South London residents living on a street used as a rat run by speeding drivers fear it’s only a matter of time before a pedestrian gets killed. Families living on the 20mph street in Clapham claim traffic has exploded since Transport for London (TfL) closed a nearby road to drivers in 2024.<br /><br />The change banned motorists heading into Central London from turning right off the South Circular (A205) onto Klea Avenue—a route used by drivers to bypass a congested junction where the A205 meets Clapham Common South Side (A24). TfL claims it made the change in response to a request by Lambeth Council, which had faced years of complaints from residents of Klea Avenue about speeding cars using their quiet side street as a short cut.<br /><br />But residents on nearby Elms Road claim that far from resolving the problem, TfL’s tweaks to traffic flow have pushed cars attempting to avoid the junction down their street.
