Since writing our web and Sunbury Matters articles two weeks ago, we have been trying to establish more information on the 15-week closure of the westbound A308 that is claimed to be needed to allow Thames Water to install a crash barrier between the road and the Grand Junction reservoir. Although we have had contact with Richmond Council’s highways department and Thames Water, we still have key questions unresolved with only a week to go before the closure is due to start on 7 July. What is depressingly apparent is that little or no thought seems to have been given by any of the relevant authorities to the potential impact of the closure on Lower Sunbury, nor indeed did they consider it even necessary to communicate it to our residents.
We have though had the benefit of two representatives - from Thames Water and from its traffic consultant Hatton Traffic Management - attending LOSRA’s Annual General Meeting last Wednesday 25 June, giving us an opportunity to quiz them directly on the closure. We asked them to provide answers to a number of questions; we are giving some of their answers here:
Q1: Has it been agreed that drivers of non-ULEZ-compliant vehicles will be neither charged nor fined for driving round the designated diversion through the ULEZ zone?
Thames Water have escalated this as a priority with Transport for London, Richmond and Wandsworth council and they are supporting the delivery on this. We are currently awaiting the response and will confirm as soon as we have it.
Q2: Is it confirmed that the permanent ban on HGVs in the Hampton section of the designated diversion, which is in force at night time and at weekends, will be temporarily suspended for the full duration of the project?
This has been agreed.
Note: we do not know with whom it has been agreed or how it will be implemented, but it is vital to avoid HGVs coming down the Lower Sunbury Road instead without realising that there is an even more severe 7.5 tonne limit through Lower Sunbury.
Q3: Will a full-time manned ‘stop/go’ traffic control be in place at the junction of the A308 and Church Street in Hampton to allow diverting westbound traffic to cross over oncoming eastbound traffic?
This has been confirmed to help mitigate the delays following the road closure and diversion, this will be implemented when and where required.
Q4: Will some ‘not suitable for diversion traffic’ signs be installed to deter motorists from attempting to divert through Lower Sunbury?
This has been forwarded to our project team and Hatton Traffic Management; we will notify you once we have an update.
From these responses it is clear that the analysis and preparatory work that should have been done and communicated weeks ago has still not been completed. It gives us no confidence that Lower Sunbury will avoid the chaos created by drivers attempting to find an alternative to the queues and the lengthy designated diversion around Hampton. In less than a fortnight we will know just how bad that chaos will be.
