but it was repeatedly delayed, and the current route was allocated in the late 1930s to existing urban streets instead. Despite several proposals to either upgrade the road or replace it with a parallel motorway, there has been little change since the route was first planned and most of the road is still urban streets. The South Circular has received sustained criticism for congestion and pollution and is one of the least popular roads in Britain.

Route

Brownhill Road in Catford South Circular Road - geograph.org.uk - 51142.jpg
Brownhill Road in Catford

The South Circular is 20.5 miles (33.0 km) long. The majority of the road is single carriageway, one lane each way, aside from a small section of dual carriageway near the Woolwich Ferry. It is a primary road for its entire length. [1] The route runs closer to central London compared to the more distant North Circular.

Woolwich–Clapham

The South Circular Road starts just south of the ferry terminal where the A2204 Ferry Approach meets the main east–west road through Woolwich, the A206. [1] It heads south, climbing up John Wilson Street, a section of dual carriageway, until it meets Grand Depot Road and becomes single carriageway through Woolwich Common and Academy Road past the former Royal Military Academy. The route continues south to the A2 at a grade separated junction—one of only two on the route—and continues southwesterly as a dual carriageway, crossing Eltham Road (A210) and Sidcup Road (A20). At the junction with Burnt Ash Hill the road becomes urban single carriageway again, which it remains the case for most of the remainder of the route. [1] [2]

The first section of the single carriageway is Saint Mildreds Road; then, shortly after passing under the railway line, it is Brownhill Road due west all the way to the Catford gyratory system which crosses the A21 to follow Catford Road past the former Catford Stadium, and a medley of suburban roads towards Forest Hill and Horniman Museum, Dulwich Common and Dulwich College, Tulse Hill and Brixton Hill to Clapham Common. [1] [3]

Clapham–Kew

Kew Bridge is at the western end of the South Circular Dusk on Kew Bridge - A205 (T) South Circular Road - geograph.org.uk - 677236.jpg
Kew Bridge is at the western end of the South Circular

Beyond the common, the South Circular merges with the A3 London to Portsmouth road for two miles, travelling along Wandsworth High Street and passing the old Ram Brewery. At West Hill the routes diverge, with the A205 going north-west along Upper Richmond Road, past Putney Leisure Centre and the south end of Barnes Common and the home ground of Rosslyn Park F.C., then along Upper Richmond Road West, before turning north at East Sheen onto Clifford Avenue. [1]

The road then crosses the A316 Great Chertsey Road, passing the National Archives, Kew Green, and over Kew Bridge. It ends at the Chiswick Roundabout, which is the junction for the M4 and the A406 North Circular Road. [1] [4]

History

Early plans

A short part of the South Circular Road is a relatively fast dual carriageway road. Early 20th century plans called for the entire route to be this standard. A205 South Circular Road, Westhorne Avenue (geograph 3453873).jpg
A short part of the South Circular Road is a relatively fast dual carriageway road. Early 20th century plans called for the entire route to be this standard.

The South Circular Road was planned by the Ministry of Transport in the early 20th century as part of a general programme of traffic improvements across London. [5] In 1903, a proposal for new approach roads was submitted to the Royal Commission on London Traffic, but was rejected. The Road Board was formed in 1910 to address traffic issues, which led to the London Arterial Road Conferences in 1913–14 that revived the earlier plans. Progress was halted because of the war, but resumed in 1920, when it was hoped it would find work for demobilised soldiers. [6]

The first section near Woolwich was under construction by 1921, as it ran on open land that was easy to purchase, but plans for the remainder of the route had not yet been decided and there were delays due to compulsory purchasing of properties. [7] [8] In 1925, The Times announced a replacement bridge for the Woolwich Ferry was planned as part of the South Circular project to tie in with the East Ham and Barking Bypass (now the A13). [9] A significant amount of new housing had been built along the route of the South Circular since the original 1903 plans, and building costs had risen because of labour and because of further demolition required. [6] In 1927, the Governors of Dulwich College formally objected to the road as it would put the Memorial Library right next to a main road and remove part of the college green. [10]

