| The home of cycling in Stevenage and Hitchin |
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| The home of cycling in Stevenage and Hitchin |
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Here’s a very quick summary of 10 June 2009 stakeholder workshop at the town hall. It was a fairly select workshop, consisting mostly of local councillors, some council officers and one or two organisations like CTC (me) and Sustrans (represented by Nigel Brigham, the East of England representative).
The workshop was divided into “subject tables”. This had the benefit that cycling issues didn’t get too bogged down by prejudiced attitudes from people who will never get on a bike. The disadvantage is that discussions were all happening in different pigeonholes – we were talking about reducing the capacity of roundabouts within the town to improve safety, while the next table was asking for the capacity of those same roundabouts to be increased.
The “cycling” table was facilitated by the head of the consultant team, who said that he was a keen cyclist. I have to say that he didn’t seem particularly knowledgeable about cycling. I have my suspicions that he had been warned that representatives on the cycling table might be a bit more challenging than on other subject tables. Never the less he seemed to be genuinely interested and enthusiastic, and I have no reason to doubt that he genuinely enjoys cycling. It was very encouraging that the leading member of the team chose to listen to the cycling issues rather than leaving it to the junior members of the team.
Three local councillors showed a strong interest in cycling matters, Liz Beardshaw being particularly keen and with a very positive attitude towards safety and social issues. One councillor did make some rather worrying remarks. Although he was in favour of cycling, he favoured legalising pavement cycling, as well as requiring cyclists to wear helmets and hi-viz. We have nothing against people wearing helmets and hi-viz, on the contrary it is quite sensible in the current road conditions, but that must remain the individual’s choice. We don’t need new ways for the law to find fault in people who choose to cycle.
The CTC’s line on pavement cycling is simple. Pavements are for pedestrians and cycling should be catered for by making the roads safe and comfortable for cycling. Roadside pavement should only be used where conditions are appropriate (usually high capacity roads outside urban areas) and where they can be built to a standard such that people will use them out of choice, not compulsion. We don’t think that people should be hounded for riding on the pavement unless they are behaving recklessly and inconsiderately, but we do believe that way to tackle this is to remove the threat in the roads.
Paths away from the carriageway are a different matter, and we strongly encourage these being converted to shared use to improve permeability and to allow people to avoid main roads. Most need little improvement, because they are short and lightly used, but wherever possible they should be formally brought up to shared use standards.
The issues that we raised are basically as our letter to HCC in March last year. We sent this, and our submission for NHDC’s fundamental service review, to the consultants before the workshop so hopefully they won’t have missed anything. This is what we said:
Dear Caroline,
Thank you for your message. I was aware that a consultation process was in the pipeline, but do not recall receiving an invitation and cannot find one in my inbox. Presumably you will not have received any response from me then !
I will do my best to be there, however this is very short notice and I have a young family so it may not be possible.
I would like to draw your attention to the 1999 North Herts Towns Cycle Network Masterplan. Disappointingly, very little of this has been implemented in the past decade. Other issues that we would like to raise will include:
- Hostile road features – particularly the one way systems at Priory Lane and Mill Rd / Queens Rd. Also roundabouts on North Road.
- 20 mph default limits for all residential streets (ie everything except the two main roads through the town).
- Improving permeability to walking and cycling in residential areas, around the station etc.
- Quality of cycling infrastructure. The little dedicated “cycling infrastructure” built in North Herts to date is of shockingly poor quality, typified by roadside pavement conversions or excessively narrow on-road lanes. The new rail underpass is an excellent development but has unaccountably been designed at less than the recommended width.
- All highway interventions to be in accordance with the Hertfordshire Cycling Strategy.TROs, banned turns, road closures, one way streets all to allow 2 way cycling. Cyclists to be catered for in the carriageway, not by pavement conversion unless user groups (eg CTC) agree this is appropriate.
- Severance by the A505 from villages to the north. Very hostile roundabouts at the A10, A1198 and A505 Baldock Road, and a very difficult turning to Litlington. The 1999 Plan suggested crossing points using an existing farm track overbridge to the north and a farm subway to the east.
