20mph plan after Kenton junction crashes, North London 2026

Key Points

• Brent Council is considering a new 20mph speed limit on part of Woodcock Hill in Kenton after a series of collisions at a busy junction over recent years.
• Council documents and public information describe the Kenton Road / Woodcock Hill / Kenton Lane crossroads as a high‑risk location, with 20 reported collisions at or near the junction in the past three years, including several serious injuries.
• Proposals include a 20mph zone on Woodcock Hill between Kenton Road and Donnington Road, plus physical traffic‑calming measures such as a raised speed table, new speed cushions, and upgraded road markings and signs.
• Brent Council is also consulting on changes at the Kenton Road / Woodcock Hill / Kenton Lane junction, including two new pedestrian crossings, a right‑turn restriction, relocation of a bus stop and a new peak‑hour bus lane on Kenton Road.
• A public consultation on the scheme has recently closed (10 July), with residents invited to respond online and in writing; the outcomes will inform whether the council proceeds with the proposals.
• Previous petitions and campaigns from residents, parents and local schools have called for safer crossings and traffic‑calming after multiple collisions over at least five years, including serious incidents affecting pedestrians.
• The junction is used by several bus routes and is close to St Gregory’s Catholic Science College, with campaigners highlighting risks for children, older people and disabled residents using what they describe as an “intimidating” crossing.
• Brent Council states that the measures are intended to reduce vehicle speeds, cut the severity of accidents, improve pedestrian priority and support more walking, cycling and bus use.
• The council has signalled that any final scheme will need to balance improved pedestrian safety with potential delays to general traffic and buses, and that funding and technical constraints (including utilities under the road) will shape what can be delivered.

Brent Council (North London News) July 18, 2026 –As reported by MyLondon transport reporter Tara O’Connor, writing for MyLondon, Brent Council has tabled plans for a new 20mph zone on a section of Woodcock Hill between Kenton Road and Donnington Road after a run of collisions in the area over the past three years. According to the report, council data show that the junction of Kenton Road, Woodcock Hill and Kenton Lane has seen 20 crashes in three years, including five classified as serious, leading officers to identify this as a high‑priority location for safety intervention.

The council’s own “Have Your Say” project page on the Kenton Road / Woodcock Hill junction explains that a 20mph zone is proposed specifically to reduce vehicle speeds along Woodcock Hill and to lessen the severity of any future accidents on that stretch.

The official description notes that this section of Woodcock Hill has been assessed as a “medium‑priority” collision route, sitting alongside the junction itself, which is categorised as a “high‑priority” crash hotspot.

Alongside the lower speed limit, the council is considering a package of complementary engineering measures, including a raised speed table, speed cushions and refreshed road markings and signage to reinforce the change to 20mph.

In its public statements on the scheme, Brent Council says the primary aim is to improve road safety by reducing speeds and improving crossing facilities for pedestrians, particularly at a complex crossroads where only one arm currently has signalised pedestrian crossings.

What exactly is being proposed for Woodcock Hill and the Kenton junction?

According to the MyLondon article and the council’s consultation materials, the key elements of the scheme are focused on three areas: speed, crossings and bus priority.

First, on speed, Brent Council proposes to introduce a 20mph limit on Woodcock Hill between Kenton Road and Donnington Road, enforced through design rather than cameras, with traffic‑calming features such as a raised speed table and additional speed cushions. Road markings and new signs would be installed along this section to remind drivers that they are entering a slower‑speed zone.

Second, at the Kenton Road / Woodcock Hill / Kenton Lane crossroads, the council proposes to add two new pedestrian crossings: one across Woodcock Hill itself and one on Kenton Road west of the junction. As described in MyLondon’s coverage, these would sit alongside existing signalised facilities and are intended to increase pedestrian priority around the junction.

To make space for these crossings, the scheme includes a right‑turn restriction at the junction and the relocation of a bus stop, changes that officers say will help “improve pedestrian priority and accessibility”.

Third, the proposals include the creation of a new peak‑hour bus lane westbound on Kenton Road, which Brent Council says is designed to improve bus reliability and encourage greater use of public transport on a corridor that carries multiple bus routes.

The council notes in its public information that Kenton Road currently has two lanes of traffic in each direction and is used by four bus routes, which contributes to the complexity and perceived risk at the junction.

How many crashes and safety concerns have been reported at this junction?

