Hundreds of people have objected to plans to cut down trees on Woolwich Common to widen the road leading to Queen Elizabeth Hospital.
The Lewisham & Greenwich NHS Trust plans to remove 55 trees as part of its plans to upgrade Stadium Road to include a cycle lane.
Most would be knocked down to accommodate the widened road, although two are said to be in a poor condition. The affected trees are close to housing at the southern end of the road.
The Friends of Woolwich Common group has begun a campaign against the changes. By Wednesday morning more than 300 objections had been filed.
Its secretary, Chris Allen, called it a “ridiculous proposal from an environmental standpoint”, adding: “I think most cyclists would be disgusted to imagine this might be pushed through in their name.”
The application was originally filed in February last year, but has been amended to include the cycle lane cutting through the trees. A document submitted to the town hall said that this was the preferred option of the council’s highways department.
Stadium Road was originally owned by the Ministry of Defence, but was taken on by the health service when Queen Elizabeth Hospital – which was originally a military facility – opened in 2001. The road is narrow and has been notorious for potholes, and is used by several bus routes and drivers using it as a cut-through.
Lewisham & Greenwich NHS Trust had hoped that Greenwich Council would take on responsibility for the road after the upgrade, although the amended application states that this would no longer be possible for the northern part of the road because of issues with the drainage.
The MoD still owns Woolwich Common, but has long been criticised for its lack of maintenance of the open space. The Friends group regularly runs litterpicks on the common. The trust would have to reach agreement with the MoD to fell the trees.
A trust spokesperson told The Greenwich Wire: “We are grateful to The Friends of Woolwich Common for sharing their concerns with us directly and letting us know that they would be objecting to the planning application.
“As local residents are aware, Stadium Road is not fit for purpose and needs major attention. This comes with a significant cost attached to it for the Trust so it’s important that we get this right for everyone. We will review the concerns that have been raised and consider feedback from the planning team before we make any further comment.”
More details about the campaign are on the Friends of Woolwich Common website. The planning application is on the Greenwich Council website.
Amended at 10.20am to correct the number of objections and to link to the right planning application.
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