Traffic management in Wapping

Tower Hamlets Council is the highway authority for Wapping: the borough runs local roads, while Transport for London runs the red routes. Red routes, the main roads on the Transport for London Road Network, need TfL's agreement instead. Trunk roads are managed by National Highways.

Almost every English highway authority now runs a permit scheme under the Traffic Management Act 2004, so works on the road need a permit, applied for through the government's Street Manager service. Minor works usually need 3 working days' notice, standard works 10 and major works 3 months.

Primary routes through Wapping include the A1, A2, A3, A10, A11 and A12. On roads like these, queue lengths decide the method: we set signal timings to keep traffic moving and suggest night or off-peak work where it helps.

Around 12,000 people live in Wapping. On busier streets, keeping footways open and queues short matters as much as the works themselves.