The MyLondon report states that there have been 20 crashes at or near the Kenton Road / Woodcock Hill / Kenton Lane junction in the last three years, of which five were classified as serious, prompting the latest safety review.

The Yahoo News republication of the same story similarly reports that the proposed 20mph zone and junction improvements are a response to a series of collisions, including serious incidents, over that three‑year period.

Beyond the most recent three‑year snapshot, an earlier e‑petition hosted on Brent Council’s website, titled “Traffic calming on Woodcock Hill, Kenton”, stated that there had been at least 11 accidents along the length of Woodcock Hill in the five years leading up to the petition, including two serious collisions.

The petition, which called for traffic‑calming tables at frequent intervals, argued that such measures were needed to reduce speeds and prevent motorcyclists from using the road to race.

Further evidence of safety concerns is set out in a 2024 Harrow Online article, which reported that since 2018 there had been 15 accidents at the four‑way crossroads near St Gregory’s Catholic Science College.

In that report, residents and parents described the junction as “intimidating” and highlighted particular worries for children, older people and those with disabilities trying to cross between arms of the junction with limited signalised protection.

What have residents, parents and campaigners said about the junction?

As reported by Harrow Online’s local democracy coverage, more than 650 parents at St Gregory’s Catholic Science College and local residents signed a petition calling for pelican crossings to be installed on all four arms of the Kenton Road / Woodcock Hill / Kenton Lane crossroads.

Petitioners argued that the current layout forces many parents to drive their children to school rather than allowing them to walk or cycle, which they said runs counter to wider aims around active travel and healthy streets.

In the same Harrow Online piece, one local campaigner, named as Ms Hovey, described the junction as “an extremely intimidating crossing for able‑bodied adults, let alone the elderly, those with disabilities, or for children”, referring to the combination of multiple traffic streams converging and the limited number of controlled pedestrian phases.

She pointed to council studies that concluded pedestrian facilities could be installed but warned they might be expensive and could increase delays for general traffic and buses.

The earlier Brent e‑petition on traffic calming along Woodcock Hill also reflects long‑standing community concern. Petitioners asked for tables rather than traditional humps specifically to deter speeding motorbikes, suggesting that motorbike riders were exploiting the existing layout to travel at high speeds, which they felt amplified the risk of further collisions.

How has Brent Council responded to these safety concerns up to now?

Harrow Online reported that in response to questions at a Brent Council Cabinet meeting, council leader Councillor Muhammed Butt acknowledged the concerns raised by parents and residents and confirmed that the authority was in discussions with Transport for London (TfL) about potential pedestrian safety measures at the junction.

He said there was a possibility of installing pelican crossings on three arms of the crossroads, but warned that more detailed discussions and investigations would be required, including checks on underground utilities that might need to be moved.

In the same meeting, Councillor Butt referenced a TfL Local Implementation Plan (LIP) report indicating that £50,000 had been allocated to pedestrian safety improvements on Kenton Road and said he would confirm in writing how that funding would be used.

He cautioned that conversations with TfL and associated consultation exercises could take 12 to 18 months, with a public consultation then expected in autumn 2025 on more detailed schemes.

The subsequent Kenton Road / Woodcock Hill / Kenton Lane junction improvement and 20mph zone consultation now launched by Brent Council appears to be a concrete outcome of those earlier discussions.

In its official consultation material, the council states that the proposed changes are intended to improve road safety by enhancing pedestrian crossing facilities and reducing vehicle speeds, while also seeking to minimise delays to traffic, particularly buses.

What did the recent public consultation involve and what happens next?

MyLondon’s report notes that a public consultation on the Kenton Road / Woodcock Hill junction improvement and the Woodcock Hill 20mph zone closed on 10 July, with residents given the opportunity to comment on the proposals.

The consultation was held on Brent Council’s online engagement platform, where a project page set out the detailed plans, including maps and descriptions of the new crossings, speed‑calming features, bus lane and associated restrictions.

According to the information provided on the council’s consultation site, the responses gathered will now be analysed and used to inform the final decision on whether to implement the scheme, whether to modify specific elements or whether to abandon the proposals.

Brent Council has said that the outcome of the consultation and any subsequent decisions will be publicised in due course, although no specific decision date has been published in the available material.

In parallel with this localised consultation, Brent has previously issued borough‑wide statutory notices for 20mph speed limits on a number of roads, under its general powers to make traffic orders.

One such notice sets out the process for representations and objections, including written submissions to the council’s Healthy Streets and Parking team within a set period from publication, indicating the formal legal route through which speed limits are ultimately confirmed.