A short section from Well Hall Road to Eltham Road had been completed by 1930, aside from a bridge underneath the Hither Green – Dartford railway, and the road had been built as far west as Burnt Ash Hill by the middle of the decade. [11] [12] Sir Charles Bressey's Highway Development Survey (also known as the Bressey Report), published in 1937, showed a 15-mile (24 km)-long South Circular that would have a new-build section near Wandsworth Bridge (then being rebuilt) but otherwise be a series of online improvements to existing roads. [13]

Abercrombie redevelopment

Sir Patrick Abercrombie was frustrated by the lack of progress, and in 1933 said "There is not a single complete Ring Road in the County or Region of London". [14] Plans for an improved South Circular were revisited as part of Abercrombie's County of London Plan of 1943, as the southern half of one of several ring roads around the capital. [15] Abercrombie designated it as the "C Ring" (the third ring out from the city centre); however, the high-quality road was never built and the semi-circular route was assigned to existing roads through the southern suburbs; [14] these roads retain their historic names. The current recognised route of the South Circular was created by local motoring organisations putting up strategically placed signposts to direct traffic. Sir Richard Sharples, then MP for Sutton and Cheam, felt this was inadequate and complained that "I do not think that the South Circular Road could be said to exist at all." [16]

Ringway 2

In the 1960s, Abercrombie's plans were revived by the Greater London Council (GLC) as the London Ringways Plan which proposed the construction of a series of motorways in and around London to control traffic congestion. The existing South Circular route was recognised as being unsuitable for upgrading and a new motorway, Ringway 2, was planned for construction further south. [17]

Because of the destruction required and cost involved in the proposed plans the majority of the Ringway Plans had stagnated by 1973. However, local Members of Parliament (MPs), including Toby Jessel, MP for Twickenham, complained the project should not be cancelled, as the existing South Circular was completely unacceptable to traffic. [17] The plans were scrapped after Labour won the GLC election that year. [18]

Later plans

In 1985, the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry proposed a £300m partial replacement for the South Circular that would have seen a dual-carriageway built over existing suburban railway lines between Barnes and Wandsworth Bridge, and Wandsworth Common to Nine Elms. [19] The Government announced a large-scale upgrade of the South Circular in the 1989 white paper Roads for Prosperity, but it was cancelled the following year after a petition signed by 3,500 local residents. In addition to the proposed property demolition around Tulse Hill, the petition complained that the road's course conveniently avoided a house belonging to then-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher half a mile away. [20] [21]

Traffic

The South Circular Road near Catford suffers from regular traffic congestion, despite being a red route. Catford Road, Catford - geograph.org.uk - 228723.jpg
The South Circular Road near Catford suffers from regular traffic congestion, despite being a red route.

The South Circular Road has long been the target of criticism over its poor capacity and lack of improvement schemes. MPs have dismissed the road as "a collection of signposts" [22] and "not so much a coherent through route". [23] In 1969, the chairman of the Greater London Council planning and transportation committee called the South Circular "a joke". [24] Two years later, Jessel reported it could take over an hour to travel the route end to end, a little over 20 miles. [25]

The whole of the South Circular is a red route, allocated to roads that together make up over 30% of traffic in London. This prohibits any stopping or loading. [26] [27] Some sections of the road through the borough of Lewisham have extensive bus lanes. Their appearance is controversial; a 2006 resident survey produced mixed results, with people believing there were either too many or not enough. [28]

In 1988, a single road closure (resulting from a gas leak on a side road in Wandsworth) caused severe congestion along the entire South Circular. A representative from Scotland Yard's Central Communications complex said the inadequate design of the road was indicative of several single points of failure in the London road network. [29]

The South Circular has been criticised for its poor air quality and pollution. This affects drivers, cyclists and pedestrians, all of which regularly travel along the road. [30] A 2007 report in the Daily Telegraph said it was the eighth worst road in Britain. [31] In December 2020, pollution from the South Circular was ruled to be a factor in the death of 9 year old Ella Roberta Kissi-Debrah. [32]

ULEZ

On 25 October 2021, the South Circular became the boundary of the London Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ), although it is not included in it. Vehicles travelling inside the zone and not meeting key exhaust emission standards will need to pay a daily charge of £12.50 for cars, vans and motorcycles, and £100 for coaches, HGVs and buses. [33] [34] The zone expanded beyond this to cover the whole of Greater London on 29 August 2023. [35]

