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A Chelsea Square Trolley-Bus Proposal. To the Editor of The Times (31 July 1937)
- Johns Hopkins University Press
- document
- Additional Information
Sir, – Paultons Square is a quiet residential neighbourhood in Chelsea, lying between the King’s Road and Chelsea Embankment. It possesses considerable architectural charm, having been symmetrically designed early in the nineteenth century, and its gardens contain some exceptionally fine trees. Hitherto its freedom from through traffic has made it safe both for the children of the residents and for more than 300 other children who use it four times a day as a thoroughfare to and from schools near by. The peaceful atmosphere of the square is prized equally by those who live in it and by those who recognize that, as London becomes noisier and more crowded, it is increasingly desirable for London as a whole that the amenities of such places should be preserved.
We have learned with consternation of a proposal to allow Paultons Square to be used as turning-route for trolley-buses. To admit trolley-buses to the square would, in our opinion, be to ruin it. The erection of standards and overhead wires would be destructive of its character and charm. Danger to the children who use the square would be considerable, as its roads are narrow and were never intended for through traffic; and expert opinion has been given that the vibration caused by heavy traffic could not fail to cause serious structural damage to the fabric of the houses. In the belief that the preservation of such squares as Paultons Square is on every ground in the interest of London and of Londoners, we desire to add our protest to the protests which residents in the neighbourhood have made against the proposal.
We are, Sir, yours, &c.,