How do the proposals fit into Brent’s wider road safety and 20mph policies?

The Kenton Road / Woodcock Hill / Kenton Lane scheme sits within a broader programme by Brent Council to introduce 20mph limits and road safety improvements on key corridors and at high‑risk junctions, as reflected in its statutory traffic order notices and Local Implementation Plan documents.

A notice titled “The Brent (Speed Limits) (No. ) Traffic Order 202” outlines plans for 20mph limits on several roads, including Brentfield Road, Harrow Road, Robson Avenue and parts of Willesden Lane, underlining a general shift towards lower speeds on many urban roads in the borough.

These proposals are often framed within the council’s “Healthy Neighbourhoods” and “Healthy Streets” initiatives, which aim to encourage active travel, improve air quality and reduce road danger.

The Preston Healthy Neighbourhood, for example, includes measures to manage through‑traffic and support walking and cycling in areas not far from Kenton, signalling that localised junction improvements like those proposed at Kenton Road / Woodcock Hill are part of a wider strategy rather than isolated upgrades.

In the Harrow Online coverage, officers from Brent’s Healthy Streets and Parking departments are cited as having carried out studies assessing what pedestrian facilities could be put in at the Kenton crossroads, weighing up safety gains against potential delays to buses and general traffic.

This balancing act is also reflected in the Kenton consultation wording, which explicitly mentions the need to minimise delays to traffic, particularly buses, while still improving safety and accessibility.

Background to the Woodcock Hill and Kenton Road safety campaign

Publicly available documents and local reporting indicate that concerns about safety on Woodcock Hill and at the Kenton Road crossroads have built up gradually over several years, driven by collision data and community experience.

The Brent e‑petition on traffic calming along Woodcock Hill predates the current consultation and points to at least 11 accidents in five years along that road alone, including two serious crashes, with signatories calling for physical measures to force drivers to slow down.

More recently, the focus has widened to the junction itself, particularly in relation to school children crossing near St Gregory’s Catholic Science College.

The Harrow Online report describes how parents have linked the pattern of 15 accidents at the crossroads since 2018 with their decision to drive rather than allow independent walking or cycling, which in turn has been raised with Brent Council in the context of TfL funding for pedestrian safety.

The combination of collision statistics, a growing number of formal petitions and direct representations at council meetings appears to have prompted Brent to include the Kenton Road / Woodcock Hill / Kenton Lane junction in its list of priority sites for Local Implementation Plan funding and Healthy Streets‑type interventions.

The present consultation on a 20mph zone and associated junction changes can be seen as the latest step in that process of translating long‑running community concerns and traffic studies into a specific scheme for local comment.

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Prediction: How could these proposals affect Kenton residents, road users and local schools?

Based strictly on the measures described in official notices and local reporting, the introduction of a 20mph zone on Woodcock Hill and the junction improvements at Kenton Road are likely to lead to lower average traffic speeds on the targeted stretch and to more formalised crossing points for people on foot.

If implemented as proposed, these changes could reduce the severity of collisions that do occur and may lower the overall number of crashes at and near the junction, given the current concentration of incidents at this location.

For pupils at St Gregory’s Catholic Science College and other nearby schools, the addition of two new crossings and lower speeds on Woodcock Hill could make walking routes feel more manageable, which may support higher levels of walking and cycling if families judge the routes to be safer.

Older residents and disabled people, who have been highlighted in previous petitions and media reports as finding the junction intimidating, might experience improved accessibility once more arms of the junction have signalised or clearly marked crossing facilities.

Bus passengers and motorists using Kenton Road could see both benefits and drawbacks, depending on final design and traffic patterns.

The proposed westbound peak‑hour bus lane is intended to improve bus reliability, but changes such as a right‑turn restriction and new crossing phases could also introduce additional delays at certain times, particularly if traffic signals need to allow for more pedestrian stages.

The wider Kenton community may also notice knock‑on effects on neighbouring streets if drivers seek alternative routes to avoid slower speeds or changed turning movements at the junction, an issue that may need monitoring if the scheme goes ahead.

Over the medium term, if the measures deliver the intended reductions in speed and collision severity, the area around Woodcock Hill and Kenton Road could increasingly resemble other parts of Brent where 20mph limits and Healthy Neighbourhood schemes have been rolled out, with a greater emphasis on pedestrian safety and active travel alongside the existing bus network.