Residents' action group StopTheShaft will hand over their final submission for the first public consultation for the proposed Thames Tunnel project this week.

The group will officially hand over the document at a public meeting organised by Richmond MP Zac Goldsmith and Putney MP Justine Greening which takes place tonight (January 13) at Holy Trinity Church in Barnes.

It will give residents of both Putney and Barnes the opportunity to raise any final concerns with their MPs before the end of the first public consultation on January 14.

In their submission, StopTheShaft said: “The fundamental objection to the proposal is that it involves a major construction on a Greenfield site as opposed to a brownfield industrial site. The proposed construction work should not proceed on the Barn Elms Greenfield site.”

StopTheShaft began in November last year, after a group of Putney and Barnes residents were concerned over the proposals by Thames Water to site a Main Shaft at Barn Elms for the western section of the tunnel’s construction.

More than 4,700 people have signed a petition opposing the plans since November 9, and the group have been on a number of protest marches, with the latest march last weekend being covered by the BBC.

Their 13 page submission outlines repeated failures by Thames Water with regard to a number of matters including poor communication and lack of engagement with local residents, and lack of information regarding alternative sites to Barn Elms.

A StopTheShaft spokesperson said “There has been little by way of explanation and costings for alternative schemes and solutions, as part of the consultation.

“Considering the spiralling cost of the tunnel, StopTheShaft believes sustainable programmes should be revisited, in order to evaluate if they can provide a greener, solution with increased benefit to the community within the overall expected budget.”

Once the first consultation deadline has passed, Thames Water will evaluate all the feedback they have received before proceeding with the second round of public consultation later this year.