March 2012 Applications

Weekly list 2 March 2012

JOHN ROAN LOWER SCHOOL, SE3 7QR ref 12/0496/TC

Cutting back of 4 trees to facilitate temporary classroom

Case officer: Debi Rogers Telephone: 020 8921 5661

Registration date: 29 February 2012

Site Notice Date: No Public Consultation

Deadline for decision: 11 April 2012  RAISE NO OBJECTION

35 FOYLE ROAD, BLACKHEATH, LONDON, SE3 7RQ ref 12/0204/F

Construction of a single storey rear infill extension

Case officer: Kemi Erifevieme Tel: 020 8921 5566

Registration date:   15 February 2012

Site Notice Date:  7 March 2012

Deadline for objections: 28 March 2012  APPROVE

Weekly list 9 March 2012

19 CHARLTON ROAD, CHARLTON, SE3 7EU ref 12/0536/TC

Crown reduce ash tree and london plane by 20%

Case officer: Debi Rogers Telephone: 020 8921 5661

Registration date: 7 March 2012

Site Notice Date: No Public Consultation

Deadline for decision: 18 April 2012  RAISE NO OBJECTION

20 COLERAINE ROAD, BLACKHEATH, SE3 7PQ ref 12/0267/F

Roof extensions comprising rear and side dormer windows, two rooflights in front roof slope and formation of roof terrace over back addition (Resubmission)

Case officer: Alex Smith Tel: 020 8921 5892

Registration date:   22 February 2012

Site Notice Date:  14 March 2012

Deadline for objections: 4 April 2012  REFUSE

John Roan Lower School, SE3 7QR ref 12/0506/NM

Removal of condition 8 (Green Roofs) as non-material amendment to planning permission dated 19/10/11 ref: 11/1819/F

Case officer: Jacob Jaarsma Tel: 020 8921 5438

Registration date:  21 Februay 2012

Site Notice Date: No Public Consultation

Deadline for decision  20 March 2012  APPROVE

20 VANBRUGH PARK, BLACKHEATH, SE3 7AF ref 12/0262/F

Installation of new front boundary treatments

Victoria Wood Telephone: 020 8921 6201

Registration date:   16 February 2012

Site Notice Date: 14 March 2012

Deadline for objections: 4 April 2012 APPROVE

Weekly list 16 March 2012

35 VANBRUGH PARK, BLACKHEATH, SE3 7AA ref 12/0597/TC

Crown reduce Lime tree in front garden back to previous reduction points

Case officer: Debi Rogers Telephone: 020 8921 5661

Registration date: 14 March 2012

Site Notice Date: No Public Consultation

Deadline for decision: 25 April 2012  RAISE NO OBJECTION

32 HARDY ROAD, BLACKHEATH, LONDON, SE3 7NN ref 12/0582/TC

2 lime trees and a sycamore tree in the rear garden - crown reduce all trees by 30%

Case officer: Debi Rogers Telephone: 020 8921 5661

Registration date: 9 March 2012

Site Notice Date: No Public Consultation

Deadline for decision: 20 April 2012  RAISE NO OBJECTION

73 COLERAINE ROAD, BLACKHEATH, SE3 7PF ref 12/0551/F

Loft conversion compring roof infill and installation of rear dormer window and 5 rooflights

Victoria Wood Telephone: 020 8921 6201

Registration date:   24 January 2012 2012

Site Notice Date: 21 March 2012

Deadline for objections: 11 April 2012  APPROVE

Weekly list 23 March 2012

49 MAZE HILL, GREENWICH, LONDON, SE10 8XQ ref 12/0705/TC

Rear Garden - Mulberry - crown reduce by 25%. Box Elder - crown reduce by 30%

Case officer: Debi Rogers Telephone: 020 8921 5661

Registration date: 23 March 2012

Site Notice Date: No Public Consultation

Deadline for decision: 4 May 2012  RAISE NO OBJECTION

51E Westcombe Park Road, Blackheath, SE3 7QZ ref 12/0630/F

Loft conversion comprising the installation of repacement timber windows and installation of 2 dormer windows (Resubmission)

