‘UNPRECEDENTED LEVELS’: LTDA warns road closures have left London’s taxi network gridlocked
- Perry Richardson
- 12 hours ago
- 3 min read
The Chairman of the Licensed Taxi Drivers’ Association (LTDA) has criticised road closures and traffic schemes across the capital, claiming they are causing severe disruption to London’s transport network.
Writing in TAXI Newspaper, Paul Brennan said the growing number of road restrictions, including cycle corridors, low-traffic neighbourhoods, and pedestrian zones, has left professional drivers with few options to avoid congestion. According to Brennan, roadworks and permanent changes have removed the flexibility that once kept traffic moving.
He cited examples including Park Lane and Webber Street, which previously had several diversion routes but now offer none. The result, he said, is an “extremely fragile and congested road network” unable to cope when any major route is closed.
Brennan argued that the current system fails to account for the real-world impact on road users who rely on access to key routes, particularly those driving taxis or delivering goods. He said many of the changes appear to prioritise cyclists, even when temporary traffic orders are issued. One such order, he noted, allowed cyclists to perform a banned manoeuvre that remained prohibited for all other traffic.
The LTDA Chair also questioned the fairness of current transport policies, especially when they affect taxis carrying elderly or disabled passengers. He said decision-makers appear blind to the operational needs of services that cannot easily switch to cycling or micromobility.
Brennan accepted that the schemes may be driven by environmental goals, but claimed the outcomes are often the opposite of what is intended. He argued that by reducing the resilience of the road network, these changes have made the city slower, less efficient, and more polluted.
He ended by warning that London risks holding on to its reputation as the most congested city unless a more balanced and practical approach is adopted.
Brennan said: “Taxi drivers and other road users in London are increasingly finding themselves backed into a corner or simply facing yet another dead end, thanks to a string of road closures. The narrowing of major thoroughfares to accommodate “active travel” schemes have created an extremely fragile and congested road network.
“The issue has now reached boiling point, with recent roadworks across Central London, causing unprecedented levels of traffic build-up at just about every turn, whether it be large roads like Park Lane or simpler routes through Webber Street, which is just around the corner from Taxi House.
“Both used to have a choice of alternatives if they were congested, now there are none and the holdups remain.
“The core problem is simple: when roadworks block one of the main arteries, the alternative routes that once offered a vital pressure release have either been removed or restricted. Previously viable detours
have been transformed into cycle corridors, low-traffic neighbourhoods (LTNs), or pedestrianised zones, leaving drivers with nowhere to go. It’s a systemic failure in planning and one that repeatedly overlooks the practical, real-world implications for road users whose job it is to move people or goods efficiently through the bustle of the city.
“Adding insult to injury, a recent Temporary Traffic Order related to roadworks in the capital explicitly allowed cyclists to make a previously banned manoeuvre, while continuing to prohibit all other traffic.
“It’s an all-too-common example of the imbalanced treatment drivers face in modern transport policy. This kind of selective exemption raises serious questions about fairness and foresight in planning, especially when you consider that taxis are often transporting vulnerable passengers, including the elderly and disabled, who can’t simply jump on a bike or e-scooter.
“The alarming number of schemes rolled out across London may be from well-intentioned individuals, but the execution has been blinkered. And the results couldn’t be further from anything resembling clean air goals. Road networks need to be resilient too, especially in a city as dynamic and densely populated as London.
“Removing that resilience, in the name of environmental progress without realistic alternatives for essential services, like licensed taxis, creates a gridlocked, unworkable system. It gives London the unenviable title of most congested city, time and time again.”
