We the undersigned object to the proposed closure of Russell Road and Amesbury Road to through vehicle traffic.

This proposal is being considered as part of work that Birmingham City Council is currently doing on West Moseley residential streets. Residents have not been consulted or made aware of this work. As residents, we condemn the secrecy behind this work.

We only became aware of the road closure when Councillor Izzy Knowles informed a resident by email that “The council is now examining the possibility of installing modal filters at the junctions of Edgbaston Road / Russell Road and Salisbury Road/ Amesbury Road.”

The closure of both Russell Road and Amesbury Road to through vehicle traffic will have a damaging impact across over a wide area.

• Russell Road is an important route between Kings Heath and Balsall Heath and closing it to through vehicle traffic will simply be displace this traffic onto Salisbury Road, Moor Green Lane, Dads Lane and Alcester Road. This will cause particular problems at the Salisbury Road/Alcester Road junction with a significant increase in traffic wanting to turn right from Salisbury Road into Alcester Road. Salisbury Road is just one lane at this junction with no room for a ‘right turn only’ lane. The tailbacks on Salisbury Road are already horrendous and closing Russell Road will multiple the length of the traffic queues. 
  
  
• Amesbury Road is used by traffic coming from the south-east part of Moseley who wish to go to Marks and Spencer's Moseley or onto Wake Green Road. This is because of the ‘no right turn’ at the Alcester Road/Salisbury Road traffic lights. Closing Amesbury Road to through vehicle traffic will mean this traffic will have to use Alcester Road and then Woodbridge Road, going into Church Road between Woodbridge Road and Wake Green Road. This will increase traffic on Woodbridge Road and Church Road that are narrow roads and are already having problems coping with their current traffic levels. 
  
  
• This puts in doubt the future of Moseley Hall hospital. This hospital needs to be accessible, especially to the Queen Elizabeth hospital. There are two entrances to Moseley Hall hospital: Alcester Road and Amesbury Road. The Amesbury Road entrance is the only one that is able handle haulage vehicles delivering items to the hospital buildings such bed linen, food stuffs or medical equipment for patients. Closing Amesbury Road at the Salisbury Road junction will mean these haulage trucks having to trundle through the residential back streets of Moseley with all the associated problems of turning at junctions that have cars inappropriately parked.
  
  If Moseley Hall hospital becomes inaccessible it will move; there’s available space at the Queen Elizabeth site for it to move to. The Moseley Hall hospital site will end up being sold to developers and become a massive housing estate.
  
  
• Russell Road is an important through route between Kings Heath and Balsall Heath, and also Birmingham city centre. This closure would further isolate Kings Heath and its shopping centre, along with the road closures of Kings Heath and Moseley Low Traffic Neighbourhood.

We urge Birmingham City Council to not even consider closing Russell Road or Amesbury Road as part of this West Moseley study.