ABSTRACT
The development of London’s Ringways was marked by an unprecedented upsurge in public opposition; while other accounts have explored this from the perspective of opponents, this chapter aims to understand the experience from the perspective of the planners. It examines the extent to which environmental concerns were factored into design, noting both a strong environmental awareness of the effects of traffic and an inability to consider whether the environmental consequences of road building would be worse than the traffic it aimed to cure. It notes the extent to which debate and criticism occurred inside the policy and expert communities. Internal action was taken to try to mitigate the failings of the plan, which underestimated the scale of the challenge and ultimately relied more on public relations than substantive changes to policy. The opening of London’s first urban motorway, the Westway, further undermined confidence in road building. The scale of activity implicit in the Ringways raised opposition on a city-wide scale, which resulted in a far larger campaign of opposition than would otherwise have occurred culminating in unprecedented opposition through the Greater London Development Plan. Ultimately, these factors proved insurmountable and led to the collapse of the Ringways.
