Forum Topic

Proposals at north Acton URGENT

Dear All,There will be an exhibition to show draft plans of the proposed Victoria Road public realm to the local community.You can meet the architects on the Saturday,23 November 10-2pm and Wednesday evening of the 27th November 5-8pm.I shall do my best to put invitations through doors this week. All the best, Kate From: David Hennings Sent: 20 November 2013 11:04To: Kofi NyamahCc: Katherine Crawford; Hitesh TailorH; Atallah SaidSubject: Electronic poster/flyer for the exhibition this week Kofi - If you able to email this to the ward forum members that would be appreciated. Thank you David HenningsMobile 07595 764 557Email: henningsd@ealing.gov.uk

Emma Isabel Daniels ● 4680d13 Comments

Emma, thanks for this. These are the proposal for the public square, for which the petrol station is to be compulsorily purchased. Can you confirm where the draft plans will be exhibited?

Vlod Barchuk ● 4679d

To answer my own question, exhibition is at Holiday Inn Express, Victoria Road, North Acton

Vlod Barchuk ● 4679d

Jim and I went along this morning to have a look. Interesting proposals and they will be there again on Wednesday evening. If you live in the area do pop in and have a look. Only negative thought is that the proposed piazza is very small. It is only replacing a filling station which wasn't very big in the first place.

Maire Lowe ● 4679d

This seems to be a waste of money, there is vacant land next to the petrol station which could be used if they actually need to make better access to North Acton station.

Chris Lucy ● 4677d

I thought that the area between Chase Road and the petrol filling station was destined for yet another multi-storey block. Agreed on the waste of money.

Chris Bell ● 4677d

The main reason given for the compulsory purchase of the filling station appears to be to provide a more gradual slope from the road to the current station building for wheelchair access to the current station entrance. An "old" railway carriage is shown parked at the station entrance level to give the totally false impression that wheelchair access will be available to the platforms. This will not happen for at least ten years until the station itself is "modernised", which could be a total rebuild at a different height level. There is insufficient space for wheelchair access to both platforms from the current station entrance, so a totally new station may need to be built.I have looked at the current access routes to the station, and there appears to be sufficient space between the boundary fence of the filling station and the current railway boundary fence to install a raised walkway slope from the western end, closest to Chase Road, to meet part-way down the current eastern slope. The access path from the road at the western end starts about a metre lower than the eastern end, so the total length of sloped paths can be shorter than the eastern end alone.There are three tracks served by the station, so there must be two platforms. If a totally new station is built then the access from the road could be changed to provide full wheelchair access to both platforms.

Chris Bell ● 4674d

The plan is to put up to 150 flats on the cleared site next to the petrol station.The cost of the project was not disclosed at the presentation but a figure of £5m has been mooted before. Nor was it clear if the compulsory purchase of the petrol station had been concluded. Building a public square without at least knowing the location and outline design of any new station makes no sense; crowing about creating disabled access to the station when there’s no disabled access to the platforms is silly (reminds of a Phoenix Nights episode with Brian Potter stuck at the bottom of a staircase unable to get to the disabled toilet at the top of it).And it’s a mad non-solution to a problem as it requires enormous (and expensive) excavation to create a route between station and Victoria street levels (4.7 metres difference I believe). Why not just flatten the petrol station, create what shops/open space one wishes on a level site and install a lift at the station end? But why do anything at all seeing as the petrol station seems to be doing reasonable business?Seeing the plans reminded me of Groucho Marx’s definition of a politician: someone who goes out looking for trouble, finds it, misdiagnoses it and then misapplies the wrong solution.

Vlod Barchuk ● 4671d

And yet more flats in this now ludicrously concentrated "ghetto" which has very little local facilities.How will local dentist & doctor's surgeries cope, let alone the utilities ( especially the sewerage system ) ?!!!

Rosco White ● 4671d

Is it just a desperate attempt to justify accepting a bribe, (is it called section 106 money)? Perhaps there are restrictions on where it could be spent, so nothing sensible.

Chris Bell ● 4671d

I am happy to see something of a masterplan in this area as this type of thinking appears to be lacking in many other parts of Acton that could do with some regeneration.Having a public square with better access to the station and hopefully more direct links between buses and tubes should improve ease of use and encourage more public transport users.More dense residential uses in the area around a station is also a good idea so people can access transport easily without the need for a car. With more accommodation will come more amenities and a sense of place.Although the mix of accommodation there is not great at the moment, the area is a little more welcoming at night than it used to be when it was only businesses and busy roads. Hopefully a new local centre and some more residential to mix with the employment uses will give the area a much more welcoming feel - and all in time for a link to the nearby HS2/CrossRail interchange... Perhaps some more planning could now be applied to the area around Acton Mainline?

Tony Bailey ● 4666d

The station staff do not appear to want any changes until the station itself is modernised and expanded because they are worried about the station itself being a restrictive bottleneck, with only two entrance and exit gates plus a single combined wide entry/exit gate, and narrow stairs. Passengers arriving on westbound trains that terminate at North Acton must cross to the other platform to continue their journey. It is also an interchange station between the two branches of the Central Line. There is always a rush to change platforms.It might be much more sensible to assist TFL in providing a replacement station, perhaps at a different height, including covered bridge and stairs plus lifts to both platforms, together with re-designed access slopes as neccessary, (the current access slopes and steps do not use all the available space now). It should be a tiny fraction of the costs of all the nearby high-rise blocks.

Chris Bell ● 4666d

Perhaps the real reason is that the developers would like to build the new block of luxury flats between the filling station and Chase Road very close to the current path to the station and do not want pedestrians close to the windows, so want to move them away and bury them in a deep hole, and expect the council to do this for them. An alternative could be to provide space for much needed facilities such as surgeries that do not need windows there.

Chris Bell ● 4665d

Chris that is a good idea. I will be at the Oaks development group stall (adjunct to the CCA stall later on) I'd be interested to meet you and hear more of your thoughts. If you have time of course.

Maire Lowe ● 4665d