Whipps Cross Corridor: Linking Lea Bridge Road to Leytonstone
Following our 2024 consultation, work is now underway on Whipps Cross Road to create safer, separated space for people walking and cycling, alongside improved crossings and new planting between Lea Bridge Road and the Green Man Roundabout.
Construction started in January 2026 and is expected to be completed by spring/summer 2028. You can find the latest construction updates below, including information on any temporary access changes while works are ongoing.
To find out more about the background to the scheme and what's being built, see the 'What we're building' and 'About the scheme' sections further down this page.
Latest construction update
From 3 August 2026, construction works will begin near Preston Road, on the Hollow Ponds side of Whipps Cross Road. To keep the road open while works continue, the scheme will be delivered in phases.
Temporary lane closures and two-way traffic signals will be used for much of the remaining programme and will move along Whipps Cross Road as the works progress. This phased construction is anticipated to continue until spring/summer 2028. The shared path will be closed in sections, but the footway will remain open to maintain pedestrian access and movement.
These temporary traffic management measures are needed to protect both the workforce and the public while the new layout is being introduced, including the construction of improved cycle and walking paths.
Journey times are likely to be affected. We are coordinating these works with other planned activity in the local area wherever possible, so that traffic management can be planned together and disruption to residents, businesses and road users is kept to a minimum. We will be working closely with Whipps Cross Hospital and the Emergency Services throughout the works. Diversion routes will also be in place.
We apologise for the inconvenience this will cause and will do our best to minimise disruption while these works are being carried out.
If you would like to receive construction updates straight to your inbox, please subscribe.
For previous construction updates and letters, please see the the side panel if you're on your computer, or scroll down to the bottom of the page if you're on your mobile phone.
About the scheme
Whipps Cross Road plays an important role in our borough’s transport network, linking Lea Bridge Road and Wood Street with Leytonstone and Redbridge, and providing access to key locations like Whipps Cross University Hospital and Hollow Ponds in Epping Forest. We want to make sure that Whipps Cross Road is safe and works well for all road users, particularly those using active and sustainable modes of travel. This will help improve access to key amenities such as Epping Forest and will support the future redevelopment of Whipps Cross Hospital.
In 2024 we proposed a range of improvements to address issues and concerns around motor traffic dominance, safety and speeding. These included reducing the width of the road and increasing the amount of space for walking and cycling, introducing new and safer crossing points, and improving the way the area looks and feels by increasing trees and greenery to make it a more enjoyable place to travel through.
We also proposed to create two separate paths for walking and cycling on the northern (Hollow Ponds) side of Whipps Cross Road. The current shared use path was introduced in 2012 and is regularly used by people walking and cycling. We want to upgrade it to provide dedicated spaces for people walking and cycling, so that it is consistent with other routes in the borough including Lea Bridge Road and the routes under the Green Man Roundabout. We proposed this to improve safety, make it easier for everyone to move through the area and to encourage more people to travel actively and sustainably where they can.
A public consultation on these proposals took place from 21 October to 18 November 2024, offering local people a range of ways to get involved. People shared their views through an online survey, attending a drop-in session at Leytonstone School on 9 November, and providing feedback via email. All responses were carefully reviewed and considered. A total of 630 respondents answered the online survey.
To view the plans, results of the consultation and information about how we used your feedback, please see the documents in the 'Documents' section.
What we're building
Following consultation, a decision was made to build the following:
- Upgrades to the shared path on Whipps Cross Road between Lea Bridge Road and the Green Man Roundabout by replacing it with separated pedestrian and cycle paths.
- Improvements to some side road junctions and accesses by introducing continuous footways at the entrances to the Hollow Pond Boat House car park and the Leyton Flats car park to signal to drivers that pedestrians and cyclists have right of way and to provide a smoother, uninterrupted path for those walking and cycling.
- Upgrades to the current pedestrian and cycle crossing at the Whipps Cross University Hospital entrance at Hospital Road to a full traffic signal junction. The new traffic signal junction will have green man pedestrian crossing points on all arms and include a traffic light phase for people cycling to get from the cycle track into Hospital Road.
- Upgrades to the traffic signal junction where James Lane exits onto Whipps Cross Road by adding a traffic light phase for pedestrians on both James Lane and Whipps Cross Road.
- Upgrades to the current crossings at Forest Glade and one near Green Man Roundabout to provide separate space and traffic light phases for people walking and cycling.
- A new traffic signal crossing by Preston Road. Similar to the upgraded crossings at Forest Glade and near Green Man Roundabout, the crossing will have separate space and phases for people walking and cycling.
- A new bat-friendly lighting. Bats can be sensitive to light which can disrupt their feeding, mating, and migration patterns. The new lighting will reduce these disruptions while still providing visibility for people.
- Planting with modified soil types to enhance water absorption and improve drainage.
- Plant greening and new trees along the route. Although we have worked hard to minimise tree loss, we will need to remove up to 15 small trees. However, we are replacing these and proposing to plant more, resulting in a biodiversity net gain.
- A traffic calming table near the entrance to the Lakeside Whipps Cross Diner and The Log Cabin to reduce vehicle speeds and make it easier to access the car park.
There are will be changes to parking along the route and the new cycle path does not encroach on City of London land on the Hollow Ponds side.
If you would like more information about these changes, please see the plans in the 'Documents' section or read the FAQs on the panel on the right side of the page.
The video below shows what we're building.
Contact us
If you have any questions about construction, please email us at enjoy@walthamforest.gov.uk.
