Lord Berkeleyasked Her Majesty's Government:
What area is to be fenced off to the public for a forthcoming event in Hyde Park, London; how long the public will be excluded from the area; and how much income the Royal Parks Agency expects to 8WA receive from the organisers of the event; and [HL3285]
Why contractors are permitted to park their cars on the North Carriageway in Hyde Park; and [HL3286]
Why the Royal Parks Agency has given priority to parking for contractors' cars over cycles on the North Carriageway in Hyde Park by closing that road to westbound cycles; and what alternative route has been signposted. [HL3287]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Lord McIntosh of Haringey):The area that has been fenced off covers 14.7 hectares.
The enclosed area will not be completely closed to the public except on concert days. From 28 June until 5 July the fencing at the Marble Arch end of the site will be removed, opening half the site to the public. From 5 July the site will return to its current size until 13 July, when it will be reduced by one-third until the final concert on 15 July and it is expected to have been completely removed by 21 July. One footpath across the site will be kept throughout that period open except on concert days.
The Royal Parks will receive in excess of £1.1 million from concerts in Hyde Park this summer.
Contractors building the concert site come from all over the country. They are allowed to park on North Carriage Drive because it is close to the site they work on and there is nowhere else they can park within reasonable distance. Allowing them to park close to the site reduces the site construction period and consequently disruption to park users and avoids the need to take parking spaces out of public use.
No alternative route has been signposted and cyclists travelling from east to west will be able to continue on the Marble Arch gyratory system, leaving at the next exit and travelling along Bayswater Road, which runs parallel to North Carriage Drive.