Greening North Audley Street

Read how street trees and sustainable drainage are helping create a more climate-resilient, nature-connected route through Mayfair

The challenge

North Audley Street is an important connecting street between Oxford Street and the heart of Mayfair.

After a successful trial of outdoor seating and planters during the Covid-19 pandemic, Grosvenor Estate wanted to deliver a more permanent design that would support the street as an emerging dining destination, and improve the climate resilience.

The Solution

Widened footways to support pedestrians

Extended the avenue of trees to support nature connectivity and provide shading from direct sunlight

Built two Sustainable Urban Drainage systems (SuDS) to improve management of rainfall and prevent flooding

We'd love to hear your feedback, as well as any relevant research, insights, or lessons learned that could help inform our approach.

Partners:

Grosvenor, Westminster City Council, Contractor: FM Conway, Design – Public and WSP

Green Infrastructure Type:

Street trees and Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems

Ecosystem Services provided:

Biodiversity Net Gain, Ecological Connectivity, UHI reduction, Carbon reduction, Water Management, Cooling and Shading and Air Quality

Photo taken by Publica showing some of the new street trees

The Impact

There is now a full avenue of street trees, helping connect nature corridors between Hyde Park, Green Park, Grosvenor Square and Regent’s Park.

The Sustainable Urban Drainage systems (SuDS) have been designed to carefully filter debris in water runoff, providing clean water directly to the new trees helping them to establish and grow effectively, with surplus water being released more slowly back into the sewer network.

Many of the planters have been retained, helping to provide for pollinators and improve the appearance of the street.