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Interesting Guy. The council has recently told us, in response to an FOI, that it had no evidence for the need for coach parking on the Promenade and no one has asked or lobbied for it. No assessment had been carried out to assess the safety of having coaches parking or turning there. The response went on to say that;“The plan recently provided, included text which implied measures were being introduced to assist coaches but that isn’t the primary aim. Colleagues noted that the plan makes reference to “Existing informal parking area converted to double yellow lines to assist turning coaches and for boarding/alighting of coach passengers” which might help explain concerns that we are encouraging coach parking, turning in this area. The team will be amending the plan and will alter that text accordingly.”If the bays are not needed for coach parking why were they not formalised for car parking, rather than ripping up the verge.The bays have variously been described as "coach parking", coach turning circles" and more recently "coach dropping off points" in various iterations of the council's plans. The description changed each time we asked who the coach provision was for. Only on submitting the FOI were we told that it seems the bays aren't for coaches.Mid week, there are spaces in the bays along Riverside Drive and few cars parked on the river front. Why is the council, whilst encouraging sustainable travel elsewhere, enabling misuse of the a public park, as a car park? Any other council managing a riverside park would seek to reduce and discourage cars from the riverside. That would be consistent with planning guidelines such as the Mayors of London's Blue Ribbon strategy. Additional parking, if needed could have been created along Riverside Drive, away from the river.Why no midweek charges or regulation to prevent the park being used as a free car park? Why no short stay spaces at the weekend, to prevent the park being used as overspill parking for large events in the clubs?Why no assessment made on the impact on safety of having car parking on the Promenade in a park, on a road used for cycling that has no separation of cars and pedestrians / cyclists?Why did the council claim it had carried out a tree assessment on the trees that will be dug into to lay the bays, then say it hadn't when we requested it in the FOI?With regard to coaches parking up there, speak to your officers in traffic. One of them was with me one day when there were three coaches there. We spoke to the driver of onw who had dropped passengers off at the Science Museum and was waiting to pick them up. I can email you his name if you'd like to check. There are few places in London where cars, lorries and coaches can park for hours for free and caravans and campervans for weeks, but Dukes Meadows is well known as one.Guy, you would defend anything the council did. You ought to at least first establish the facts though.

Kathleen Healy ● 894d

Adrian. Despite protests, there will be no regulation of parking midweek. So yes, it will be used as commuter parking and over spill parking for club events. The large tarmac bays that could have been marked for parking, rather than tear up the grass, will be yellow lined for no use. Except, of course, without any regulation midweek, they will continue to be used as coach and lorry resting up spots.Midweek the bays along Riverside Drive are sufficient for park users. Only at weekends when there are large club events, is over spill parking in the park needed. Is it appropriate though to use a public park as a car park for clubs with very large grounds and small car parks?The vehicles that the council seems eager to encourage and accommodate, cross Staveley and Alexandra Gardens, residential neighbourhoods and a school route. Insulting at a time when drastic measures are being implemented and justified to protect more affluent neighbourhoods from traffic.What is being done was not in the plans that were consulted on 4 years ago, the plans promised improved cycle and pedestrian access. Also not in the planning officers report, so no consideration was given as to how the plans fitted with policies to protect the river amenity, such as the  Mayor of London's Blue Ribbon Strategy. No tree survey has been undertaken to assess the impact on the trees, no assessment of the impact on the safety of pedestrians and cyclists in the park.There are other far less sensitive and suitable places to create more parking, if needed, such as along Riverside Drive. The refusal to consult or meet with the community, prevented consideration of better options.

Kathleen Healy ● 894d

Adrian where have you been for the last to years?The Dukes Meadows Trust and Local Residents similar to me have been posting on this forum about this LBOH project for approximately two years, and you and other local residents haven't even pick it up or commentated on it.LBOH are constructing a Coach and Lorry Park along the promenade on the grass section backing onto the King House School Sports Club.The primary use is for Large vehicles Coaches and 7.5 ton vehicles and maybe the odd HGV or two, but know doubt the odd car may squeeze in as well.There will be an area big enough for Coaches and Lorry's to turnaround, which is meant to be behind the bandstand to enable them to park.The official Coach Park in Chiswick was in Staveley Road alongside the allotments, but because of all the other restrictions imposed on the area it became unusable, so they started park in any road they could fit in.  Quite a while ago our road was sign posted by LBOH as a safe route from Barnes to Hammersmith as the Promenade had no lighting.In my opinion it was really because of this proposed construction at the time, which will make the Promenade area dangerous for Pedestrians,runners,Cyclist or any general park user.You also have to remember that these coaches are just not for local sports clubs in Dukes Meadows, They transport passengers into London and will return back to dukes meadows and park there until they are ready to go back into London to pick their Passengers back up and return to out of London area they came from.I think the Idea for Lorry's is to provide an area so they can take their official brake from driving and get some  rest.  So Riverside Drive is going to be use frequently by Heavy vehicles, a road that was only built to take park Traffic.So Its OK to reduce pollution in one part of Chiswick, but potentially increase it in an area where residents and their children are meant to be able to relax and have fun in relative safe and pollution free atmosphere as possible in a London Borough.   

Bernard Allen ● 898d