A south London road will be closed to rat-running traffic permanently, despite local objection.

Kingston Council has agreed to make permanent a trial which shut Tolworth Close, in Tolworth, to cut-through vehicles at its exit onto Tolworth Broadway, after introducing the scheme in June 2025.

A new report by council officers said the scheme had successfully eliminated rat-running traffic on Tolworth Close by re-routing drivers along Ewell Road. They found an average of 1,132 vehicles were using the road between 7am and 7pm every day before the trial in June 2024, which fell to 164 vehicles a day in November 2025 once the planters blocking access had been installed.

Officers recommended making the scheme permanent, despite the council receiving 145 objections from people living in the wider area – including that it had simply displaced the traffic onto other roads and led to other safety concerns.

The plans received 20 letters of support from Tolworth Close residents, who said it had improved safety, although some suggested only shutting the road to rat-running traffic at peak hours.

The council's Surbiton Neighbourhood Committee agreed to make the trial permanent 24 hours a day on November 3.

Some councillors said there was not enough evidence to support making the trial permanent, and raised concerns about traffic displacement, but others said Tolworth Close was much narrower than the main road network and could not cope with cut-through traffic.

Lib Dem Councillor Anita Schaper said the traffic had not decreased overall in the neighbourhood. She expressed sympathy for Tolworth Close residents, but raised concerns about the impact of the displaced traffic on the wider community.

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Fellow Lib Dem Councillor Amir Ali Khan said that while it was "not ideal to close a road", Tolworth Close was "very narrow… clearly not intended for cut-through traffic" and the trial had been a "huge benefit for the people that live there".

Resident Dennis Vernon told the committee Tolworth Close was "the most natural, efficient route" onto Tolworth Broadway and residents were "furious at having a legitimate and beneficial road closed".

He added: "Why is it right to discriminate by improving air quality for the residents of one street, at the cost of making it worse for other residents?"

However, Mark, who lives on Tolworth Close, said that while he recognised opposition from the wider area, he said the road was never "designed to accommodate additional through traffic".

Younes Hamade, Kingston's principal engineer, told the committee the council had introduced the trial in response to a petition from Tolworth Close residents, who said they could not allow their children to go outside as the traffic was so constant they felt unsafe.

Mr Hamade said: "I think we considered all of these points and we feel that traffic should be where it should be, which is the main road. This is not a main road, this is a back road. It should be quieter and should allow the parents and the families of Tolworth Close to be able to enjoy this area as much as any other area."

The committee agreed to make the trial permanent at the end of the meeting.