Consultation Decision and Update

Westminster City Council, working alongside Grosvenor Estate, recently consulted on proposals for highway improvements on Eccleston between Buckingham Palace Road and Ebury Street. You are receiving this email as you registered to receive updates on this project following the consultation process.

The consultation period ended on 9 August 2024. A total of 214 responses were received to the consultation. The majority of respondents (a total of 75%) indicated they supported all elements of the proposed scheme, with a further 11% stating they supported some of the proposals set out. Given this, a recommendation to proceed with the scheme through to implementation was proposed. This recommendation was approved by WCC on 16th October 2024.

Consultation feedback

There were several elements that you highlighted during the consultation in response to the proposals. You said:

• You support the proposals set out for Eccleston Street, especially relating to additional trees and new planting, footway widening and retention of alfresco dining.
• Could the section of Eccleston Place between Eccleston Street and the cycle hire station remain two-way
• You would like to see more green space, tree varieties and drought resistant greenery.
• You would like to see additional cycle parking, additional seating areas or benches and a segregated cycle lane.
• You had concerns regarding the proposed narrowing of the carriageway to one lane as it was felt this may cause congestion. 

WCC have reviewed your feedback and we can advise you of the following:

• The measures set out in the proposals are aimed at increasing biodiversity, increasing pedestrian space and comfort and to support local businesses within the area.
• The section of Eccleston Place between Eccleston Street and the cycle hire station is no longer proposed to change to one-way, it will remain two-way as requested
• The new planting and tree species will be both tolerant to drought and will support pollinators. Greening has been proposed in areas suitable for such facilities i.e avoiding basements, underground utilities and parking provisions.
• Locations for additional cycle parking and public seating is to be included with the design process to assess where these can be added within the scheme. 
• The request for a segregated cycle lane cannot be progressed as part of this scheme due to the insufficient carriageway space. However, the possibility of a cycle route along Eccleston Street will be forwarded for future consideration as part of a wider borough cycle initiative 
• The carriageway narrowing is proposed in the section of road where traffic surveys have demonstrated that vehicles mostly queue in a single lane.. For this reason, it is unlikely that this change will have a detrimental impact to traffic flows as it simply formalises the current vehicle movement in the area.

What happens next?

The scheme will progress to detailed design where the feedback from the consultation will be incorporated where feasible. The scheme is currently scheduled for implementation late 2025/early 2026. Further communication on this will be provided once an implementation date in confirmed.

Should you wish to review the full report and the appendices, it is available here.