Old Road in Old Harlow shuts to through-traffic by the railway bridge from 19 October. Essex counted 275 cut-through drivers a day. How to comment by 18 April.
Old Road in Old Harlow will be closed to through-traffic from Monday 19 October. Essex County Council is trialling the closure to stop drivers using the road as a shortcut between Cambridge Road and Gilden Way. The trial can run for up to 18 months.
Updated 7 October: a residents’ petition against the closure had 525 signatures in its first five days. What it asks for, and how to object formally.
The closure sits between the junctions with Hart Road and The Hoo, by the road bridge over the railway line. The details are on the Essex Highways scheme page, and the council announced it in a press release on 28 September.
What is changing
At each end of the closure, the county council says it will install:
- bollards
- temporary traffic islands
- road markings
- No Entry signs
Cars and vans will not be able to pass through in either direction. Every property on Old Road keeps vehicle access, but only from one direction. People walking and cycling can still use the whole road both ways, through gaps between the bollards.
Short new stretches of double yellow lines will go on either side of the closure. The council says they are there to stop parking near The Hoo junction and to keep access to the nearby homes clear.
There will be no signed diversion. Essex Highways says that is deliberate: it wants to measure which routes drivers choose once the road is shut. Signs on Cambridge Road and Mulberry Green will warn drivers of the closure.
How many drivers use it as a shortcut
The council ran traffic counts and number plate recognition surveys last year to measure drivers passing straight through. Its scheme page gives these daily averages:
| Direction | Through-traffic, average per day |
|---|---|
| Cambridge Road to Mulberry Green (north to south) | 275 vehicles |
| Mulberry Green to Cambridge Road (south to north) | 35 vehicles |
That is 310 through-journeys a day in total, almost nine in ten of them heading south.
The imbalance has a history. When junction 7a of the M11 opened, right turns into and out of Mulberry Green were banned. The council says that effectively stopped drivers cutting through from Gilden Way towards Cambridge Road. Its concern now is traffic going the other way, which it links to the road network changes and the new Gilden Park development.
Why a trial and not a permanent closure
Residents have raised the rat running for several years, according to the council. A permanent closure was drawn up in 2024 as part of the Cambridge Road access improvements. The council says it was dropped from that scheme because of complications with the traffic orders and limits on third-party funding.
Traffic calming was considered and rejected. The council judged it would not cut through-traffic, and says other engineering options were beyond the budget.
The trial is paid for from two pots:
- money left over from the Gilden Park developer contribution, set aside when that development was decided on appeal
- funds National Highways awarded to Essex County Council for costs linked to the M11 junction 7a project
Councillor Mark Webster, the county’s Cabinet Member for Highways and Infrastructure, said in the press release: “Old Road is a residential street and not an appropriate route for longer distance through-traffic.” He added: “We recognise there may be divided opinions about the closure and we are keen to hear views from both sides.”
Key dates
- Monday 12 October 2026: works start, beginning with advance warning signs.
- Monday 19 October 2026: the closure takes effect, the main works begin and the formal comment period opens.
- Sunday 18 April 2027: the comment period closes.
- Summer 2027: a decision on whether to make it permanent is expected.
- Spring 2028: the latest point at which a decision can be made.
The council says the works will take up to five weeks. Most will be done between 8am and 5pm on weekdays, though some Saturday working may be needed.
What it means for you
If you drive through Old Harlow, plan another route from 19 October. Old Road will not be signposted as closed with a diversion, so expect to rely on Cambridge Road, Mulberry Green and the main roads. Our Harlow roadworks and travel page carries the other current closures.
If you live on Old Road, you keep access to your home by car, but only from one end. The council says letters have been sent to residents and businesses. It does not say which streets received them.
If you want a say, you can only comment once the trial is running. Comments are accepted from 19 October 2026 to 18 April 2027:
- by email to TrafficRegulation.Order@essexhighways.org
- by post to Essex County Council, County Hall, Market Road, Chelmsford
- quoting the reference TRAF8961
If you object, give your reasons. The formal notice will be published on 19 October on the county’s traffic regulation orders page and the scheme page. To see printed copies at County Hall, call 07761 758317.
One detail matters for anyone planning to respond. If the council makes a substantial change to the closure during the trial, the six-month comment period starts again from the date of that change. The council says it does not expect to make one.
Correction, 7 October 2026: this article originally said letters were going to residents and businesses on Old Road. The council’s scheme page says letters were sent to residents and businesses, but does not say which streets received them. We have corrected the wording.
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