Victoria Wood Telephone: 020 8921 6201

Registration date:   5 March 2012

Site Notice Date: 27 March 2012

Deadline for objections: 19 April 2012  APPROVE

Weekly list 30 March 2012

15 & 15a Ulundi Road, Blackheath, SE3 7UQ ref 12/0357/F

Installation of new hardstanding and front boundary treatments

Case officer: Kemi Erifevieme Tel: 020 8921 5566

Registration date:   6 March 2012

Site Notice Date: 3 April 2012

Deadline for objections: 24 April 2012  APPROVE

The John Roan Upper School, Maze Hill, SE3 7UD ref 12/0657/SD

Submission of details pursuant to Condition 6 (Noise Mitigation) of planning permission dated 13/10/11 ref: 11/1829/F

Case officer: Jacob Jaarsma Tel: 020 8921 5438

Registration date: 5 March 2012

Site Notice Date: No Public Consultation

Deadline for decision 30 April 2012   APPROVE

Olympic Transport Arrangements for Westcombe Park

In Response to an invitation by the Commons TransportSelect Committee, the followin written evidence on the transport plans for the 2012 Olympic, has been submitted by the Westcombe Society   and accepted by theTransport Select Committee. 

1. 1. Background to Comments

1. 1.1. The Westcombe Society is a voluntary local amenity society, which aims to protect, preserve and promote the interests of the Westcombe Park community.  It covers an area bounded by Greenwich Park, Blackheath, the A102 and the Greenwich railway line.  During the Olympics, we believe the Westcombe Park area will be unique in that it is enclosed on all sides by designated ORN routes and there will also be serious disruption to services at both the area’s railway stations (Maze Hill and Westcombe Park).

1. 1.2. Local residents are used to various events, such as marathons, severely restricting movement in and out of the area by car, and seriously disrupting local bus services.  However, all these events occur at weekends, last no more than a few hours, and do not disrupt train services or pedestrian and cycle routes through Greenwich Park.  During 2012, not only will there be severe disruption of all forms of transport over the actual period of the Olympics and Paralympics, but both the road through the park, (heavily used by rush-hour traffic), and the locally important pedestrian and cycle routes through the Park, will be closed for a full two months from early July. 

2.  Transport Planning, Communication and Consultation – General Points

1. 2.1. Against this background, the handling of transport issues has been woefully inadequate: 
1. 2.1.1. there  has been no serious attempt to engage with the local community (contrasting sharply with constructive dialogue over activities actually within Greenwich Park)  
2. 2.1.2. the whole process of transport planning seems to be way behind schedule
3. 2.1.3. there seems to have been no attempt to take an integrated view, looking at the combined impact of disruption to separate transport modes on particular localities
2. 2.2. Overall there is no evidence that LOCOG is trying to strike a reasonable balance between the requirements of the Games and the need to enable local residents and businesses to carry on regular activities.
3. 2.3. Greenwich Council has failed to properly establish the Olympic Transport Consultative Group, as required by the Greenwich Council Planning Board Decision of 23 March 2011.  After three early meetings (at which the LOCOG representatives seemed relatively uninformed or were absent because of the test event) there have been no Transport meetings involving local representatives since July 2011.  There has been no opportunity for local input to, or discussion of, local transport plans.   There is now an urgent need for a meeting which brings together representatives of the Council and local amenity societies with train, bus and riverboat operators, and with those controlling pedestrian and cycle routes, to produce a detailed and fully coordinated traffic management plan which takes due account of the interests/needs of local residents and businesses. 
4. 2.4. All transport arrangements need to be underpinned by an integrated transport communication strategy to ensure that all local residents and businesses know who has overall responsibility, are made fully aware of what is planned, and are able to make their views known to the relevant authorities.

