Short BBC video (featuring Richard Evans of LCC Merton) showing weaknesses in the LCN+ and talking about funding cut backs.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/7969310.stm
Sunday, 26 April 2009
The Exploratorium's Science of Cycling
http://exploratorium.us/cycling/index.html
Find out why you don't fall off (assuming you don't)and more.
Find out why you don't fall off (assuming you don't)and more.
Showersmart
http://www.greenconsumerguide.com/apply-for-showersmart.php
This quick and easy to fit dooberry may save you water if you have a shower attached to a combi boiler. You can pply for a free one
This quick and easy to fit dooberry may save you water if you have a shower attached to a combi boiler. You can pply for a free one
Stop driving sticker for stop signs
Here's an example of the use of a clever campaigning sticker:
http://www.cyclestreets.net/location/16637/
The sticker has been attached to a red Stop sign and it says '[Stop] Driving, start walking, cycling, using public transport'.
Be warned that attaching stickers to road signs is probably illegal.
http://www.cyclestreets.net/location/16637/
The sticker has been attached to a red Stop sign and it says '[Stop] Driving, start walking, cycling, using public transport'.
Be warned that attaching stickers to road signs is probably illegal.
Barking Park Improvements
http://www.lbbd.gov.uk/2-press-release/press-release-menu.cfm?item_code=3330
The miniature railway in Barking Park re-opened on 11 April. (This is not a transport story - the line doesn't connect with Barking Station!). The press release above explains what other things will be done using the £3M+ the park has been granted by the Lottery.
I had an input to the consultation about restoration some years ago and mentioned cycling based improvements including improving the Park Avenue entrance (dropped kerb and wider gate).
The miniature railway in Barking Park re-opened on 11 April. (This is not a transport story - the line doesn't connect with Barking Station!). The press release above explains what other things will be done using the £3M+ the park has been granted by the Lottery.
I had an input to the consultation about restoration some years ago and mentioned cycling based improvements including improving the Park Avenue entrance (dropped kerb and wider gate).
20mph limit case builds
Press release from the London Assembly:
NEWS RELEASE - 09/197 - Thursday, 23 April 2009
New report makes the case for 20mph speed limits in London
The potential for more 20mph limits in London in order to reduce road casualties should be fully explored through a borough-led pilot programme, according to a new report published the same week as the Government announced proposals to reduce speed limits on residential roads.
The report by the London Assembly Transport Committee – ‘Braking point: 20mph speed limits in London’ – found that in areas of London where 20mph zones have been introduced by boroughs and Transport for London (TfL), there has been a 42 per cent reduction in casualties.
Some evidence suggests that the 400 existing 20mph zones – which cover 11 per cent of London’s road network - have also contributed to benefits beyond road safety, including improving traffic flow, reducing emissions and encouraging walking and cycling, although further research is needed.
The report concludes that implementing a borough-wide default 20mph limit all at once may prevent more casualties and prove more cost-effective than the current piecemeal approach of introducing individual zones.
In order to thoroughly test the case for borough-wide limits, the report calls on the Mayor to examine diverting some Transport for London’s £63 million road safety budget to support a borough-led pilot programme from 2010/11.
The pilot would involve two boroughs implementing default 20mph limits on residential roads but deploying different enforcement methods to assess which is most successful at reducing casualties as well as the most cost-effective.
Jenny Jones AM, who led the investigation on behalf of the Transport Committee, said that the report’s findings make a strong case for further work on the introduction of 20mph limits.
“We are talking about saving lives and improving Londoners’ living environment – surely this is justification enough for investing in a comparative pilot to test the best approach.
“Some boroughs are keen to expand on the successful zones they already have in place and I hope the Mayor and Transport for London will put in the necessary funding and effort to support this.”
The benefits of 20mph limits have not gone unnoticed by London’s boroughs. Eight, including Hackney and Southwark, intend to go beyond the use of zones and implement borough-wide default 20mph limits.
The London Borough of Islington will have a borough-wide 20mph limit on all its residential roads by March 2010; the other six are developing the plans on a piecemeal basis by extending zones over a number of years.
The comparative study of different enforcement methods recommended in the report should also monitor the impact of Islington’s borough-wide limit, which will feature a minimal enforcement approach using signage alone in many parts of the borough. A variety of enforcement methods can be used in 20mph zones, with average speed cameras a promising new option that should be explored.
The report calls on the Mayor to investigate funding and pilot proposals with TfL and report back to the Committee by October 2009.
For more details, please contact Dana Gavin in the Assembly Media Office on 020 7983 4603/4283. For out of hours media enquiries please call 020 7983 4000 and ask for the Assembly duty press officer. Non-media enquiries should be directed to the Public Liaison Unit, Greater London Authority, on 020 7983 4100.
NEWS RELEASE - 09/197 - Thursday, 23 April 2009
New report makes the case for 20mph speed limits in London
The potential for more 20mph limits in London in order to reduce road casualties should be fully explored through a borough-led pilot programme, according to a new report published the same week as the Government announced proposals to reduce speed limits on residential roads.
The report by the London Assembly Transport Committee – ‘Braking point: 20mph speed limits in London’ – found that in areas of London where 20mph zones have been introduced by boroughs and Transport for London (TfL), there has been a 42 per cent reduction in casualties.
Some evidence suggests that the 400 existing 20mph zones – which cover 11 per cent of London’s road network - have also contributed to benefits beyond road safety, including improving traffic flow, reducing emissions and encouraging walking and cycling, although further research is needed.
The report concludes that implementing a borough-wide default 20mph limit all at once may prevent more casualties and prove more cost-effective than the current piecemeal approach of introducing individual zones.
In order to thoroughly test the case for borough-wide limits, the report calls on the Mayor to examine diverting some Transport for London’s £63 million road safety budget to support a borough-led pilot programme from 2010/11.
