South London residents can walk through a green space in peace after traffic through Greenwich Park has been permanently banned.

The ban follows a two-year trial in the park and traffic analyses of the area.

The driving ban was first put in place in August 2020, restricting traffic through The Avenue, the road connecting the park to Greenwich town centre.

The road closures will allow The Royal Parks charity to repurpose the space, while those wishing to visit Greenwich Park by car can still use Blackheath Gate to get to the car park.

The news comes as part of an announcement by The Royal Parks for permanent traffic restrictions in Richmond Park and a driving ban in Bushy Park, Richmond. 

A report published by Stantec UK last March showed the results of trials held by The Royal Parks on the temporary traffic closures in five parks run by the charity.

In the report, 81 per cent of the 1,635 respondents supported making the ban in Greenwich Park permanent, with 82 per cent saying the change had made the park more pleasant.

In a consultation report, one resident said: “I fully and wholeheartedly support this initiative. A park should be as car-free as possible and this trial has massively increased my enjoyment of the park.”

Other responses to the road closure have criticised the initiative’s impact on traffic in the surrounding area.

One resident in the report said: “The closure to through traffic creates more congestion, noise and pollution in the surrounding residential areas. I am opposed to it.”

The trials by The Royal Parks also found that journey times for cars and buses increased following the closure, especially on roads in East Greenwich such as Vanbrugh Hill and Blackheath Hill.

The report said that such increases may have been due to the low-traffic neighbourhood in West Greenwich at the time, which was removed last February.

Tom Jarvis, Director of Parks for The Royal Parks, said: “As custodians of some of London’s finest green spaces, we’re delighted to announce that the successful trials to reduce cut-through traffic in our outer parks will be made permanent.

"The decision is a key part of ensuring The Royal Parks is delivering on its charitable objects.

“We’d like to thank all those who have been involved in the project since it was launched in July 2020, particularly those who responded to our public consultations.

“We’re looking forward to engaging with our stakeholders and the local communities to see how we may repurpose the spaces available, now that certain roads are closed permanently to vehicles.”

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