1. 3. Summary of Recommendations for Action the Westcombe Society would like implemented.

1. 3.1. Transport Consultative Group:  Reconvene the Olympic Transport Consultative Group, as originally required by the Greenwich Planning Board, to ensure full and transparent consultation with the local amenity organisations so as to take proper account of local circumstances and needs and especially to determine the most effective detailed implementation of the following: 

1. 3.1.1 Cycle and pedestrian routes:  Maintain existing routes for as long as possible, and specify safe alternatives for when they have to close.
2. 3.1.2 Disabled, medical and care needs:  
1. 3.1.2.1 Establish procedures through which disabled people, residents with medical appointments and carers attending local residents can obtain help and advice when transport disruption makes normal journeys impossible. 
2. 3.1.2.2 Provide disabled access from Maze Hill to the Kent bound ‘down’ platform at Maze Hill station.
3. 3.1.3 Local congestion during closure of road through Park: Establish measures to mitigate unacceptable levels of local congestion during 2 month closure of Charlton Way, Blackheath Avenue and The Avenue.  
4. 3.1.4 Trains: Require South Eastern trains to provide a better level of service during the Olympics to Maze Hill and Westcombe Park stations at least on non-Event days.  On days where the service is cut compensate passengers by charging lower fares for all passengers (not just Season ticket holders) and arrange for all tickets/Oyster to be used on the river boat services at no greater cost than the cost of a travelling by train.
5. 3.1.5 Bus priority:  Implement additional bus priority measures during Games so that the promised service enhancements are effective.
6. 3.1.6 Parking:  Establish clear proposals for how parking restrictions will function during the Olympic period.

1. 4. Detailed Analysis of Issues relating Recommendations for Action

1. 4.1 Pedestrians and Cyclists:  
1. 4.1.1 The closure of routes through Greenwich Park and along Charlton Way and the northern section of Duke Humphrey Road during much of the construction period as well as during the Games, raises potential hazards, as well as serious inconvenience, for local cyclists and pedestrians. Greenwich Park is the most direct, safe, and well used pedestrian and cycle route between Westcombe Park and Greenwich, and also provides a safe route between Westcombe Park and Blackheath and between Greenwich and Blackheath.  Many of the pedestrians and cyclists are school children, especially at peak hours.
2. 4.1.2 If the claim that the London 2012 Olympics will be THE GREENEST GAMES is to have any credibility, then it must apply equally to non-Games journeys which are displaced by the Games.  Thus closure periods of normal pedestrian and cycle routes, both inside and outside the Greenwich Park, should be kept to a minimum, and safe diversions should be specified. To date no diversions have been planned, nor is it clear exactly when routes through the Park will be closed.

1. 4.2 Accessibility Issues:
1. 4.2.1 Greenwich Council Planning Board was assured in p. 143 of the March 2010 agenda paper that additional rail infrastructure was being provided by ODA to permit disabled access to Maze Hill Station for disabled spectators unable to use the footbridge.  However, no such infrastructure is planned.  We therefore fully support the submission from Lawrence Smith that disabled access to the departure platform for passengers travelling towards Woolwich and North Kent should be provided.
2. 4.2.2 Even though previous periods of severely restricted access to the area (e.g. during marathons) have been of very much shorter duration than the Games, we are aware of a number of cases where carers have been unable to visit, or where disabled people have been unable to make crucial journeys.  We therefore need procedures to safeguard such vital journeys, including for routine medical appointments. Much can no doubt be arranged in advance, but (since it is inevitable that many of those involved will not foresee the full consequences of transport disruption) there must also be means of responding to problems as they arise, including widely advertised contact phone numbers for those needing assistance.

