St Thomas Street in the Spotlight

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St Thomas Street stays in the spotlight as the street reopens to traffic and developers host an exhibition on a proposed masterplan for 'St Thomas Street East'

Following six years of closure, the gates of St Thomas Street will re-open to traffic this November.A public exhibition showcases four new developments forming St Thomas Street East

St Thomas Street re-opens to traffic 

St Thomas Street has been closed to traffic between Stainer Street and Bermondsey Street since 2012 as part of the station redevelopment project and is now due to re-open to all road users. However, with a new station entrance opening onto the street and Science Gallery London also opening this autumn, there is due to be a lot more pedestrian traffic than previously. 

Transport for London (TfL) consulted on a scheme to reopen the street to traffic earlier this year. While it has proved difficult to find a solution to meet the multitude of priorities and needs within the community, the proposed scheme will prioritise the thousands of pedestrian movements coming in and out of the station and will allow essential deliveries to take place. 

Key elements of the scheme

 

  • Authorised vehicles only (no passing traffic) from both ends of the street. Only vehicles below 7.5 tonnes will be allowed from Borough High Street so all large vehicles must come from the east

  • The west end of the street will be two-way to The Shard. The east end will be one-way only, with traffic moving westbound 

  • Cyclists will be able to make the same movements as vehicles. There is no contraflow on the one-way section

  • Businesses are requested to indicate to delivery vehicles to enter from Crucifix Lane (from Tower Bridge Road) where possible

 

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Future Plans:

  • In 2019, Team London Bridge will work with TfL to seek additional traffic slowing measures and prioritisation of pedestrians at the crossing points.

  • Alongside TfL, Team London Bridge will continuously review the street; we are doing traffic counts to understand how traffic will change in the coming months.

The community's feedback will be invaluable to this process. The scheme is an interim measure, and a long-term solution will be sought alongside the new developments planned in the street (see below). The TfL report is here. 

TfL is now beginning the consultation process for a scheme for Tooley Street, starting with an event on 31st October at London Bridge Hive. Details/ RSVP here. 

Public exhibition showcases four new developments forming St Thomas Street East

Fittingly, Science Gallery London - newly opened on St Thomas Street – played host to a public exhibition showcasing a ‘framework’ proposal of four developments which could further transform the street. Over 250 people attended, including many London Bridge businesses. 

The exhibition showed the ground floor offer for ‘St Thomas Street East’ including location of retail, service bays, public realm, routes and open spaces. Team London Bridge has welcomed the developer's collaborative efforts to make sure we continue to work towards the St Thomas Street Boulevard set out in the London Bridge Plan.

You can read the BID's detailed response here. 

If you have any feedback or contributions regarding future plans for St Thomas Street, please contact me - jack@teamlondonbridge.co.uk / 02074074701

Lucinda Kellaway