Thinking of home improvements? You'd better wait for the Compulsory Purchase Orders for local land allowing the construction of the tramway. Would your house, your business or your street be affected? Nobody knows. Transport for London (TfL) is not revealing this information yet, it was revealed last Tuesday during the public meeting to gather information about the Tramway. CPOs would be a short term and deadly problem for around 4,500 properties, according to Samantha Covington, from Save Sepherds Bush Streets (SSBS).

SSBS (Save Shepherd's Bush Streets), RAPA (Residents' Amenities Protection Association), The Ravenscourt Society, SBRA (Stamford Brook Residents' Association), GRAG (Greenside Residents'Action Group), H&F Cyclists and the Council were represented at the meeting at the Bush Hall. Residents main concern is about the closure of the Uxbridge Road and the re-routing of non-public transport down residential streets, which could be a long-term problem for everyone.

Samantha believes that Tfl should "have allowed access to the information about the CPOs sooner instead of having every thing squeezed into a few months". She says: "Why should people be denied this detailed information?"

This is actually another one of the residents' concerns related to the West London Transit's proposals for the Uxbridge Road: Why should people be denied the right of being informed in one hand and being heard in the other?

TfL claim that 3,000 consultation documents were distributed to Hammersmith and Fulham residents by the Council (HFM distributors). During the meeting, with the participation of over 200 people, a show of hands proved that a few (no more than five, according to Samantha) received the document. In total, the response rate to the consultation in LBHF was of
8%.

What happened? That was the second mystery of the evening: "I do not know", said Tim Jones, TfL's project director for West London Transit. But there will be a second chance. It was agreed during the meeting that consultations groups will be set up with the Council's help. These LCGs are already happening in Ealing.

Samantha says: "We fully support improvements to the local public transport, but the tram is not the best solution in our area. Trolley buses are an environmental friendly alternative. When we talk about the tram, people have in mind the old trams but what is proposed here
is a forty metres long train, with the capacity of 320 passengers".

The Tram can also cause serious disruptions to local business. How, for example, will shops get deliveries where the road is closed or where there is no stopping? Mystery again.
Mr Jones said: "This problem is far too big to answer at this moment".

If you are wondering if there were answers at all during the meeting; here
you are a briefing:

- The route from Uxbridge to Shepherds Bush (via Acton, Ealing, Hanwell
and Southall town centres) is expected to be completed by 2009. It will
cost approximately £500 million.

- The scheme needs the approval of the three boroughs involved:
Hammersmith and Fulham, Ealing and Hillingdon. LBHF support the scheme in
principle.

- The tram will replace the buses 207 and 607, but there will be
two tram stops replacing the current five bus stops along the Uxbridge
Road.

- The Uxbridge Road to the East of Lime Grove will be closed to
eastbound traffic. But it would be a problem having the traffic down Lime
Grove, so this will be reviewed.

- Bikes are not allowed on the tram (because they are too bulky), but
cycle routes would be improved.

SSBS Web site
HFCyclists Web site
TfL Web site