Parking controls on Kingston Road

Liberal Democrat councillors in Raynes Park sent the information below to residents in the Apostles Roads, Kingston Road and Abbott Avenue

You might be aware that on 26 April, the Council announced their decision to change the parking restrictions on Kingston Road – this will prevent parking on the side of the road outside the Church between 8am and 6pm on Sundays.

Whilst we spoke to many people about this during the consultation process, we want to ensure everyone has had an opportunity to tell us their views.

The Council says it’s implementing these changes because there are concerns regarding safety on Kingston Road. This is because all vehicles (buses, cars and bikes) are forced to come out into the middle of the road, when cars are parked there. This is mostly a concern on Sunday.

They say:

“The Council’s statutory duty is to ensure access and safety are maintained at all times. Once the Council is aware of obstructive parking, lack of mitigating action could put the Council at risk. The Council could be accused of not acting responsibly in discharging its statutory duties. It should also be noted that the restrictions do not prevent access to the Church and its various activities; there is nothing to say that access must be gained via a motorised vehicle.”

We had a meeting with the Highways officer during the consultation process and we were told that the changes were needed because:

“Kingston Road is a London Distributor Road, bus route and primary emergency access route and the current obstructive parking on Sunday is giving us serious concern that can no longer be ignored or permitted.”

Delay

We have been told by some local stakeholders that when engaging with the consultation process they were assured on some level that the changes would not be brought in. And whilst the decision was made on 26 April, those who’d responded to the formal consultation were informed about it by the Council on 26 May. There are now calls from certain local groups for the decision to be delayed until the potential development work along Kingston Road is agreed and built. This could take a number of years. To date, we have not seen a response from the Cabinet Member for Transport on any of these points.

We want to know what you think

Please let us know what you think by replying to this email – even if it’s that you do not feel strongly about this issue. We’re keen to fully understand local views so that we can take action accordingly. The Council’s report on the decision can be read here: https://www.merton.gov.uk/streets-parking-transport/traffic-management/consultations/kingstonwr

All best wishes,

Victoria, Chessie, Matthew
Cllrs, Raynes Park ward Merton Liberal Democrats

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