Future

A task force was set up in July 2013 by the Mayor of London Boris Johnson to look at improvements to the London road network, including the South Circular and North Circular. The plans included putting the road in a series of tunnels. This would free up space on the surface, providing public space and extensive cycle routes and improving the linkage of existing communities currently severed by the busy road. Caroline Pidgeon, deputy chair of the London Assembly's Transport Committee, responded, "It doesn't make sense and it won't add up – [there's a] £30bn estimate, but I'm sure it'll cost at least double that, and the reality is we'll lose homes around these roads and so on." [36]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kidbrooke</span> Human settlement in England

Kidbrooke is an area of South East London, England, in the Royal Borough of Greenwich 7+1⁄2 miles (12 km) south-east of Charing Cross and north west of Eltham.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A3 road</span> London to Portsmouth road in England

The A3, known as the Portsmouth Road or London Road in sections, is a major road connecting the City of London and Portsmouth passing close to Kingston upon Thames, Guildford, Haslemere and Petersfield. For much of its 67-mile (108 km) length, it is classified as a trunk road and therefore managed by National Highways. Almost all of the road has been built to dual carriageway standards or wider. Apart from bypass sections in London, the road travels in a southwest direction and, after Liss, south-southwest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M3 motorway (Great Britain)</span> Major motorway in England

The M3 is a motorway in England, from Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey, to Eastleigh, Hampshire; a distance of approximately 59 miles (95 km). The route includes the Aldershot Urban Area, Basingstoke, Winchester, and Southampton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A303 road</span> Trunk road in southern England

The A303 is a trunk road in southern England, running between Basingstoke in Hampshire and Honiton in Devon via Stonehenge. Connecting the M3 and the A30, it is part of one of the main routes from London to Devon and Cornwall. It is a primary A road throughout its length, passing through five counties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blackwall Tunnel</span> Pair of road tunnels underneath the River Thames in London

The Blackwall Tunnel is a pair of road tunnels underneath the River Thames in east London, England, linking the London Borough of Tower Hamlets with the Royal Borough of Greenwich, and part of the A102 road. The northern portal lies just south of the East India Dock Road (A13) in Blackwall; the southern entrances are just south of The O2 on the Greenwich Peninsula. The road is managed by Transport for London (TfL).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woolwich Ferry</span> Ferry across the River Thames in east London

The Woolwich Ferry is a free vehicle and pedestrian ferry across the River Thames in East London, connecting Woolwich on the south bank with North Woolwich on the north. It is licensed and financed by London River Services, the maritime arm of Transport for London (TfL). Around two million passengers use the ferry each year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M2 motorway (Great Britain)</span> Road in Kent, England

The M2 is a 26-mile (42 km) long motorway in Kent, England, and was built to bypass a section of the A2 road in Kent, which goes through the Medway Towns, Sittingbourne, and Faversham. It provides an alternative route to the Port of Dover, which supplements the M20 motorway located further to the south. The terminal junctions of the M2 intersect with the A2, which come together to form a 62-mile (100 km) long trunk road from London to Dover.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A23 road</span> Major road in the United Kingdom

The A23 road is a major road in the United Kingdom between London and Brighton, East Sussex, England. It is managed by Transport for London for the section inside the Greater London boundary, Surrey County Council and West Sussex County Council for the section shadowed by the M23 motorway, National Highways between the M23 and Patcham, and by Brighton and Hove Council from the A27 to the centre of Brighton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A20 road (England)</span> Road in England

The A20 is a major road in south-east England, carrying traffic from London to Dover in Kent. Parts of the route date back to turnpikes established in the early part of the 18th century. The line of the road throughout Kent runs closely in parallel with the M20 motorway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M23 motorway</span> Road in Surrey and Sussex, England

The M23 is a motorway in the United Kingdom, running from the south of Hooley in Surrey, where it splits from the A23, to Pease Pottage, south of Crawley in West Sussex where it rejoins the A23. The northern end of the motorway starts on what is effectively a 2-mile (3.2 km) spur north of junction 7 of the M25 motorway. From Hooley it runs for 17 miles (27 km) past Redhill, Gatwick Airport and Crawley. A spur runs from junction 9 to Gatwick Airport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A12 road (England)</span> Road in England

