Hounslow Council's consultation was 'flawed' say some residents

Congestion on the road is particularly bad at rush hour

Hounslow Council's consultation on traffic measures to improve congestion in the Wellesley Road, Stile Hall Gardens area was "defective" and needed to be done again, the Chiswick Area Forum (CAF) has heard.

The Council set up the consultation at the end of last year, following a demand from locals that action be taken to stop motorists using their streets as a short cut to the South Circular Road. They claimed it was causing congestion and pollution. The results were being discussed at a packed meeting on Tuesday, when it became apparent that there was division amongst residents.

A number of people claimed it was unfair that Hounslow Council had added a fourth option at a later date. The original letter and paper version contained three options, one of which involved the closure of Wellesley Road to traffic.

The Council had added the fourth option (on the advice of consultants) which was to make no change in the current situation, or 'do nothing'. This option was included in versions available at the Council's public engagement meetings, and in the online version, but not in the original paper version which was mailed out to local people.

A number of people complained that the Council's report on the consultation could therefore be understating the true level of support for Option 4 (no change). More people might have voted for the fourth option had they known about it.

Hounslow Council's Head of Transport and Traffic, Mark Frost, said that interpreting the results of the consultation had been complex, with no overall consensus. The response of 563 replies from 3895 residents consulted was "fairly low".

A total of 563 responses were received. Overall the Council report found there was a
majority in favour of a change with option 1 ( 272 people) the favoured change
option (48%). Option 2 was at 4% or 23 people, with Option 3 at 3% (17 people) and Option Four at 45% (251) - you can read the options here in detail.

Given the close result, between those who wanted to close the road and those who wanted to 'do nothing', the Council had further broken down the responses into four sub areas to try to get a reflection of local opinion. When responses were broken down into those living within the consultation area and those outside, it showed a small majority against a change (inside the consultation area) and a majority in favour of a change (outside the area).

In his opinion, even if all residents had known about that fourth option, it would not have changed the results of the consultation. The differing interpretations of the consultation meant that the results were "largely in the eye of the beholder."

The Chairman of the CAF, Cllr Adrian Lee, said in his opinion the consultation was "defective" and should be carried out again, as not all residents had been aware of the fourth option. It appeared that residents had diametrically opposed views on the issue. He said that the fourth option was not mentioned in the paper version which was on the agenda before him (see below)

A Stile Hall Gardens resident said that closure of the road to vehicular traffic was the "only option" and he commented "We are happy to take the disadvantage of having the road closed to make the streets safer and healthier."

Another member of the public said that the consultation result presented was unrepresentative and was understating the true level of support for Option 4 (no change). He said it was primarily a "one street problem" in Stile Hall Gardens, for a limited amount of time in the day, but closure of the road would mean a significant disruption for residents of all streets in the area.

Another local resident commented that people could be sceptical about the Council's analysis.

Mr. Mark Frost of Hounslow Council said that the plan was to interpret the data and introduce any changes on a six month trial basis. Nothing could be done until after a report on the impact of road closures from Transport for London (TfL) as they managed the Chiswick High Road and the South Circular Road, both of which would be impacted by traffic management measures.This report was expected at the end of spring or early summer.

Cllr Samantha Davies told Mr Frost; "You could remedy it if you had another consultation after the TfL report".

Cllr Sam Hearn said that people were talking about the consultation in terms of ballots and votes but it was about gauging an indicative feeling. Hounslow Council was not bound to follow the results of a consultation.

Councillors decided to follow up on the issue at their next meeting and recommended there be further consultation with residents following the TfL report.

January 25, 2017