Campaigners against one of Bath’s Low Traffic Neighbourhood schemes have told the council they are poised to take legal action in the wake of the landmark High Court decision which saw a group of residents defeat a London authority over a controversial traffic restriction.
Looking down Sydney Place, with the new LTN restriction in place
This week a solicitor acting for UNSUNG – the United Sydney Unliveable Neighbourhoods Group – has written to Bath & North East Somerset Council’s director for place management Chris Major, requesting any moves to make the New Sydney Place Low Traffic Neighbourhood (LTN) permanent are halted as the council would be acting unlawfully “with a “high probability of failure in court”.
The West Dulwich Action Group (WDAG) which represents more than 1,000 local residents and businesses, won its legal challenge against Lambeth Council following a Statutory (Judicial) Review hearing held on 12th February at the Royal Courts of Justice. The judge issued his findings on 9th May.
UNSUNG’s solicitor says B&NES failed on its consultation for almost the same reasons as Lambeth Council, “ignoring well-made and substantive input”.
Copied in on the letter from UNSUNG’s legal representative are the Liberal Democrat-controlled council leader Kevin Guy, cabinet members Mark Elliott, Manda Rigby and Sarah Warren, monitoring officer Michael Hewitt, Bath MP Wera Hobhouse and new West of England Mayor Helen Godwin.
UNSUNG was set up after the council launched an experimental through-traffic restriction in New Sydney Place and Sydney Road last year with bollards preventing drivers from cutting through to avoid the A36/Bathwick Street junction.
It is one of the council’s Liveable Neighbourhood (LN) schemes which aim to improve residential streets and encourage safe, active and more sustainable forms of travel, such as walking, wheeling and cycling.
Whilst most respondents opposed the Experimental Traffic Regulation Order (ETRO) being made permanent for reasons including that congestion and pollution have increased elsewhere, the council said hard data from traffic and air quality monitoring did not support that.
In February the cabinet member for resources Councillor Mark Elliott (Lansdown) decided the New Sydney Place scheme should be made permanent. His decision was called in by opposition councillors, but a scrutiny panel upheld his decision.
Councillor Elliott had acknowledged the 76% against the scheme from the wider area but said that crucially within the neighbourhood directly impacted by the scheme, 72% of residents supported the measures which have improved pedestrian and cyclist safety.
Neil McCabe, spokesperson for UNSUNG, said on Tuesday of this week: “We’ve examined the decision against Lambeth and have found that the reason that they lost, not considering reasoned inputs from community groups, has been exactly paralleled in B&NES’ decision-making on the New Sydney Place LTN.
Neil McCabe and Jon Avent at the traffic restriction
“Six residents’ groups, totalling nearly 780 people, formally objected to the LTN, and despite promises by B&NES that they would be considered, these objections appear to have been ignored.
“In addition to raising concerns on the impact on their specific area, the objections highlighted:
- Reduced safety
- Congestion and economic impact
- Increased pollution
- Disruption to public transport
- Lack of an integrated traffic and public transport plan for Bath
- Misrepresentation of Sydney Road as a residential street
- Lack of consultation with affected communities
- Concerns on the haste with which the LTN was delivered, despite low
priority - Lack of confidence in evidence gathering and decision-making
- Misuse of West of England Combined Authority (WECA) City Regional Sustainable Transport Settlement funds.
“As BANES appear to have ignored these objections, which were made formally in accordance with the applicable Road Traffic Regulations, we have today written a solicitor’s letter to B&NES to request them to halt any moves to make the LTN permanent.”
The solicitor’s letter highlights that the council’s failings on consultation and decision-making are “exacerbated” by:
- A “false claim” made to the scrutiny panel on 13th March 2025 by Councillor Elliott that B&NES had complied with Department for Transport guidance on LTN consultation. This is currently the subject of a complaint against the councillor.
- The “failure” by the monitoring officer to respond with his reasons for not reclassifying the decision as a key decision, affecting more than one ward; 20% of the Bathampton population, resident in Bathavon North Ward, objected to the LTN. This is currently the subject of a complaint against the officer.
- The lack of engagement by Councillor Rigby (cabinet member for highways who represents Bathwick) with groups opposed to the LTN.
The solicitor tells B&NES Council that should it proceed despite the position being “on all fours” with Lambeth Council, she is instructed to commence formal legal action against B&NES.
A spokesperson for Bath & North East Somerset Council said: “We have received correspondence and are considering it but will make no further comment at this stage.”
