Survey Shows Majority of Shops Want Devonshire Road Opened
High level of support for compromise with less extensive restrictions
Devonshire Road had been busy during recent Sunday markets. Picture: Guy Lambert
|
A survey undertaken by the Chiswick Shops Task Force on Devonshire Road and Prince of Wales Terrace has indicated that the majority of businesses based on these road oppose the closure.
The task force, which is made up of opposition councillors, compiled responses from all businesses operating on premises on these roads including non-retailers. The Conservative councillors have opposed most of Hounslow Council's trial measures which aim to aid social distancing and encourage active travel.
Out of 39 businesses invited to participate only two chose not to complete the questionnaire. The respondents were made up of 17 retailers, 9 cafes, 8 salons and 3 of other kinds.
Over half the businesses (21) said they would be happy to see Devonshire Road return to the arrangement before Hounslow Council restricted access with minimal support for the maintenance of the full closure with only 6 of the 37 businesses selecting this option.
The survey, which the Chiswick Shops Task Force says is compliant with Market Research Society guidelines and delivered both by hand and email, indicates a consensus among business that some restrictions would be acceptable but with a preference for them to be limited to certain times of day, particular days of the week and months of the year.
Devonshire Road has recently seen crowds of people taking advantage of the lack of traffic and provision of seating on the pavement outside cafe bars and restaurants. This has given a boost to hospitality businesses particularly when Covid restrictions banned them from serving customers inside. 20 of the participants were in favour of more space being given for outdoor eating and drinking from May to September but only 7 wanted to see this happening all year with 8 respondents opposed to outdoor dining at any time.
The most popular option for outdoor eating and drinking was in the evenings during the week and all day on Saturday and Sunday.
Feedback from the businesses highlighted a number of issues including the impracticality of limiting deliveries to certain time slots and totally closing the road because of the impact on businesses and residents that will need access.
Announcing the survey results, Cllr Joanna Biddolph, founder of the Chiswick Shops Task Force, said, "This is the first survey or consultation on any of Chiswick’s road closures and changes that has been MRS-compliant. All others conducted by Hounslow council or its consultants have been self-selecting, digitally-exclusive and therefore unrepresentative. We invited all of the 39 businesses on Devonshire Road and Prince of Wales Terrace to take part; all but two did so. This is a very high level of response and shows the degree of concern there is about the current scheme.
"The results show that, while over half the businesses want the scheme reversed, there is a high level of support for a compromise. Even those who support the scheme do so for only part of the year.
“The survey also lays bare the fact that those who suggested, designed and imposed these restrictions, did so without knowing the detail of the type of business, or even how many businesses, there are along these two roads and therefore how the various businesses might be affected. They were also oblivious of the impact of the scheme on residents who live along these roads. “
Cllr Biddolph added that she felt the council needed to apologies to retailers and residents particularly for what she called ‘dogma driven’ decision making by Hounslow Council who she accused of having an ‘extreme car-free agenda’.
She added, "The council must now - immediately, to reduce the risks of businesses closing - consult on, then swiftly implement, a compromise. That consultation must include businesses and residents living on Devonshire Road and Prince of Wales Terrace as well as residents in the Glebe Estate and the lower section of Devonshire Road. This consultation must also be MRS-compliant”.
Hounslow Council has been approached for comment.
Find Articles Like This Useful? 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. |
May 17, 2021
