Action Briefing Feb 2003 - Mar 2003
	The Newsletter of Birmingham Friends of the Earth

Hagley Road Success As Consultation Reopened

Since I last reported on the matter of the widening of the Hagley Road for FoE a lot has happened (or rather, thankfully, not much has happened!). Edgbaston residents had awoken to the threat posed by the Transportation Department and had written many, many letters to Councillor Stewart Stacey who is the Cabinet Member responsible for this.

In addition, Edgbaston MP Gisella Stewart had written, formally requesting that consultation be reopened; whilst Alderman Dennis Minnis (an Edgbaston resident himself) had been working away behind the scenes getting Cllr Stacey to be seen to be more welcoming of people’s comments.

In consequence, it has been confirmed that the plans for the Hagley Road are going to be looked at again and Cllr Stacey has asked the Project Consultants, Mott MacDonald, to come up with something less drastic, whilst fulfilling the objectives of the plan, i.e. to speed up bus travel.

Our objections focus on the loss of historic buildings and of trees and, as well as Birmingham FoE, the Birmingham Civic Society and the Victorian Society have written expressing their objections to the current plan. Cllr Stacey’s response has been to look at the plan again to try and avoid the loss of buildings and mitigate the loss of trees.

However, there will obviously be some loss of trees to accommodate any widening plan and it is here that FoE and other interest groups and bodies must bring pressure to bear in ensuring a tree management programme is implemented and followed.
I am sure that the Calthorpe Estates (the landowners who manage most of the land to the south of the Hagley Road) would confirm that there are many old trees that will have to be cut down over the next few years for safety, as they near the end of their lives. So, it is important that tree management is more widely used and that similar trees are planted to combat pollution in the years to come. We do not want to see silver birches planted in the place of 150 beech, elder or oak trees, as apart from the detriment effect on air quality, it would also change the pleasing character of leafy Edgbaston.

So WATCH THIS SPACE as the Council is drawing up revised plans and it will be interesting to see how well the views of residents and organisations like FoE have been taken into account.

Stephen Hartland