Council set to approve multi-million pound traffic improvement scheme
Shepherd's Bush town centre will get £3.5m in a major revamp if plans to improve the area are approved next week.
Hammersmith & Fulham Council’s cabinet meets on Monday July 22 to discuss the major transport improvement scheme, covering the area from the eastern ends of Goldhawk Road and Uxbridge Road to Coverdale Road and Devonport Road.
The council says the scheme includes plans to upgrade and redesign the roads and footways in the area, improve pedestrian crossing points and de-clutter the streets, which in turn will provide better links between Shepherds Bush and White City.
The improvements could last up to 20 years, meaning that fewer street repairs will be needed in the future, saving taxpayers money.
The council will carry out a major public consultation on the proposals this autumn, to find out what local residents and business think about the scheme, and final designs for the project will be based on this feedback.
It is also anticipated that the enhancements will lead to a 35% reduction in the number of road traffic accidents in Goldhawk Road and Uxbridge Road in future.
Councillor Victoria Brocklebank-Fowler, cabinet member for transport and technical services, said: “This is an exciting time for Shepherds Bush and White City, with many regeneration and development projects in the area and this scheme will also help to bring vitality to this part of town.
“We know that residents and businesses have had to put up with road works in Shepherds Bush for several years, but this set of works will leave a lasting and positive impression on the area. We want people to find it easier and safer to get around, and this investment will make the area look better and feel more welcoming.”
The project meets targets laid out in the Mayor of London’s transport strategy and the council’s own goals including supporting sustainable growth of population and employment in five regeneration areas across the borough, reducing the number of people killed or injured on the borough’s streets, and improving the roads, streets, air quality and access to transport.
Funding for these works, which are planned to begin in the winter, is coming from Transport for London and local developers as well as the council.
The project has also been appointed the council’s flagship Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) pilot scheme. SuDS solutions help to conserve and better manage the amount of rainwater that flows into sewers, helping to reduce the risk of flooding.
The types of suitable SuDS measures that will be used in the scheme are currently being reviewed and are have not been finalised, but could include permeable surfaces and more plants and greenery. The scheme is part of the Mayor of London’s Pocket Parks venture, where small patches of land are turned into green spaces.
Lime Grove has been highlighted as one area that would benefit in particular from improvements to the road and by introducing SuDS.
If the trial in Shepherds Bush is successful, it could lead to widespread use of SuDS across the borough in future developments.
Other proposals include:
• De-cluttered and widened footways
• Feature paving at the front of the Bush Theatre
• New and revised pedestrian crossings
• Cycle lanes
• Upgraded street lighting
• Tree planting, SuDs and pocket parks
• Road improvements, including raised tables and removing unnecessary signs
• New pavements
• Improvements to the bridge facades in Uxbridge Road and Goldhawk Road
• Potential feature shared space at the front of the University of the Arts
London College of Fashion in Lime Grove
The cabinet report, which can be read in full here recommends the highway works be approved in principle, and that authority be delegated to the Cabinet Member for Transport and Technical Service to authorise the implementation of the works subject to positive public consultation results and approval from the statutory bodies.
July 17, 2013
July 17, 2013