Housing, Bridge Update, e-bikes, Puddles and Farewell to the Mayor

Chiswick Riverside councillor Peter Thompson reports back

Councillor Peter Thompson

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May 20, 2023

Update on the Bridge

As reported in Chiswick W4 recently Network Rail’s plans to close the footbridge between Brooks Lane and Chiswick Village for 10 weeks have been postponed. This news relieved hundreds of parents at Strand on the Green who were facing increased journey times of up to 40 minutes a day!  We all have our fingers crossed that the work can take place during the summer holidays to minimise the inevitable disruption to the local community.  

The Council remains confused as to why Network Rail had not approached them regarding their plans.  The erection, construction, alteration or extension of any bridge cannot happen unless the prior approval of the local authority to the detailed plans and specifications is first obtained.  To get this Network Rail has to show the planner that the design or appearance of the bridge would not “injure the amenity of the neighbourhood”. 

Several residents have asked me what the new bridge will look like.   The point has been made that the current bridge feels safe to use because of its visual openness due to its lattice construction and good lighting which helps people feel secure. As soon as Network Rail let us know their proposed design the Council will be notifying neighbours and seek their views.  

Housing Worries

Last week at my Councillors' Surgery, I spoke to a young man who lives with his wife and three small children in a council-owned studio flat.  They have another child on the way any day now.  He applied to be rehoused last March and still waiting for his application to be processed.   It is always heartbreaking to hear such stories, as we all know that overcrowding has a damaging impact on people’s health and well-being, especially children, who need the space to play and grow.

There is a high demand for Council and Housing Association homes in Hounslow and a very limited supply of available homes.  Approximately 2 people out of every 10 on the council’s Housing Register are offered a council or Housing Association home each year. Nationally more than one million households are on social housing waiting lists in 2023.  The National Housing Federation (NHF), a trade body for social housing associations, claims that the figure is closer to 1.6 million.  There are many reasons why we find ourselves in this mess but it all boils down to the fact that those in power for the past few decades haven’t built enough new houses.

We also need to reform the planning system to make it easier to build homes in places where people actually want to live where they can have decent lives, raise children and contribute to the economy.  To compound the problem, one of the big local challenges we have in Hounslow is the council’s terrible record on empty council homes. It was revealed earlier this year that there are currently just under 500 empty council homes in our borough, a rate that is triple the national average. Of these, 200 have been empty for over a year – imagine how many people we could house if Hounslow got its act together?

Coming soon to street new you!

You can hardly fail to notice that the use of e-bikes has greatly increased in recent years and that sadly, many people who hire them fail to park them in a considerate manner!  To help tackle some of the problems we have all been experiencing the council is introducing dedicated parking bays for participating e-bike hire operators and their users. These bays will predominantly be located in existing carriageway parking bays with a smaller number of footway bays provided where it is suitable to do so. 

Starting next week in Chiswick, weather permitting, the council will be placing cones at locations where the bays are to be marked and installing temporary signage to identify that these bays are suspended whilst the works take place.  Once all works have been completed e-bikes will be positioned in the bays and will be available for hire. This is likely to be from early June 2023.  All this is happening under an experimental traffic management order for a minimum of 6 months and will then be assessed to determine their practicality before a decision is made to either remove them or make them permanent.  Feedback during this initial 6-month period is vital and everyone needs to send their comments to the Council via email at traffic@hounslow.gov.uk.

Badly parked e-bike in Chiswick

Puddle Problems

I can still remember the amazed looks of pedestrians as older gentlemen graceful leaped across the massive puddle of water which regularly appears after heavy rain at the pedestrian crossing at the end of the A205 (Kew Bridge) as it joins the A315 – that’s the crossing to Sainsbury’s Local to most of us.  Whilst we wondered how we were supposed to cross, he performed a Sauté or maybe it was a Jeté as only a former senior principal dancer of the Royal Ballet could.  (I will leave it to you, dear reader, to guess who this famous resident was!)  This has been a problem for many years and seems to have become worse since the road was resurfaced and the crossings in the area were updated. After last year's boundary changes this area is now in Chiswick Riverside Ward and therefore the battle to sort this out falls to the Riverside Councillors.  TfL, who manage this bit of the road, have been asked for their plans to sort it out – watch this space.   (Ps Gentle reminder to motorists driving through puddles and splashing a pedestrian can hold a fine of up to £5,000!)

Big puddle near Kew Bridge

It's that time of Year Again

May is a busy time in the Council calendar with the Annual Meeting of the Borough Council where the mayor is thanked for all his or her hard work over the year and a new mayor takes his or her place.  Councillor Raghwinder Siddhu has done Hounslow proud over the last 12 months acting as an impartial chairman of the council, attending numerous events in the community and raising funds for his chosen charities.  The Conservative Group held its AGM this week which saw me elected as Group Leader and Cllr Ron Mushiso as Deputy Leader.  Cllr Gabriella Giles will be serving as the Chair of the Chiswick Area Forum, assisted by Councillor Joanna Biddolph as Vice Chair.  As an opposition group, there will be times for co-operation with the administration and times for vocal opposition.   Being a councillor is a varied and highly fulfilling role.  There are times of frustration and challenge but ultimately it is one of the most rewarding and satisfying things I have ever done.  

The Hounslow Conservative group

Cllr Peter Thompson

peter.thompson@hounslow.gov.uk

07977 395810  

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY  

Tuesday, 23rd May at 7.30pm Borough Council AGM

CONSERVATIVE COUNCILLOR SURGERIES

Chiswick: Every Saturday from 9.30am to 10.30am at Chiswick Library (the eight Conservative councillors take this surgery in turn).

Gunnersbury: First Saturday of the month from 10am to 11am at The Gunnersbury Triangle Club, Triangle Way, off The Ridgeway, W3 8LU (at least one of the Chiswick Gunnersbury ward councillors takes this surgery). 

CONSERVATIVE COUNCILLORS and CONTACTS

Chiswick Gunnersbury (was Turnham Green) ward

Cllr Joanna Biddolph joanna.biddolph@hounslow.gov.uk 07976 703446

Cllr Ranjit Gill ranjit.gill@hounslow.gov.uk 07976 702956

Cllr Ron Mushiso ron.mushiso@hounslow.gov.uk 07976 702887

Chiswick Homefields ward

Cllr Jack Emsley jack.emsley@hounslow.gov.uk 07977 396017

Cllr Gerald McGregor gerald.mcgregor@hounslow.gov.uk 07866 784821

Cllr John Todd john.todd@hounslow.gov.uk 07866 784651

Chiswick Riverside ward

Cllr Peter Thompson peter.thompson@hounslow.gov.uk 07977 395810  

Cllr Gabriella Giles gabriella.giles@hounslow.gov.uk 07966 270823