Petition details
Trees for Mile End
This text is intended to accompany this video:
The first location is on the corner of Treby and Eric Street.
This part of Eric Street has no trees, and is a primary
pedestrian route for residents/commuters, Bonner school children,
leisure centre users etc… An ornamental tree in a pavement
level pit will enhance this pedestrian route for many people and
link the Northern stretch of Eric Street, which is already planted,
to Mile End Park to the South, enforcing the Local Plans concept of
the ‘Green Grid’.
The curb has a wide radius here and cars often speed around in and
out of Treby Street. We believe by extending the curb out both into
Eric and Treby this will force drivers to slow down before making
the turn.
The second location is on the corner of Mossford and Eric Street.
For the same reasons mentioned above, an ornamental tree will benefit many residents and people visiting the area. The use of a curb extension here will again prevent speeding cars turning in and out of Mossford Street.
We feel these first two locations will complement each other both visually. Additionally the curb extensions being opposite each other and staggered will introduce a meander to the straight line of Eric Street, which will force drivers to reduce speed when travelling along Eric Street and into/out of Ropery Street.
The third location is at the South end of this section of Eric Street where it meets Bow Common Lane.
Currently there are two unsightly, cluttered, islands with bollards, railings, sign posts with ‘no vehicles’ signs. We feel that replacing these with two trees and a more effective road block (for instance a central post) will be more visually pleasant & connect this route with Mile End Park to the South.
The fourth location is on Hamlets Way outside the Masjid.
We feel that introducing three new trees here will fill in this gap in the ‘Green Grid’ connecting the Cemetery Park to Mile End Park. It will also give a sense of place to this part of the ‘Mile End Neighborhood’ giving shoppers, residents and visitors to the mosque a pleasant place to congregate.
This Petition ran from 19/09/2019 to 25/10/2019 and has now finished.
45 people signed this Petition.
Council response
Thank you for the petition raised for Council on 13 November 2019 regarding the above which you presented to the meeting.
I understand that you would like the Council to consider planting trees in Mile End in the locations specified within your petition. You identified four potential locations for tree planting in Mile End as part of Tower Hamlets pledge to plant 1000 trees across the borough. You mention in your petition that planting trees in these locations will help fill in empty gaps in the Local Plan’s ‘Green Grid’, calm traffic, in particular speeding, and benefit large amount of people as well as the immediate residents.
The Council has recently carried out a survey of all streets across the Borough, which included the streets outlined in your petition, to highlight potential street tree planting locations as part of the Mayor’s Manifesto pledge to plant 1000 new street trees across the Borough.
Unfortunately due to the narrow path width there were no viable locations identified along Eric Street. The minimum path width required to feasibly plant a new street tree is 2m. This allows for an unobstructed path width clearance of 1.5m, the minimum path width Tower Hamlets Council strives for across the Borough, and 0.5m for the construction of a new street tree pit. Minimum width dimension needed for construction of a new street tree pit is 0.5m. This also considers the future growth of any tree and the possible impact that this could have on the unobstructed path width.
In regards to constructing and planting build outs with the specific aim of calming traffic; this is something which falls outside of the scope of the Mayors 1000 new street trees pledge. However, this could possibly be captured during phase 3 of the Liveable Streets project. Early engagement, where residents and businesses will be asked what they would like to see improved in the area will begin in autumn 2020. I would encourage you to engage in this process. If you have any queries regarding the Liveable Streets programme please email LiveableStreets@towerhamlets.gov.uk.
Ann Sutcliffe
Corporate Director, Place