| Robin
Hood Gate closure plea to Royal Parks as nine in ten vote against
Councillors have called on the Royal Parks Agency to drop plans for restricting
vehicle access to Richmond Park after local residents voted overwhelmingly against
gate and car park closures. Fears
of extra traffic in Roehampton resulted in a vote of more than 90 per cent against
the RPA's proposal to close Robin Hood Gate. There
was even less support for the closure of Pen Ponds car park. This won the backing
of just 7.5 per cent of those responding. Last
weeks meeting of the regeneration and transport overview and scrutiny committee
(7.11.02) was told that a total of 3,725 households in Putney and Roehampton had
returned detailed questionnaires to the council. A
separate internet survey which attracted 240 responses from a wider area showed
opposition to the gate closure running at 69 per cent with 77.5 per cent against
the Pen Ponds car park plan. Eighty
two percent of respondents in the internet poll said they wanted to see traffic
speeds in the park cut to 20 mph. Cabinet
member for regeneration and transport Kathy Tracey said: "The
Royal Parks Agency will have to sit up and take notice of this overwhelming expression
of public feeling. This
is a Government body. It is hard to imagine Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell, who
is the minister responsible for the park, ignoring such a large body of opinion.
The environmental damage that would be caused in Roehampton by the closure of
Robin Hood Gate is out of all proportion to any benefits that may be felt on the
park's roads. "Ministers
and parks bosses should listen to the advice of local people and reduce traffic
speeds in the park. This would be far more effective than pressing ahead with
draconian measures like closures." Councillors
agreed to write to the RPA and the Culture Secretary informing them of the results
of the council's survey and urging them to abandon the plans for shutting off
access via Robin Hood Gate and removing the Pen Ponds car park. 11th
November 2002 Associated
articles: Is
closing Richmond Park to rush-hour traffic restoring a priceless local amenity
to its original purpose or are the Royal Parks Agency acting without due consideration
to the majority of local people. The
case
against closure The
Royal Parks Agency's
Reply Comment
on this issue from the forum Wandsworth
Council concerned for residents if Robin
Hood Gate is closed 21.02.02 Wandsworth
seek legal advice
to stop closure of Robin Hood Gate 26.02.02 Cllr
Lister condems plans to close Pen Ponds 13.03.02 High
Court forces RPA to U turn on Robin Hood Gate closure 17.04.02 Extra
Time for the Richmond Park consultation. 02.08.02 Survey
shows 90% of residents against gate closure. 10.09.02 Richmond
Park traffic plans - public
meeting October 1 - 25.09.02 |