- Personal travel planning for all to reduce car dependence (65% increase in cycling by this method in Darlington).
- Railway station travel plans – to reduce pressure on station parking and the impact of commuter traffic.
- Cycle training for all school children.
- Cycle parking – needed throughout the town. Improvements to the layout of cycle parking at the station needed.
I am attaching a copy of a letter to HCC covering much of this ground, sent last year. You may also be interested in the attached slides from a presentation that I gave to the Institution of Civil Engineeers in January. Coincidentally I had used Royston as an example. The whole presentation on Designing for Cycling can be viewed on the ICE Scotland website here (I am told that you need to download the test first and then view the main presentation by going to the Recorded Events tab).
Lastly I am attaching a simple briefing document that was prepared for councillors before the Hitchin Transport Plan stakeholder workshop. Most of the issues are the same in Royston, for “Paynes Park gyratory” substitute “Priory Lane gyratory” and so on. I would prepare a fresh briefing for Royston but it won’t happen before Wednesday night.
Many of the issues, including those specific to Royston, are raised in our quarterly “Revolution” newsletter. This newsletter is specifically aimed at councillors, council officers and designers, with a view to dispelling some of the myths and misunderstandings that cloud cycle provision. You will find it very illuminating, please take some time to browse through. There are only 5 issues to date so it will not take up too much of your time. You can download them from the Campaign page of our North Herts website (top right corner).
I attended a stakeholder meeting in Royston recently. It must be said that this has not moved forward very far over recent months. I did however have some very productive discussions with Neil Guttridge of the allotment holders committee. Although some of the allotment holders have been strongly opposed to the scheme, we actually share quite a lot of common ground. Security, vandalism, parking, access etc are issues that will affect us all and have to be addressed in a way that leaves us all feeling happy. The underpass will, after all, benefit local residents and allotment holders more than anybody, so if they are not happy then there is something wrong.
I have been out taking photographs of some of the problems and opportunities for improvement in Royston. I have uploaded them onto the Cambridge Cycling Campaign�s excellent photomap so that anybody can view and use them. Click on any photograph to see its location. Can you help me ? If you live or work in Royston, please go out and take some photographs of problems and opportunities, particularly those on the proposed cycle routes, and then load them onto the photomap. You will need to register in order to upload photographs, but not to view them.
One of the problems with on line maps is that they are covered by OS copyright. Strictly speaking, if you reproduce them without authorisation you are breaking the law. An organisation called �OpenStreetMap.org� has set about producing an entirely new map database from their own, original survey. It is entirely surveyed by volunteers and is free of copyright. Dave Earl, the Membership Secretary for Cambridge Cycling Campaign, has already surveyed Cambridge and the surrounding area. This week he will be starting work on Royston. Want to know more ? Follow this link
Back to topFor anybody who doesn't already know, Sustrans won the �50 million Big Lottery vote, taking 40% of all votes cast. Who says people aren't interested in cycling ? There are a number of schemes close to us, including Wicken Fen, St Neots and Royston.
The Royston scheme comes under my patch as CTC's North Herts Representative, and I have been in contact with Hertfordshire County Council about the proposals.
Read the HCC proposal and the link to the 1999 NHDC Masterplan.
We have recently received preliminary plans for the Royston cycle network from the County Council.�These routes are designed to feed into the new cycle / pedestrian rail underpass and provide routes to the schools and industrial area from the main housing estates in North Royston. They are based on the 1999 plan, but do not exactly match the proposals in that plan and are not as extensive.
We welcome being given the opportunity to comment on them early. It is much more constructive for us to be able to comment now, when problems can be addressed, than when it is all built and paid for.
Our main comments are:
Read the full text here. Do you have anything to add ? Is anything missing ? Is there anything that you disagree with ? Contact me at alasdair_massie@LineOne.net
Alasdair DV Massie CEng MIStructE
Right to Ride Representative, North Herts
