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The Shared Use Path along Hampton Court Road

Hampton Court evokes the same kind of feeling of awe today as it did when it was first built. Seated on the banks of the Thames it has had the pleasure of welcoming visitors through its gates since it was first opened to the public by Queen Victoria. The railway station was even positioned in such a way as to create a sudden visual impact for every passenger as the palace came into view across the water. The views and approaches to Hampton Court Palace have been of great importance to the Thames Landscape Strategy and form one of the founding elements of the Strategy document. The Hampton Court Approaches project – in conjunction with Historic Royal Palaces, Royal Parks, London Borough of Richmond Upon Thames, English Heritage, and the Environment Agency is designed to recreate that ‘wow’ factor that had been lost during subsequent years of development and changes in town planning. One of the elements of this project has been the tidying up and improvement of Hampton Court Road. Locally known as ‘between the walls’, Hampton Court Road runs along the separation of Home Park and Bushy Park and is the main road from Kingston Bridge to Hampton Court roundabout.

The road before and after the works

London Borough of Richmond Upon Thames transport team have been working since spring 2008 on revamping the footpath and cycleway. The tarmac of the footpath had gotten tatty and was very narrow. Right up against the side of this busy road, there was also a cycle path painted along the edge of the road. Following consultation between the partners and public, it was decided that this should be corrected to serve not only the goals of the Approaches project visually, but also to improve the safety of the paths users.
The path is being widened to accommodate both cyclists and pedestrians as a shared use path. It is being moved away from the edge of the road and separated from it by a strip of grass which is not only safer but improves the rural feel and adds continuity to the grass on the wall side. The tarmac has been replaced by far more attractive heritage sealed gravel, and this also creates continuity as the paths directly outside the Palaces front gates have also been covered in sealed gravel, as have the improvements to the Barge Walk along the river to Kingston Bridge. The gravel is also more permeable that the tarmac so will create less surface run-off in the event of heavy rain or flood. The path is nearly ready for all to enjoy and it is hoped that this style will be continued along other sections of the approaches.

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