The A12 is a major road in Eastern England. It runs north-east/south-west between London and the coastal town of Lowestoft in the north-eastern corner of Suffolk, following a similar route to the Great Eastern Main Line until Ipswich. A section of the road between Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth became part of the A47 in 2017. Between the junctions with the M25 and the A14, the A12 forms part of the unsigned Euroroute E30. Unlike most A roads, this section of the A12, together with the A14 and the A55, has junction numbers as if it were a motorway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Circular Road</span> Ring road around Central London, England

The North Circular Road is a 25.7-mile-long (41.4 km) ring road around Central London in England. It runs from Chiswick in the west to Woolwich in the east via suburban North London, connecting various suburbs and other trunk roads in the region. Together with its counterpart, the South Circular Road, it forms a ring road around central London. This ring road does not make a complete circuit of the city, being C-shaped rather than a complete loop as the crossing of the River Thames in the east is made on the Woolwich Ferry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A21 road (England)</span> Major road in southern England running from London to Hastings

For other roads with the same name see List of A21 roads.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A33 road</span> Major road in England

The A33 is a major road in the counties of Berkshire and Hampshire in southern England. The road currently runs in three disjoint sections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Cross Route</span> Road in East London

East Cross Route (ECR) is a dual-carriageway road constructed in east London as part of the uncompleted Ringway 1 as part of the London Ringways plan drawn up the 1960s to create a series of high speed roads circling and radiating out from central London. The road was constructed between 1967 and 1973 and runs from Hackney Wick in north-east London, through the Blackwall Tunnel, to Kidbrooke in south-east London. The ECR was initially designated as part of the A102, but has, subsequently, been partially renumbered so that sections of it are now the A2 and A12.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">London Ringways</span> Series of proposed ring roads around London

The London Ringways were a series of four ring roads planned in the 1960s to circle London at various distances from the city centre. They were part of a comprehensive scheme developed by the Greater London Council (GLC) to alleviate traffic congestion on the city's road system by providing high speed motorway-standard roads within the capital, linking a series of radial roads taking traffic into and out of the city.

South Cross Route (SCR) was the designation for the southern section of Ringway 1, the innermost circuit of the London Ringways network, a complex and comprehensive plan for a network of high speed roads circling and radiating out from central London designed to manage and control the flow of traffic within the capital.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A2216 road</span> Road in southeast London

The A2216 is an A road in south London, England suburbia. It runs from the A215 in Denmark Hill to the A212 in Sydenham. Part of the road is an ancient thoroughfare, Lordship Lane. In Dulwich, the road runs via the A205 South Circular Road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Horn Park</span> Area of south east London

Horn Park is an area of south east London south west of Eltham. It is located 12.5 km (7.8 mi) southeast of Charing Cross on the southwest edge of the Royal Borough of Greenwich and borders both the London Borough of Lewisham and the London Borough of Bromley. There is a public park also named Horn Park and two schools in the area. The River Quaggy flows northward though Horn Park, and the suburb is covered by the postcode district SE12, which was previously called the Lee postal district. There is community centre located in Horn Park Estate on Sibthorpe Road, that hosts a number of activities, such as Christian, council and MP meetings, and numerous classes including dance, karate and English.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Well Hall</span> Human settlement in England

Well Hall is a place to the north of Eltham in the Royal Borough of Greenwich in southeast London, England, with no present formal boundaries and located 13.5 km (8.4 mi) east-southeast of Charing Cross. In the past Well Hall was the grounds of a manor house, and then a hamlet. Today it is a largely residential suburb and housing estate absorbed by the development of Eltham and London. It is centred on the main road between Eltham and Woolwich, on which many shops and businesses are located. Several major A roads including the South Circular Road and A2 road pass through the area, as does a railway line, serving Eltham station which is located in Well Hall. The Postcode that covers Well Hall and most of the Eltham area is SE9, and the 020 dialing covers the entire Royal Borough of Greenwich. Well Hall is split across two electoral wards, Eltham West on the west side of Well Hall Road, and Eltham North on the east side of Well Hall Road. In 2015 the population of these two wards combined was recorded as 24,621, although the wards cover a larger area than just Well Hall.

