Residents Call for Rethink of Greenford Traffic Scheme

Locals say congestion has been a 'nightmare' since layout changed

Traffic along Greenford Broadway with the right hand lane allegedly causing delays. Picture: Google Streetview

January 24, 2023

Traffic in Greenford has been branded a “nightmare” since a new road layout was introduced with residents saying it takes them half an hour to move less than a mile. People living in the area claim it can take them around 30 minutes just to exit their street because traffic is so jam-packed in the area.

Locals say the traffic lights at the junction between Greenford Road, The Broadway and Ruislip Road East, have been causing “issues” ever since a new layout was introduced in 2019. The new layout created single-lane entries and exits, with the aim of reducing weaving and collisions.

The new changes also created right-turn-only lanes which residents have claimed only add to the traffic. Some drivers are now so sick of the traffic they are begging the council to sort the problem out.

Writing in a community Facebook group, Greenford (UB6) Friends, one person said, “I am not someone who likes to complain or moan, but I would love to know the name of the person at Ealing Council responsible for transport management and highways, who had the bright idea to mess with the traffic light sequence of Greenford Broadway. It is now probably about two years on and from my perspective, the experiment hasn’t worked! The additional right-turn filter, probably favours around five per cent or less of the residents of Greenford.

“There is now traffic/buses day and night backlogged from Eastmead Avenue to Greenford Broadway. So a distance of 0.8 miles can now take anywhere from five minutes to half an hour to drive (unfortunately on most days it tends to be the latter). Commuting to and from work to Acton (through Greenford Broadway) has now become so frustrating, stressful and a time-wasting exercise.”

This post sparked 40 other comments with some saying the traffic causes chaos for children trying to get to school. One mother said, “I have to wait every morning for more than 20 minutes for the bus to get my children to school. The traffic coming from The Broadway into Greenford Road is stuck every morning”

Another parent added, “My eldest has to leave at 7.40am in the morning if she has any chance to get to school on time on the 92 bus and only 2.5 miles to travel… she sits in traffic both ways. It’s not fair as she has less time to relax before doing homework.”

Residents living near the junction are also plagued by traffic that blocks up the residential roads. Someone who lives on Costons Lane said, “It can take me 30 minutes from being parked outside my house to get out of the road and onto Ruislip Road.”

In reply, another resident said they now avoid Greenford entirely because of the traffic. They said, “I feel sorry for you, all people go that way to avoid the chaos. I ended up going via Hanwell to get to Ealing Hospital one day.”

One person suggested that the problem would be fixed if the right-hand lane traffic could also move forwards. They said, “The layout would work if the right turn could also maintain forward travel. As the traffic lights on Whitton Avenue Junction. If traffic turns left and gets stuck the forward traffic can’t move that’s what is causing the backup traffic.”

Responding to residents’ concerns, Ealing Council told the Local Democracy Reporting Service, “A major layout review was carried out at this junction in 2019. An extensive and detailed traffic model of Greenford Town Centre was developed as part of the study.

“A number of options, including converting the traffic signal junction into a roundabout, were considered. We carry out a review on a regular basis and carry out improvements where necessary.”

Megan Stanley - Local Democracy Reporter