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Cobden Junction in Camden, next to the famous Mornington Crescent tube station, is to become perhaps the first “cycle-proofed” junction in Britain.
A new layout will mean that, for the first time, cars will never need to turn across bikes, or vice versa. Instead, the road design and traffic lights will prevent cars turning left from crossing cyclists’ paths.
This is designed to eliminate ‘left hooks’, blamed for several deaths in London in recent years. As Camden Cyclists explain:
“At each junction, left-turning motors are held on red, while cyclists and straight-ahead motors get a green. Then when the left-turning motors get a green signal, the cyclists and straight-ahead motors get a red.”
The result is this layout:
The proposals were endorsed by Camden Council’s officers, and adopted by councillors last night. Though local cyclists didn’t get all that they wanted – a proposal for a contraflow cycle lane on Crowndale Road, one of the approaches, was rejected due to fears of delaying buses – Jean Dollimore of Camden Cyclists said they were “very pleased” with the overall outcome.
The junction marks a victory for ‘cyclist power’, with the Camden officers’ report highlighting the large number of objections received to their original plans:
“A number of emails were received from cycle bloggers indicating concerns that the [original] scheme would make the junction unsafe and unattractive for cyclists. The emails generally requested the proposals be amended to provide a more cycle friendly design that removed conflicts between cyclists and left turning traffic. The cycle bloggers also requested that the west to east contraflow link be reconsidered to help make cycling more attractive and safe. In addition, a total of 62 responses were received from people outside of the consultation area who highlighted concerns and dissatisfaction with the cycle facilities proposed.”
Work will start on the £1.3m scheme in July, and be completed by next March.
Cambridge cyclists’ long-held ambition for a cycleway beside the railway line, the ‘Chisholm Trail’, could finally come to fruition.
As part of the Cambridge City Deal, announced today, Cambridgeshire councils will receive up to £500m to fix traffic problems in the area – and much of this could be spent on cycling provision. Councillor Tim Bick, leader of Cambridge City Council, said:
“This big extra infrastructure investment will speed the delivery of much needed housing developments outside the city and strengthen public transport and cycling options inside the city.”
The money will be released in stages, with £100m expected to be available next year. The Chisholm Trail, long promoted by Cambridge Cycling Campaign, is a strong contender for early spending. It would comprise a north-south route from the Science Park to Cambridge railway station, running largely by the mainline railway (pictured), and linking the two isolated sections of cycleway beside the new Guided Busway. Cambridgeshire County Council has already carried out a feasibility study for the route.
Other mooted possibilities include cycle routes to neighbouring towns, and a “complete orbital route” of busways around Cambridge which could have accompanying cycle tracks and feeder routes.
The announcement was a rare bit of good news for cyclists in today’s Budget. £200m was also allocated to fix potholes nationally, but the sum was widely condemned as inadequate by transport campaigners, pointing out that many counties have a bigger backlog than that in their own area alone.
A Swindon school has won Sustrans’ annual competition for the number of kids cycling to school every day.
Ferndale Primary School won the 2014 ‘Big Pedal’ by a clear margin, with 300 of the 400 children riding to work for the fortnightly event – a rise from 2% to 75%.
Headteacher Gary Evans told the Swindon Advertiser:
“Attendance has improved because they wanted to get into school because of the competition. Parents have been really on board as well, and some have cycled into school with their children before cycling on into work.
“There’s also been far fewer problems with traffic clogging up around the gates and it’s actually meant parents have managed to get into work earlier.”
The Big Pedal ran from 3–14 March and challenged families to leave their cars at home and cycle and scoot the school run. The competition is run by Sustrans and funded by Bike Hub.
Over 10 days, children from 1,520 schools nationwide took part. By the end of the event, an impressive 1,104,700 journeys to school on bikes and scooters had been recorded on the competition website.
Malcolm Shepherd, chief executive at Sustrans said:
“Each one of the journeys made during The Big Pedal proves that families can change the way they travel if they choose to.
“Every day, millions of children across the UK are driven to primary school, even though most families live an average of just 1.8 miles from their primary school. It’s a distance which takes just 20 minutes to cycle or scoot.
Research shows that only 4% of children currently cycle or scoot to school. By holding events like the Big Pedal, Sustrans is trying to change the way families travel to school.
An iconic canalside building could become a ‘cycling hub’ for Birmingham under new proposals from the Canal & River Trust and National Trust.
The Roundhouse, near the National Indoor Arena, was formerly a live music venue, together with the adjoining Fiddle & Bone pub. However, complaints from new neighbours in canalside flats saw the venues fall silent, and since then the buildings have been used.
Now, the two trusts are investigating redevelopment of the Grade II* listed building as an “urban outdoors hub”. This could include a cycle store and workshop, facilities for local people and commuters, catering, and a hub for local businesses. They say:
“We want to create an innovative fusion of outdoor recreation, heritage exploration and city socialising. The Roundhouse’s main role will be as an urban recreation centre where people can use its facilities to explore the city and beyond on foot, by bike or by water.”
Of these three modes of transport, it’s cycling that dominates the consultation document – with images including community bike workshops, artisan cycling companies, bike hire, a cycle café, and secure cycle parking.
The horseshoe shaped Roundhouse was built by the Corporation of Birmingham as a mineral and coal wharf in the 1870s and was originally used for stabling and storage. Located in Ladywood, the building is at the heart of the 100-mile canal system – whose towpaths form the biggest network of off-road cycle paths in any British city.
Beccy Speight, Regional Director for the National Trust in Birmingham, said: “It was originally a hub for the distribution of goods and the stabling of horses and there is an exciting opportunity to make it a modern day hub for those who want to actively explore and discover more about their city today. We’d love to help make that happen.”
The trusts are keen to hear from people with ideas for the Roundhouse – as well as businesses and organisations who could be interested in taking part. The consultation is being run by Jo Dimitri of the National Trust, jo.dimitri@nationaltrust.org.uk.
The cities of Bath and Glasgow are each to get a ‘Boris bike’-style hire scheme, both to be run by German company Nextbike.
Glasgow’s hire scheme will be entirely new, whereas Nextbike in Bath will replace the existing ‘Bike in Bath’ operation. Both operations are set to start in late spring / early summer.
In Glasgow, there will be 37 docking stations. Maintenance will be carried out by local charity Glasgow Bike Station. The city council is paying £600,000 to buy the 400 bikes. The Evening Times has named the docking station locations, which include railway and bus stations, public squares, both universities, and the SECC exhibition & conference centre – plus six stations which will be in operation only during the Commonwealth Games.
Meanwhile, the new Bath bikes will be permitted to go outside the city centre, opening up the possibility of rides through the Two Tunnels and along the Kennet & Avon Canal.
As in London, there’ll be options to suit both regular users and one-off visitors.
Regular hirers can pay for annual membership, expected to cost £60, and then enjoy half-hour rides without charge. Longer rides will incur a cost, but with a maximum of £5 per day, this will be less punitive than in London. GPS tracking is intended to deter thieves.
For occasional users, a 30-minute ride will cost around £1, rising to £10 for a full day.
Unlike London’s Boris bikes, the bikes will include an integral combination lock, so you can leave them outside a café or shop rather than having to find a docking station.
Made in the Cotswolds. Published by Éditions Système D Ltd.
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