1. 4.3 Roads - Maze Hill and Prince Charles Road (North of Shooters Hill Road):
1. 4.3.1 The Westcombe Society is concerned about the significant impact that the closure of Charlton way, Blackheath Avenue and The Avenue during peak hours and over a full two month period will have on traffic levels on Maze Hill and the northern part of Prince Charles Road.  This was clearly seen during the Olympic test event when congestion reached unacceptable levels with tailbacks on Maze Hill reaching Highmore Road in both directions well into the morning.  This was reported upon as part of the consultation on the ORN and has been repeated in comments on subsequent transport issues.  We feel improvements could be made in the northern part of Maze Hill by changing the phasing of lights at the junction of Maze Hill with Trafalgar Road.  However, this is dependent on free flowing traffic in Trafalgar Road, which may need other traffic lights to be re-phrased, in particular those on Trafalgar Road to the west of Maze Hill.
2. 4.3.2 Improvement to the tailback at the southern end of Maze Hill could be achieved by re-phasing of the lights at the junction of Maze Hill with Prince Charles Road to that which operated before the control box was replaced after a car collided with it a number of years ago.  The current phasing (a green light for Charlton Way, both directions, followed by the green light for southbound traffic from Maze Hill, followed by the green light for northbound traffic from Prince Charles Road), causes tailbacks when southbound buses discharge and load passengers in Prince Charles Road.  Changing the phasing back to the phasing in place before the accident (a green light for Charlton Way followed by the green light for northbound traffic from Prince Charles Road, before giving the green light to southbound traffic from Maze Hill), would largely eliminate the tailbacks making the removal of the bus stop unnecessary.
3. 4.3.3 However, it is also essential that any local modifications are complemented by an urgent and concerted effort to persuade commuters, over a very wide area, to avoid the whole area around Greenwich Park, not just for the Games but for the whole 2-month period whilst the Avenue is closed.  This should combine effective communication prior to the closure with changes in traffic priorities at earlier points in their inward journey.
2. 4.4 Trains and Buses:
1. 4.4.1 There has been minimal direct contact with SE Trains which proposes to impose partial station closures at Maze Hill station and significant service reductions at Westcombe Park without due regard to the adverse impact on Westcombe Park area residents and businesses.  There has been no response from SE Trains as to why the Westcombe Park area has been singled out for such drastic cuts in service despite other transport options being severely restricted.  Nor has there been any explanation as to why the decisions on rail services were taken in complete isolation, and not as part of a wider transport plan for the area.  No compensation has been proposed for passengers who will be inconvenienced by cuts to services.
2. 4.4.2 We welcome the increase in bus service schedules shown by TfL in “Temporary changes to bus services for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games”.  However, we are concerned that there has been no local consultation about but timetables and that no modelling appears to have been done as to the likely performance of services given expected traffic conditions during the Games, nor has there been any indication of additional bus priority measures.  At the very least we would expect a general rule (albeit with occasional exceptions) giving buses maximum priority on the ORN Games Lanes. 
3. 4.5 Parking
1. 4.5.1 In principle, we welcome the commitment to increased parking controls on Event Days, especially to those bays that are currently ‘free’, however, we feel the proposals for parking restrictions are unclear and contradictory.  The proposals outlined in the recently distributed “Greenwich One Transport Draft v1.1” are unclear.  Detailed plans which are clearly understood by local residents urgently need to be produced.  The current proposals are ambiguous as to how the CPZs will be enforced, how residents’ guests are to be accommodated, what is proposed for the currently ‘Free’ bays in the Westcombe Park CPZ, and what is proposed for those residents who do not currently have permits e.g. those whose properties are in areas with ‘Free’ bays.

Dick Allard

Chair,   Westcombe Society Planning and Environment Sub-Committee

Reply to: Dick Allard, 22, Mycenae Road, London SE3 7SG

westpes@gmail.com  020 8858 7305

Disabled access at Maze Hill Station as an Olympic Legacy

In Response to an invitation by the Commons Transport Select Committee the following written evidence on the transport plan for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and in particular the Delivery of a transport legacy following the Games, has been submitted with the support of the Westcombe Society and accepted by the Commons Select Transport Committee.

