Hounslow council has announced that the trial on Devonshire Road, closed except for access, will be significantly amended. It says provision will be made for restaurants and cafes to retain the use of a limited number of parking spaces for outdoor dining, but general traffic access will be reintroduced during the daytime (8am to 5pm) before the end of July.
Noting the lack of detail, Cllr Joanna Biddolph, founder of the Chiswick Shops Task Force, said:
“The Chiswick Shops Task Force welcomes the announcement that Devonshire Road is to reopen. Our survey of Devonshire Road shop owners - the first survey to adhere to Market Research Society guidelines and which received responses from 37 out of 39 shop owners - showed that there was a spirit of compromise along the road, balancing the needs of shops and service businesses with those of cafes and restaurants. We are glad that Hounslow council listened to its findings and is to reverse this damaging Streetspace scheme.
“However, the devil is in the detail and, as is so often the case with Hounslow Council, the detail is missing. Traders and residents responded immediately with questions and we have asked Hounslow council for clarity on these eight significant aspects:
- the free 30-minute stop-and-shop parking - will this be reinstated as before, as it was on Turnham Green Terrace?
- what about the impact on residents who are affected by late night drinking and dining - what measures will be put in place to protect them from noise from outdoor drinking/dining and including outdoor singing and music?
- what about access for residents and businesses in Prince of Wales Terrace after 5pm - how will they, including customers of Capital Motors having their cars serviced/fixed, drive in and out of Devonshire Road?
- what about access for residents of the Glebe Estate and the south of Devonshire Road - will those restrictions be lifted?
- what times of day will the limited numbers of parking spaces be retained for outdoor dining and how will they be allocated - the survey by the Chiswick Shops Task Force showed little interest in all day every day so will it be from 5pm only and on some but not all days?
- why 5pm and not 6pm or 6.30pm - shops are open beyond 5pm and outdoor drinking and dining is not at its peak that early;
- what are the arrangements for months when weather is bad - 8am to 5pm outside the summer months is unnecessarily restrictive;
- making sensible changes to the road - such as moving loading bays to where they are needed so that shops can benefit and cafes/restaurants are not disadvantaged.
"We expect there will be other questions but these were raised immediately after the announcement."
The Chiswick Shops Task Force includes one councillor from each of the Hounslow Chiswick wards: Cllr Patrick Barr, Chiswick Homefields ward which includes the eastern side of Devonshire Road; Cllr Gabriella Giles, Chiswick Riverside ward; and Cllr Joanna Biddolph of Turnham Green ward which includes the western side of Devonshire Road. Their survey of Devonshire Road was the first survey to adhere to Market Research Society guidelines throughout the 15 months since Streetspace changes were announced. That survey and its analysis is attached.
