Sunday 17 May 2015

Wimbledon Quietway

The Wimbledon Town Centre to Plough Lane section of the London Quietway network is currently being planned for delivery in 2016. The work is at an early stage, and will continue to change before formal public consultation.

This article takes a look at the current configuration of Merton Councils planned route, along with an alternative route in order to examine the problems and benefits of each. The Merton Cycling Campaign have not yet taken a position on its preference, and would welcome comments from anyone interested in this important project.

The New London Quietways

The London Quietway network was first announced in the Mayor's Vision for Cycling published in 2013. Intended to compliment the high capacity Superhighways, the Quietways would be designed for those wanting a more relaxed journey on low-traffic side streets.

The Mayor declared the following objectives for these new routes:

  • They will be direct.
  • They will be better-surfaced.
  • They will be clearly signed.
  • Each route will be delivered as a whole, not piecemeal.
  • They will not give up at the difficult places.
  • Barriers and ‘Cyclists Dismount’ signs will be removed as far as possible.
  • Where directness demands the Quietway briefly join a main road, full segregation and direct crossing points will be provided, wherever possible, on that stretch.
  • We will use judicious capital investment to overcome barriers (such as railway lines) which are often currently only crossed by extremely busy main roads. Subject to funding, land and planning issues, we will build new cycling and pedestrian bridges across such barriers to link up Quietway side-street routes.

Wednesday 6 May 2015

VoteBike replies from Merton's election candidates.

In the run up to the General Election the national cycling charity CTC encouraged voters to contact their candidates to ask them their views on cycling and five specific policy measures as recommended in the "Get Britain Cycling" parliamentary report.

Ambition
Increase levels of cycling to 10% of trips by 2025 and 25% by 2050.

Funding
An average government spend of at least £10 per person per year on cycling.

Design standards
Create consistently high design standards for cycling in all highway and traffic schemes, new developments and planned road maintenance work.

Safety
Measures to improve cycle safety by strengthening road traffic law and its enforcement and revising the Highway Code.

Positive promotion
Support positive promotion of cycling, including cycle skills training, for people of all ages, backgrounds and abilities.