Trees to be removed for pedestrian safety

Sunday 06 May 2018

St Julian's Avenue will be closed all day on Sunday 6 May so some trees can be removed.

Several of the trees which line the Avenue have been discovered to be growing at angles which may risk public safety so the decision was made to remove them.

Traffic and Highways Services said the St Peter Port Constables first brought the issue to their attention, pointing out that "several of the trees in St Julian’s Avenue were now growing at an angle which is not compliant with the minimum height specified by law. The law is intended to ensure pedestrian and driver safety. Having reviewed the two trees and their structure, it is not possible to prune them to be compliant with the law and therefore Traffic and Highways has been left with no alternative but to remove them."

There is a budget of £9,000 per year to maintain more than 300 trees across the island, which has to include cutting back dangerous branches, pruning the trees and felling any that are diseased. This budget may prevent new trees being planted along the Avenue.

Traffic and Highways Services said "it is hoped that in due course more trees can be planted along the Avenue. However, thought is needed when growing trees to ensure they thrive alongside people. Any new trees would need to be established and this drives the cost up."

The spokesperson added, that St Julian’s Avenue also presents some infrastructure issues meaning the re-planting of trees is not straightforward "for example many of the existing pits are also too small for trees and there is also a huge amount of utility cables and pipes under St Julian’s Avenue."

There are a number of diversions in place for traffic heading up or down the hill with buses operating alternative routes too.

There is more information at iris.gov.gg and buses.gg.