References

Citations

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "A205". Google Maps. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
  2. ↑ "Roads Review – what role for trunk roads in England?". Department for Transport. 23 October 2008. Retrieved 15 May 2019.
  3. ↑ "Horniman Museum and Gardens – History, Travel, and accommodation information". Britain Express. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  4. ↑ Royle, Anthony (24 June 1982). "Orders of the Day – Heavy Lorries". Hansard. Retrieved 15 May 2019.
  5. ↑ Hart 1976, p. 74.
  6. 1 2 Jeffreys, Rees (5 April 1927). "New Arterial Roads". The Times. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
  7. ↑ "Road Construction". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard) . 6 June 1921. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  8. ↑ "By-Pass Roads (Eltham to Welling)". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard) . 1 July 1924. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  9. ↑ "New London Bridges". The Times. 23 January 1925. p. 13. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
  10. ↑ "South Circular Road". The Times. 24 October 1927. p. 9. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
  11. ↑ "South Circular Road, Woolwich". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard) . 3 December 1930. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  12. ↑ "South Circular Road". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard) . 6 December 1933. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  13. ↑ "Bressey Report". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard) . 20 July 1938. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  14. 1 2 Hart 1976, p. 75.
  15. ↑ Bressey, Charles (16 July 1943). "London of Tomorrow". The Spectator. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  16. ↑ "Roads, London (Development Plan)". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard) . 7 April 1955. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  17. 1 2 "London Motorway Box". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard) . 20 March 1973. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  18. ↑ Young, John (5 July 1975). "Crosland statement may end road doubts". The Times. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
  19. ↑ Baily, Michael (23 March 1985). "£300m plan to build trunk road over railways". The Times. p. 2. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
  20. ↑ Dynes, Michael (27 March 1990). "London roads plan 'scrapped'". The Times. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
  21. ↑ Fraster, John (28 February 1990). "South Circular Road". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard) . Retrieved 9 January 2017.
  22. ↑ "New Roads add to Congestion". New Scientist: 5. 25 December 1986. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  23. ↑ Weinreb et al. 2008, p. 851.
  24. ↑ "South circular road 'a joke'". The Times. 6 February 1969. p. 4. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
  25. ↑ "Motorways, London". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard) . 15 December 1971. Retrieved 27 August 2015.
  26. ↑ "Rules of Red Routes". Transport for London. Retrieved 9 January 2017.
  27. ↑ "Pan London Red Routes" (PDF). Transport for London. Retrieved 9 January 2017.
  28. ↑ Report of the Environment Select Committee's South Circular Investigation (PDF) (Report). Lewisham London Borough Council. March 2006. p. 5. Retrieved 9 January 2017.
  29. ↑ "Traffic nightmare returns to haunt London". The Times. 6 December 1988. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
  30. ↑ Scott, Jenny (5 April 2014). "Are these the worst ring roads in England?". BBC News. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
  31. ↑ "M25 Voted Worst Road in Britain". The Daily Telegraph. 22 October 2007. Retrieved 17 September 2016.
  32. ↑ "Air pollution contributed to death of nine-year-old Ella Kissi-Debrah, landmark ruling finds" . The Independent. 16 December 2020. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  33. ↑ "London Mayor confirms Ultra-Low Emission Zone will start in 2019". www.fleetnews.co.uk.
  34. ↑ "ULEZ: The politics of London's air pollution". BBC News. 19 October 2021. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
  35. ↑ "ULEZ Expansion 2023". Transport for London. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  36. ↑ "London roads £30bn plan unveiled". BBC News. 10 July 2013.

Sources

  • Hart, Douglas (1976). Strategic Planning in London: The Rise and Fall of the Primary Road Network. Elsevier. ISBN   978-1-483-15548-7.
  • Weinreb, Ben; Hibbert, Christopher; Keay, Julia; Keay, John (2008). The London Encyclopedia. Pan MacMillan. ISBN   978-1-4050-4924-5.

51°26′26″N0°06′35″W / 51.4405°N 0.1098°W / 51.4405; -0.1098

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.