Disabled access at Maze Hill Station as an Olympic Legacy for the Maritime 

Greenwich World Heritage Site 

1. Executive Summary

1.1.  The Royal Borough of Greenwich is committed to ensuring convenient and safe access for disabled spectators to the Olympic Equestrian Events, including access from Maze Hill Station.

1.2.  Network  Rail, Southeastern Trains and the Olympic Delivery Authority have undertaken to provide the necessary infrastructure at Maze Hill Station to achieve this, but the current plans make no such provision, and disabled visitors using Platform 2 at Maze Hill Station must negotiate a 51-step footbridge, which is clearly impracticable.

1.3.  A gently sloping ramp from the roadway to platform 2 and, optimally, a pedestrian walkway alongside the Maze Hill bridge (comparable to the existing walkway at the equally narrow road bridge in Vanbrugh Hill), is the infrastructure required to provide the necessary access. The walkway over the track would avoid the narrow pavement on Maze Hill bridge and enable pedestrians and wheelchair users to reach the Olympic venue safely.

1.4.  There is still time to make the changes, at modest cost (none of the other proposed infrastructure such as stepped footbridges over Romney Road and the A2, or inclined ramps over the Ha-Ha by the Queens House has yet been started). The ramp and walkway would be a permanent legacy for visitors to the internationally important Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site which is currently inaccessible to disabled visitors arriving from London at the designated rail station.

1.5.  After a structural failure threatening the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, the Indian Army constructed similar infrastructure in four days flat at far lower cost than the original.  No cost of removal the proposed  infrastructure (unlike the other elements) would be incurred if it were left as a permanent legacy for visitors to what is a key world, national and local tourist destination currently inaccessible to disabled visitors from the designated Maze Hill rail station less than 200 yards away.

Detail

2.    Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site

2.1.  Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site is a major visitor attraction.  It contains glorious architecture such as Inigo Jones’ The Queens House; the Painted Hall and Chapel of the Old Royal Naval College; the Cutty Sark, Ranger’s House; and Vanbrugh Castle, as well as the church of St Alphege, the millennium of whose martyrdom in 1012 is being commemorated this year.  It contains  world class museums in the Royal Museums, as well as world class collections in the Fan Museum and the Wernher Collection in Ranger’s House.  It houses the Meridian Line from which there are spectacular views of London and its river.

2.2.  The principal rail station for the World Heritage Site is Maze Hill Station, less than 200 yards from Greenwich Park.  There are trains every ten minutes from London Bridge station which whisk visitors to the site in an average time of 13 minutes.  Maze Hill Station provides step-free access from Platform 1 to reach to the World Heritage Site and Olympic venue.  But disabled visitors using Platform 2 must negotiate  a 51-step footbridge which is clearly impracticable.

3.    The Olympic Equestrian Events

3.1.  Because of its iconic status and its inherent beauty, as well as its proximity to the Olympic Village, Greenwich Park was designated the venue of choice for the 2012 Olympic Equestrian Events.  As part of the Planning Process, the Royal Borough of Greenwich committed itself “to ensuring convenient and safe access for disabled spectators.... as part of a planning condition “[1].  That commitment expressly included “clearly defined spectator walking routes (including for those who are less able) will be established well in advance” including from Maze Hill Station[2].

3.2.  The commitment was based on assurances the Royal Borough had received from Network Rail, Southeastern Trains and the ODA, as stated in the 2010 report, viz:-

Network Rail and South Eastern Trains, who operate Blackheath and Maze Hill stations, have plans to improve these stations. As an interested party/stakeholder London 2012 will be working with these bodies to explore opportunities to deliver the needed improvements. It is important to note that the Council are confident that effective transport operations for the Events at Greenwich can be delivered by the existing and additional rail infrastructure (being provided by the ODA)[3]

4.    Maze Hill Station

4.1.  Maze Hill station is located on a section of track between two narrow road bridges in Maze Hill and Vanbrugh Hill.  Because the pavements over the bridge are so narrow, a parallel segregated walkway has been in place in Vanbrugh Hill for many years for the safety of pedestrians.

