Results from Merton’s 2003 Annual Transport Monitoring Report have been analysed, with trends indicating a greater number of journeys being made by all modes of transport.

The Road Traffic Reduction Act 1997 obliges local traffic authorities to produce a report on traffic levels in its area. The success of Merton’s transport strategy is being monitored by annual surveys. At the sites surveyed, and at the specific times the counts were undertaken, the following statistics were noted:

 The total number of journeys being made has increased by 17% since 2002 and 31% since 2000.
 This increase in journeys is not uniform across all roads – London Distributor roads showed an increase of 18%, Strategic Roads an increase of 28% while Local access roads showed a decrease of 8.4%.
 The average speed of vehicles increased on both Local and Strategic roads, while a decrease was noted on London Distributor Roads.
 The car remains the main mode of transport in 2003, representing 51% of the total surveyed, while bus passengers made up 37%, an increase of 2% since 2002.

Merton is committed to setting challenging targets against which progress can be monitored, and has developed a range of objectives to reduce the rate of growth in road traffic and encourage a greater proportion of journeys by public transport and other environmentally friendly modes of transport.

These targets will be partly achieved through a number of measures including traffic regulation, road re-allocation, parking controls and speed limits. For further information relating to Merton’s Annual Transport Monitoring Report in the LB Merton please contact the Transport Planning section on 0208 545 4141.