Trees felled for Nottingham tram extension

Work has started to clear dozens of trees in a Nottingham park so that a tram route can be extended.

The trees are being removed from Queen's Walk in the Meadows despite protests from some residents.

About 40 trees are being felled and more could be cut later if necessary, a city council spokesman said.

"The loss of these mature trees... is a great loss for the community and for Nottingham," Jonathan Hughes, of the Friends of Victoria Embankment, said.

Another 40 trees were removed in January along University Boulevard as part of the tram work.

Nottingham City Council said it would not remove any more trees than necessary but some tree loss "was inevitable".

Pat Thomas, of the Meadows Partnership Trust, said: "This is progress. We have plans for turning the trees into carvings, benches and play equipment for children to crawl along."

The £570m extension of the Nottingham Express Transit (Net) also requires 78 buildings to be demolished.

Nottingham City Council estimates that the new tram lines will double the use of the existing tram, with an estimated 20 million tram journeys expected each year.