Residents have told us they want to live on safer, more pleasant streets with fewer drivers speeding on their roads. Plans were approved, so we started transforming the streets in an area of Southsea in Autumn 2023.

What is an Active Pompey Neighbourhood?

An Active Pompey Neighbourhood is an area with safer, greener, and more pleasant streets, with fewer drivers speeding or stuck in traffic. It’s a quieter area where people can more easily choose to walk or cycle around Portsmouth.

We’ve worked with residents to create an Active Pompey Neighbourhood in Southsea in the area that stretches from Fawcett and Lawrence Roads on the west, Bath Road to the east, Goldsmith Avenue to the north, and Albert Road to the south.

Your views

In October and November 2022, we took part in a series of informal engagement events to find out people’s views about Active Pompey Neighbourhoods.

We also sought further feedback about more detailed plans for the roads within the neighbourhood in a public consultation that ran in March and April 2023. This included a survey, talking to schools in the area, talking to people on their doorstep, organising guided walks and a drop-in session for people to find out more.

Feedback from the public consultation has been analysed by our project team, and you can read the results here. Final recommendations were made to a transport decision meeting on 16 November 2023, and work was approved to start in 2024.

What are the specific plans?

Talbot Road and Bramble Road one way system

We’ve created a one-way system with traffic calming measures on Bramble Road and Talbot Road. People on bicycles are still able to travel both ways. We installed a bike hangar on Talbot Road near junction with Fawcett Road and zebra planters which were aimed to be replaced with two rain gardens at later date

These measures have been installed under an Experimental Traffic Regulation Order (ETRO). This means there was a statutory consultation phase of six months which ran in early 2024 giving people an opportunity to share their feedback.

The consultation results were reported on to Cabinet for Transport Agenda item – Active Pompey Neighbourhoods (APN) Portsmouth City Council where changes were approved to be made permanent. Additionally, short double yellow lines at the junction of Bramble Road and Talbot Road have been also extended to allow larger vehicles to turn.

Traffic calming

People in the area have mentioned that vehicles can speed on some roads in this neighbourhood. To prevent this, speed cushions were installed on Fawcett Road, Orchard Road, Talbot Road and Sutherland Road. Two were also installed  at Francis Avenue near Fernhurst Junior School, with one being made into a crossing point. These changes were made under a Traffic Regulation Order (TRO), and following the statutory consultation period these have remained in place.

Road closures

The initial consultation presented options for the closure of Orchard Road and the eastern entrance and exit on to Francis Avenue from Goldsmith Avenue. When the results were evaluated, it became clear that residents were not in favour of these options and therefore they did not take place.

Greening

In 2026 temporary zebra planters have been replaced with SUDS (Suistainable Urban Drainage Systems) also known as rain gardens. The rain gardens are installed to collect rain water during heavy rain and stop it from running off straight to sewer system which may cause overflow at times. Bramble Infant School children helped with planting and offered to water the plants during hot weather. Fawcett Road Greening Group members who looked after the plants in zebra planters, now also help looking after the rain gardens.

Next steps

Traffic data has been collected in 2026 and compared to data prior scheme installation. Resident feedback gathered during initial consultation and additional requests for further improvements in the area have been combined too and a list of potential future improvements created, subject of available funding.

If you’d like to ask any questions, please email us at activepompeyneighbourhoods@portsmouthcc.gov.uk