Formosa Street pedestrianisation in Little Venice halted as Westminster cites cost

Westminster council has halted plans to pedestrianise Formosa Street in Little Venice, saying it cannot meet the cost of the scheme at present.

Cllr Tim Mitchell, the Cabinet Member for City Management, told local resident John Gregson in an email that spending of around £1m was “simply not affordable at this time”. He said the council expects to lose about £100 million of grant funding from central government once the Fair Funding changes take effect.

What happens next for Formosa Street

Instead of the full scheme, Cllr Mitchell has asked the council’s Public Realm team to draw up revised proposals based on the lighter temporary scheme used during Covid-19, with the aim of running a trial in summer 2027. He also wrote that some of the possible options had not been put forward.

The council says it understands residents are worried about the project’s future. It adds that the designs are being reviewed with local people, who will be consulted in due course.

How the Little Venice pedestrianisation plan began

Mr Gregson started a petition in 2024 calling for cars to be taken out of the street. It gathered 365 signatures and led the then Labour administration to open a formal consultation the following year.

In February 2026 Cllr Max Sullivan, then Cabinet Member for Streets, approved work on a feasibility design, and the project joined the council’s Capital Programme in April with £900,000 set aside at first. Detailed designs and implementation had not yet been approved when the Conservatives won back the council in May and put every major public realm project it funds under review.

Mr Gregson said he was “concerned and disappointed”. He wants the street to become a “village square” free of traffic, where residents and visitors can meet, shop and use its restaurants and cafés.