Hanwell residents step out!

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Join Living Streets walking audit to improve Hanwell's pavements

 

Living Streets, the national charity working to create people friendly places and spaces for people on foot, is leading a new project to improve walking routes in and out of four town centres, including Hanwell.  Four London Boroughs � Ealing, Barking & Dagenham, Brent and Havering � are working with Living Streets to identify the barriers to walking, and find solutions, on key routes to the centres and in the centres themselves.

 

The Project will look to increase the level of detail and resources that are put into developing pedestrian environments.  Compared to road building schemes provision for people using pavements is often an afterthought with little attention paid to detail or consideration of what pedestrians actually need and want.

 

Cllr Gary Malcolm, Ealing Living Streets' representative, said: �Often many residents find it difficult to get from A to B on our streets because of street clutter and poorly maintained pavements. Because the lighting is often poor many vulnerable people drive short distances.

 

Living Streets can assess what improvements the council and Transport for London should be making so that people can feel safe and get about easily. If you are free on 8 December in Hanwell then attend the walking audit and give you views on what stops you from getting about properly.�

 

The stretch of Uxbridge Road running from the hospital to Church Road, and connecting routes from Boston Road and Hanwell Station, will be looked at and recommendations for improvement made.

 

Local mum Hanane Abidahou walks along these roads every day pushing baby daughter Nasree in a buggy: �I need to get to the shops, and the doctor's surgery regularly.  The pavements are very narrow.  People have to step off into the road to avoid us, and even I have to go in the road sometimes."

 

She says broken and bumpy pavements don't help either, though Nasree enjoys the ride!

 

Living Streets, is leading two Community Street Audits (short walks which identify good and bad features) in Hanwell on Wednesday 8 December.  Please join the walk and explain what you think needs to be done to make the streets attractive and safe. 

 

The walks will start and finish at the Rendezvous Café, 109 Uxbridge Road; they take less than 2 hours. The day time walk starts at 2pm and the evening walk starts at 7.00pm. Audits are always done in the day and the evening because streets can feel different, and be used differently, after dark.

 

The walks will be led by Living Streets experts and will start you looking at your streets in a different light.  Can you cross where you want to?  What's it like for people with disabilities?  Is there somewhere to rest with heavy shopping?   Does it feel pleasant to spend time there?

 

Alternatively attend one of two public meetings on December 2nd at St Mellitus Church Hall, Church Lane at 2.00pm or 7.00pm

  

Members of the public can just turn up on the day but if you would like to find out more or discuss it, please contact Simon Barnett, Living Streets' Walkability Officer, on 020 7820 1010, email simon.barnett@livingstreets.org.uk

 

 

December 2, 2004