A Cycle/footbridge at Thameside Sunbury. Has its moment arrived?
The consultation on potential river crossing sites in the Sunbury area was undertaken over a period in excess of four months in 2015 (see Home Page of www.losra.org). A total of 911 residents on both sides of the River Thames submitted their views as a part of that consultation which was conducted by a professional PR company. It indicated that 93% supported the river crossing, 3% opposed and 4.0% were undecided or did not indicate a preference clearly. A number of those opposed exhibited an antipathy towards cyclists or were riverside residents who feared the possible proximity of a foot-bridge to their dwellings. Seven years later, and despite the LoSRA website still recording frequent comments in favour of the project, the lack of the substantial funding required has resulted in no progress being made. However, a new Surrey Community Fund of £100m available over the next five years may now offer an opportunity for securing the necessary resources. That said, with over 500 projects making initial shows of interest for funding through the ‘Your Fund Surrey’ Community Pro-jects fund, there is no guarantee that the necessary monies will be made available for a Sunbury foot-bridge, particularly for such a ‘big ticket’ item. Nevertheless, our application to the fund is a powerful one representing the best opportunity for fulfilling an ambition which has been in gestation for over 20 years.
As indicated, the proposal to construct a cycle/footbridge over the Thames connecting Lower Sun-bury to the Thames Path National Trail is not new. Under the auspices of the Thames Overways Projects (TOPS), it was very much on the political agenda at the turn of the millennium. Sadly, however, whilst receiving widespread support both from local communities and special interest groups including Sustrans (Sustainable Transport (British Cycling Organization)), the project was eventually shelved due to competing funding priorities. Nevertheless, as an Association we have always been anxious to resuscitate the project which is also supported by both Spelthorne and Elmbridge Joint Committees; the Environment Agency and the MP for Spelthorne. Since the original TOPS proposals, the combined population increase of Sunbury East and Sunbury West wards stood at 10.1% (2011 cen-sus) but with no commensurate improvements in local infrastructure amenity. The development planning approvals since the census will undoubtedly have increased this figure; and yet further growth is predicted in the list of “preferred allocations” for Sunbury in current Local Plan proposals: As a reminder this is a list of the “preferred allocations” for Sunbury in current Local Plan proposals:
HS1/002: Land at Croysdale Avenue, Croysdale Avenue, Sunbury
SC1/003: 147 Staines Road West, Sunbury
SC1/004: Sunbury Fire Station, Staines Road West, Sunbury
SC1/005: Sunbury Cross Ex Services Association Club, Crossways, Sunbury
SC1/013: RMG Warehouse & Delivery Office, 47-79 Staines Road West, Sunbury
SE1/003: Builder s Yard, 77 Staines Road East, Sunbury
SE1/008: Telephone Exchange, Green Street, Sun-bury
SE1/019: Sunbury Social Services Centre, 108 Vicarage Road, Sunbury
SE1/020: Sunbury Adult Education Centre, The Avenue, Sunbury
HS1/010: Land to the South and West of Stratton Road, Sunbury
SC1/002: 115 Staines Road West, Sunbury
HS1/012: Land East of Upper Halliford Road, Nursery Road, Sunbury
HS2/004: Land south of Nursery Road, Sunbury
LS1/006 & LS1/007: Land at Windmill Close, Sun-bury (LS1/006) & Land to South of Ashford Common Water Treatment Works, Charlton Road, Shepperton (LS1/007)
SE1/024: Annandale House, 1 Hanworth Road, Sunbury
Our moment has surely arrived!