Vanbrugh Hill Pedestrian Walkway

5.    Proposed Additional Infrastructure

5.1.  There is no walkway for the Maze Hill Bridge comparable to the one at the Vanbrugh Hill bridge, notwithstanding the narrow pavements or the fact that

a) Maze Hill has been designated part of the Alternate Olympic Route Network, and b) LOCOG proposes that it forms part of the ‘Last Mile route’ between Maze Hill Station and the Olympic venue.

5.2.  For the safety of spectators using the proposed ‘Last Mile’ route (see Appendix) it seems very desirable to provide a pedestrian walkway on the Maze Hill Bridge. This would enable spectators to cross Maze Hill at a much safer location than currently proposed, to a much wider pavement capable of accommodating bunching of spectators and wheelchair users.

5.3.  Provision of a segregated walkway would also enable disabled and other spectators arriving at Platform 1 of Maze Hill Station to use the step-free incline on the southern side of the station, cross the railway using the segregated walkway rather than a narrow pavement on the road bridge itself, and cross the road to a wide pavement further from the blind bend in Maze Hill.

5.4.  There is currently no step free access for disabled and others spectators using Platform 2 on the northern side of the station comparable to the existing step free access from Platform 1 on the southern side of the station.  But the latest application for approval of the ‘Last Mile” route from the venue to Maze Hill station still makes no provision for disabled spectators, despite the commitment of Network Rail and South Eastern Trains, together with the Olympic Delivery Authority, to do so. 

5.5.  There has been continuing delay in submitting proposals for the infrastructure required to enable the Royal Borough of Greenwich to honour its commitment to ensure convenient and safe access for disabled spectators to the venue, including from Maze Hill Station, as part of the planning process.  The delay is reducing the time available for consideration and approval of a safe ‘Last Mile’ route between the venue and the nearest rail station at Maze Hill.  The infrastructure this document proposes is shown diagrammatically below:

Proposed New Infrastructure

5.6.  When a bridge collapsed, putting the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi in Jeopardy, the Indian army installed a replacement in four days flat at a far lower cost than the original.  It would be equally straightforward to install a gently sloping ramp to Platform 2 paralleling the existing gentle incline to Platform 1. This would provide access to disabled users, parents with pushchairs and others unable use the existing 51 Step footbridge between the platforms, as well as a safer ‘Last Mile’ route to the venue from either platform.

6.    Olympic Legacy

6.1.  The proposed new infrastructure would not only enable the Royal Borough of Greenwich to honour its commitment  to ensure convenient and safe access for disabled spectators to the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Equestrian events,   but would provide a permanent Olympic legacy for visitors to the World Heritage Site and its Royal attractions (See Appendix).  Unlike the pedestrian  (stepped) bridges to be built across the A2 and Romney Road, and the inclined ramps to be installed over the Ha-Ha at the Queens House, which will  all be removed after the Games (at additional cost), there would be no expense required to remove these improvements, which could remain a permanent legacy of the Games.

6.2.  Greenwich Park was chosen because the Olympic and Paralympic Games greatly benefited from the use of such an iconic location (at considerable inconvenience to the local community).  It seems the least that the ODA could do is to upgrade the station infrastructure as a small gesture of thanks for this great privilege.  It would be at relatively low cost and would benefit  future generations of visitors to the World Heritage Site when it is restored to full public use.  It would also be a legacy for the local community and the Royal borough in this Jubilee year.

7.    Recommendation

7.1.  The Select Committee is requested to support the provision of a ramp from Platform 2 to the road, and walkway alongside the road bridge, at Maze Hill station to provide safe and convenient access for all visitors, including the disabled, as an Olympic legacy for the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site.

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[1] See 2010 Planning Board report  p143

[2] See 2010 Planning Board report  p136

[3] See 2010 Planning Board report  p143