Councillors Urge Minister To Intervene Over Traffic Measures

Want Grant Shapps to force Council to hold full consultation and independent review


Grant Shapps announcing the Hammersmith Bridge taskforce

Participate

Have Your Say on Traffic Measures in Chiswick

Camera Enforcement of Turnham Green Terrace Traffic Ban is Live

Designs for Temporary Cycleway Along Chiswick High Road

'Difficult To Over-estimate' Impact of Newly Released Cycleway Plans

School Street Restrictions To Be In Place For New Term

Councillors Demand Rethink of Central Chiswick Schemes

Retailer Makes Plea to Clients to Respond to Traffic Consultation

South Chiswick Being Made Unliveable Say Councillors

Council Gives Notice of Harvard Hill Access Restriction

Plan Drawn Up for Closure of Fishers Lane Underpass

Council Says Enforcement Cameras Active on Turnham Green Terrace

Sign up for our weekly Chiswick newsletter

Comment on this story on the

In a letter to Transport Minister Grant Shapps all nine councillors representing the Chiswick area are urging him to intervene over traffic measures in Hounslow Borough.

In the open letter they ask the minister to act on residents’ behalf with TfL and Hounslow Council and instruct them to reverse the Covid-19 measures that have already been implemented and ensure that no further works begin until Hounslow’s experimental and temporary traffic orders have all been reviewed in detail by independent professionals and a full public consultation has been completed.

They tell the Minister of what they describe as the ‘hammer-blow’ to Chiswick retailers resulting from the access restrictions on Turnham Green Terrace and Devonshire Road and the loss of stop and shop parking.

They claim that, in combination with Ealing Council’s closure of Fisher’s Lane new rat-runs have sprung up in the area.

The temporary scheme for Cycleway 9 is also highlighted with the councillors saying the ‘new scheme will inevitably result add to traffic congestion and air pollution on an already heavily polluted road'.

On what they describe as the ‘South Chiswick Unliveable Neighbourhood schemes’, they say that, other than the school street plans, the proposals are ‘a massive over-reaction to a problem that exists only for a few hours a day’.

In an article published in the Telegraph earlier in the month, Mr Shapps criticised the introduction of barriers in town centres and warned councils that they must consult with local residents or risk the withdrawal of funding. He recently intervened in the issue of the repair of Hammersmith Bridge by setting up a task force to accelerate its reopening, suggesting that the previous estimates given for the repair had been inflated.

Speaking for all the councillors, Sam Hearn, the Conservative Councillors Transport Spokesperson said, “There is unanimity across Hounslow Council and amongst Chiswick residents that we want to end the scourge of rat-running, curb excessive speeds and discourage unnecessary car journeys. These are laudable objectives but the complex and draconian measures being imposed under the guise of the Covid-19 emergency are having many perverse effects. Many of the changes are sadly making the lives of residents worse, not better”.

The Councillor added that, “Our attempts to engage constructively with Hounslow’s Labour Administration and TfL have been largely rebuffed. There is surely no shame in admitting that you have got something wrong and that you need to pause while reconsidering? Hounslow Council are not prepared to do this. We are therefore left with no alternative but to call on the Minister to intervene and prevent further traffic chaos.”

The Council says that their measures are in line with the new statutory guidance issued by the government under the 2004 Traffic Management Act, in response to Covid-19, requiring councils to act as ‘swiftly as possible’ to encourage a change in travel habits before restrictions are eased so that people can walk or cycle more safely while observing social distancing.

You can make comments on the traffic measures in the area either by participating in the Council’s online consultation or by emailing the transport team on traffic@hounslow.gov.uk.

Like Reading Articles Like This? Help Us Produce More

This site remains committed to providing local community news and public interest journalism.

Articles such as the one above are integral to what we do. We aim to feature as much as possible on local societies, charities based in the area, fundraising efforts by residents, community-based initiatives and even helping people find missing pets.

We’ve always done that and won’t be changing, in fact we’d like to do more.

However, the readership that these stories generates is often below that needed to cover the cost of producing them. Our financial resources are limited and the local media environment is intensely competitive so there is a constraint on what we can do.

We are therefore asking our readers to consider offering financial support to these efforts. Any money given will help support community and public interest news and the expansion of our coverage in this area.

A suggested monthly payment is £8 but we would be grateful for any amount for instance if you think this site offers the equivalent value of a subscription to a daily printed newspaper you may wish to consider £20 per month. If neither of these amounts is suitable for you then contact info@neighbournet.com and we can set up an alternative. All payments are made through a secure web site.

One-off donations are also appreciated. Choose The Amount You Wish To Contribute.

If you do support us in this way we’d be interested to hear what kind of articles you would like to see more of on the site – send your suggestions to the editor.

For businesses we offer the chance to be a corporate sponsor of community content on the site. For £30 plus VAT per month you will be the designated sponsor of at least one article a month with your logo appearing if supplied. If there is a specific community group or initiative you’d like to support we can make sure your sponsorship is featured on related content for a one off payment of £50 plus VAT. All payments are made through a secure web site.

 

September 16, 2020


Bookmark and Share