Welcome to Wandsworth Living Streets website.
We are the local group in the Borough of Wandsworth of the national charity, Living Streets, which campaigns to create better streets and public spaces for people on foot. We aim to achieve safe, attractive and enjoyable streets across our borough.
April WLS newsletter published
Dear Wandsworth Living Streets supporters
In my previous email to you a couple of weeks ago (21 March) about the May 3 local elections, I spoke too soon. Spring had not made its appearance at last! Rather, the day or two of good weather was merely to bluff us into thinking Winter wouldn’t put in another showing! So here is to hoping warmer days are really about to arrive later this week. At least it isn’t snowing with us in London!
What are your TOP THREE priorities for environmental issues you want Wandsworth Council to take action on after the Elections?
The Campaign to Protect Rural England (London section) (CPRE) is asking all of us to fill in a Survey where you indicate your top 3 priorities for the environment which you would like our Council to act on. It literally takes only a minute, as I discovered when I did it. Please do the Survey — https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/QNTYWPG
March WLS newsletter published!
Dear Wandsworth Living Streets supporters
The May 3 Borough Elections
As you know, Councillors in all the London Boroughs are getting ready for the upcoming elections. In our borough, the current state of the parties is: 39 Conservative Councillors; 19 Labour; and 2 Independents. The Conservatives have run the Borough continuously for the past 40 years – ever since 1978.
In spite of the gap between Conservatives and Labour, there has been speculation in the media that it is just possible that the May 3 election may result in a hung Council, or even a change of political control. Read more…
Transforming Streets & Neighbourhoods in our Borough
On November 4, 2017, David Irvin made a presentation at a Wandsworth Living Streets public meeting. a commentary follows on the content of the talk and Davids slides with brief commentary can be found here: Transforming our Neighbourhoods
This street has been transformed into a largely pedestrianised locality with a vibrant local shopping environment. It was inspiring to see an example in London where a Council has taken the lead in improving the public realm.
Notice its features:
- Vehicles excluded from 7 am to 10pm, except for the local bus
- Trees and other greenery
- Much wider pavements
- A deliberate kink in the roadway and strategically placed lamp post to slow down even the bus
These are all changes that prompt drivers to engage in a one to one relationship with pedestrians and encourage a shift away from a car-dependent driver culture.
Wandsworth Living Streets responds to Quietway 21 proposal
Quietway 21 route
Wandsworth Living Streets response to proposals for Quietway 21
(Teddington <-> Wandsworth) in the London Borough of Wandsworth was submitted on Monday November 13 and reads as follows:
13 November 2017
Wandsworth Living Streets is the local group representing the UK charity
for everyday walking. Our primary purpose is to promote walking as a
healthy, enjoyable everyday activity and to enable this by ensuring that
the urban realm across the borough of Wandsworth is safe, pleasant and
inviting for people – whatever their level of mobility. We strongly
support the London-wide ‘Healthy Streets’ approach and our comments are
made bearing this framework in mind.
We note that the brief of the Quietways scheme is stated in Wandsworth
Council paper 15-458 as being:
“Transport for London (TfL) is developing a network of “Quietway” routes
for cyclists, envisaged as high-quality guided routes on low-traffic
back streets and other routes so that different kinds of cyclists can
choose the routes which suit them. Quietways are intended to be direct,
clearly signed, and delivered as whole routes without gaps in difficult
places. Quietways would support the new cycling strategy, on which
consultation has recently closed, which is reported elsewhere on the
agenda (Paper No. 15-457).”
Transforming our Borough’s Streets – Next Steps
Proposals for a Pocket Park, a Side Road, a Main Road
An illustrated talk by David Irwin
David Irwin is an urban planner. He has long been active in the Putney Society and Wandsworth Living Streets. He lives locally, but has worked in many different parts of the world. In recent years, he has developed detailed proposals for transforming Putney High Street (this is now going to have a major makeover), having a new pocket park in Esmond Street, and how to humanize and ‘green’ a side street like Werter Road.
Venue: The Alma Pub (Upstairs room) — Address: 499 Old York Road, SW18 1TF
Active Wandsworth is the Community Sport and Physical Activity Network for Wandsworth and is part of the national structure for sport in England. Active Wandsworth brings together Wandsworth Council (including Public Health), Enable Leisure and Culture and other key partners such as schools, further and higher education, local sports clubs, and organisations to provide a strategic overview of physical activity and sport in the borough. Enable Leisure & Culture lead on the Active Wandsworth network on behalf of the council.
On June 23, a response to Active Wandsworth’s draft strategy consultation was submitted on behalf of Wandsworth Living Streets.
The Council decision on 5 July 2016
On 5 July, Conservative and Labour Councillors joined hands on the Community Services Committee to decide unanimously that all local residential streets throughout our borough will henceforth have a speed limit of 20mph (currently only a quarter to a third of them are 20mph; the remaining streets having a 30mph limit). This decision followed the Council’s borough-wide consultation earlier this year in which 3,382 residents responded, with three out of every five (59%) wanting to make the streets where we live safer, quieter, and less polluted.
