It's been another hectic week for Chelsea and Fulham MP Greg Hands, who reports in his e-bulletin that since the last edition he has:

• · Met with local residents and amenity groups to discuss the next steps forward in fighting Thames Water’s plans to site the main tunnelling shaft of theiir "super sewer" in south Fulham. Meanwhile, Greg discovered in Thames Water documents that the company is projecting 29,000 lorry movements going down King’s Road, New King’s Road and Wandsworth Bridge Road to remove the excavated spoil. For more, see below.
• · Had a full schedule of activity asa Government Whip in and around the chamber of the House of Commons, including ministerial meetings and organising votes and standing committees.
• · Held a weekly surgery for Chelsea and Fulham residents at Peter Jones, Sloane Square. Greg’s surgeries are held generally every Monday at either Fulham Town Hall or at Peter Jones, Sloane Square. To ask for an appointment, email mail@greghands.com or call 020 7219 5448.

Greg Hands M.P. has discovered plans by Thames Water to route up to 29,000 lorries along New King’s Road and Wandsworth Bridge Road during construction of the Super Sewer.

Should construction go ahead at Carnwath Road in Fulham, a vast number of lorry movements will be required, producing six years of traffic misery. Lorry trips would average 31 per day for two years during main tunnelling and peak at 33 per day when the tunnel is being lined.

Thames Water plan to move all plant and construction materials by road to reduce costs. Only excavated spoil will be taken by barge, despite the existence of the wharf being given as one of their key reasons for using Carnwath Road. Although its transport strategy paper suggests it would be possible for nearly half of the remaining material to go by barge, it will “give the contractor the flexibility to determine the most practical and cost-effective means of transporting other materials and equipment.”

The route itself is revealed in supplementary document about the Carnwath Road site, which marks the “preferred lorry access to TfL road network” on a map. It would see large trucks thundering through Chelsea and down into Fulham, directly past the windows of residents’ houses.

The lorries will be used to take machinery (such as cranes and excavators), precast concrete segments for the tunnel wall, ready-mixed concrete, and aggregates like gravel. No assessment has been made by Thames Water of the impact on congestion.

Commenting, Greg Hands M.P. said: " “This route would bring traffic misery. We already knew that parts of Fulham would be affected, but not on this scale. Both Fulham and Chelsea could see gridlock, as well as noise and other disruption.

“It is completely unacceptable for Thames Water to put thousands of lorries through residential areas – particularly when barges are an option. "It was Thames Water’s choice to put the main tunnelling shaft in the heart of a residential area, when more remote sites were available.

"The impact of Thames Water’s Super Sewer will be felt by those well beyond the immediate Carnwath Road area – and tens of thousands of people in Fulham and Chelsea will see their lives blighted by lorry movements."

Website of the Week: Operation Christmas Child

Operation Christmas Child is the largest children's Christmas project in the world, run by the Christian charity Samaritan's Purse, and including local Fulham and Chelsea churches.

They have been sending gift-filled shoeboxes to disadvantaged children around the world since 1990, bringing joy into the lives of over 80 million children. Last year, over 500,000 people from across the UK and Ireland got involved - including many churches, schools and workplaces. Children and adults alike wrapped and packed around 1.12 million shoeboxes full of gifts and goodies, which were then sent to disadvantaged children across Africa, Eastern Europe and Central Asia.

Visit the website at Operation Christmas Child.

 

November 18, 2011