A local activist has shared their concerns over plans for a huge new development at the Broadwalk Shopping Centre in Edgware.
To make way for 3,828 new homes across 25 tower blocks reaching up to 29 storeys high, developers Ballymore, in conjunction with Transport for London (TfL), would demolish Edgware bus station and build an underground bus garage for electric vehicles.
Anuta Zack, group spokesperson for Save Our Edgware, said: “To suggest demolishing a major transport hub with no real plans for how to replace it is quite frankly untenable.
“People deserve to know what exactly these planned changes are, how they will impact transport users, the transport system and Edgware itself.”
Last November, Save Our Edgware submitted a Freedom of Information request that disclosed communication between the London Fire Brigade (LFB), TfL and Ballymore. LFB had found that to build an underground electric bus garage would “severely underestimate the fire loading and unique difficulties posed by electric vehicle fires”.
A spokesperson for Ballymore and TfL said: “The feedback referenced from LFB is taken from a letter dating back to 2022 and since then, we have had an ongoing dialogue with LFB and other stakeholders and we are continuing to develop our proposals in response to feedback. We are clear that no electric vehicles will be permitted unless the design has been approved by the LFB, Barnet Council, the Health & Safety Executive and Building Control.
“We will continue to work closely with authorities, battery and bus manufacturers to ensure the proposal is designed and built to the highest fire safety standards, with fully tested safety measures.”
A Barnet Council spokesperson said: “Barnet Council takes fire safety concerns very seriously. When the planning application is submitted, LFB are a statutory consultee, and there will be a fire safety report as part of the planning process.”
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