Campaign Against 'Discriminatory' Crossing At Kew Bridge Arch

MP Ruth Cadbury tells TfL the walkway under the bridge should be step-free

Locals at Strand on the Green are renewing their campaign to have an arch under Kew Bridge, which is owned and leased commercially by TfL, released and turned into a step-free throughway for pedestrians and wheelchairs.

They say the current situation discriminates against people with mobility issues of parents with prams and buggies.

At present people have to climb up a series of steps if they want to cross from Strand on the Green to the other side of Kew Bridge, or else walk to road level and negotiate a series of "scary" crossings. The Strand on the Green Residents' Association (SOGA) has been campaigning for years on the issue and has now received support from MP Ruth Cadbury and GLA member Tony Arbour.

Local resident Liz Hagerty who is grandmother to a 16-year-old wheelchair user, has written a letter to TfL accusing the transport body of failing in its duty to comply with the 2010 Equality Act. She said the situation discriminates against people with mobility issues, or parents with pushchairs who cannot use the steps and must negotiate "an extremely dangerous and complicated major road junction with traffic coming from six directions."

There are four arches under Kew Bridge, owned by TfL for letting, two of which are leased to the canoe/paddleboarding clubs, another leased commercially, and the fourth, known as Arch 3 is leased by TfL to the St George's, the developers of the luxury residential complex. This agreement is due to end in March and local people say that now is the right time for TfL to release the arch for use by the community.

However TfL has told the Strand on the Green Residents' Association that. once this unit is vacated, they intend to re-let it on a commercial basis to continue to generate funds for TfL and that they would be open to the use being as a walkway if let on commercial terms. SOGA say that is an unacceptable response and the commercial rent which TfL would receive is negligible given its overall budget.

TfL also told residents that the existing pedestrian crossings at the junction of Kew Bridge and the South Circular/A315 would be upgraded when the CS9 was introduced. This would simplify the crossing points and removing some of the traffic islands, replacing them with wider crossing points. SOGA says that is not likely to happen for some time.

Ruth Cadbury says, "If the Arch that St George’s are soon to give up could be lit and surfaced it would provide, at relatively little cost, a level access along the Thames for the growing number of people making the most of what the Thames has to offer, as well as local people walking and cycling between Chiswick and Brentford. Furthermore by using the Arch, they would reduce the pedestrian and cyclist flow crossing the junction at that point."

As part of the gain package for the recent development next to the bridge, St George's agreed to examine and fund a modification of the current footpath, but their plan, which was approved by the Planning Committee did not involve step free access and locals opposed it. The alterations agreed consist of mounting railing alongside the steps, onto which anti-slip strips were added and a new lamp post placed on the eastern side of the walkway.

SOGA had proposed an alternative plan which received consent from the Environment Agency.

January 20, 2018