The pilot would involve two boroughs implementing default 20mph limits on residential roads but deploying different enforcement methods to assess which is most successful at reducing casualties as well as the most cost-effective.
Jenny Jones AM, who led the investigation on behalf of the Transport Committee, said that the report’s findings make a strong case for further work on the introduction of 20mph limits.
“We are talking about saving lives and improving Londoners’ living environment – surely this is justification enough for investing in a comparative pilot to test the best approach.
“Some boroughs are keen to expand on the successful zones they already have in place and I hope the Mayor and Transport for London will put in the necessary funding and effort to support this.”
The benefits of 20mph limits have not gone unnoticed by London’s boroughs. Eight, including Hackney and Southwark, intend to go beyond the use of zones and implement borough-wide default 20mph limits.
The London Borough of Islington will have a borough-wide 20mph limit on all its residential roads by March 2010; the other six are developing the plans on a piecemeal basis by extending zones over a number of years.
The comparative study of different enforcement methods recommended in the report should also monitor the impact of Islington’s borough-wide limit, which will feature a minimal enforcement approach using signage alone in many parts of the borough. A variety of enforcement methods can be used in 20mph zones, with average speed cameras a promising new option that should be explored.
The report calls on the Mayor to investigate funding and pilot proposals with TfL and report back to the Committee by October 2009.
For more details, please contact Dana Gavin in the Assembly Media Office on 020 7983 4603/4283. For out of hours media enquiries please call 020 7983 4000 and ask for the Assembly duty press officer. Non-media enquiries should be directed to the Public Liaison Unit, Greater London Authority, on 020 7983 4100.
Thursday, 23 April 2009
Vicarage Field Development
Apart from the improvements - and from the artist's impression it looks better - to St Awdry's Walk (see below), the main changes proposed are:
- Linking Vicarage Drive to St Awdry's Road
- Service road from Ripple Road to be new entrance, with a new ramp to the roof level car park along the side of the existing building
- Ground level car park to have housing built on it
- New tall building above Station parade entrance.
- New "car park ... on the eastern side of the existing building"
New meaning of 'improvement'
I've long been familiar with the idea that not making things worse for cyclists is called an "improvement" - perhaps the obvious case was not blocking off Crow Lane, Chadwell Heath, to cyclists wishing to turn left into it from Whalebone Lane (can't turn right into it as Whalebone Lane is a dual carriageway). This was called an improvement by the council and local press, but Vicarage Field's meaning of 'improvement' wins the prize for spinning the word so far it's facing the other way.
On page 3 of their glossy and on www.vicaragefield.com/scheme.php they claim "Dramatic improvements to St Awdry's Walk for pedestrians, cyclists and shoppers [sic]". What are these "dramatic improvements"? Well, in the words of the man at the exhibition, "we're going to ask cyclists to dismount"!
I pressed him further and he said that segregation of cyclists and pedestrians had been discussed, but that's what we've got currently. Every shared segregated path I use seems to have pedestrians in the cycle bit. That's not illegal, but I'm not sure why they do it, unless it's just obliviousness. OK, the cycle decals have never put in since St Awdry's Walk (known locally as Peto Alley) was segregated, but generally the decals don't seem to register with pedestrians. I think shared unsegregated is the way forward where a path is shared by cyclists and pedestrians. He agreed that may cyclists are considerate but said some are not. True, but these are just the ones to ignore signs telling them not to cycle. I doubt there has been a collision, let alone a serious one, in Peto Alley for many years, if ever.
The proposal is to have a high level walkway - at the level of the footway at Station Parade (a bridge over the railway) but in the scale model at the exhibition the walkway ended with steps at the St Awdry's Road end. I don't know whether they've looked into a continual slope or series of slopes with level platforms. If they are not going to genuinely improve this important route for cyclists then they should leave it as it is, not make it worse. In my campaigning to stop cyling from being banned through the town centre pedestrianised area (Blake's Corner where the band stand was, East Street etc) I have advocated making/improving alternative routes for cycling avoiding the very central area. Now is the chance to do this at Vicarage Field. I will not let thecut off this important link to/from the station for cyclists.
On page 3 of their glossy and on www.vicaragefield.com/scheme.php they claim "Dramatic improvements to St Awdry's Walk for pedestrians, cyclists and shoppers [sic]". What are these "dramatic improvements"? Well, in the words of the man at the exhibition, "we're going to ask cyclists to dismount"!
I pressed him further and he said that segregation of cyclists and pedestrians had been discussed, but that's what we've got currently. Every shared segregated path I use seems to have pedestrians in the cycle bit. That's not illegal, but I'm not sure why they do it, unless it's just obliviousness. OK, the cycle decals have never put in since St Awdry's Walk (known locally as Peto Alley) was segregated, but generally the decals don't seem to register with pedestrians. I think shared unsegregated is the way forward where a path is shared by cyclists and pedestrians. He agreed that may cyclists are considerate but said some are not. True, but these are just the ones to ignore signs telling them not to cycle. I doubt there has been a collision, let alone a serious one, in Peto Alley for many years, if ever.
The proposal is to have a high level walkway - at the level of the footway at Station Parade (a bridge over the railway) but in the scale model at the exhibition the walkway ended with steps at the St Awdry's Road end. I don't know whether they've looked into a continual slope or series of slopes with level platforms. If they are not going to genuinely improve this important route for cyclists then they should leave it as it is, not make it worse. In my campaigning to stop cyling from being banned through the town centre pedestrianised area (Blake's Corner where the band stand was, East Street etc) I have advocated making/improving alternative routes for cycling avoiding the very central area. Now is the chance to do this at Vicarage Field. I will not let thecut off this important link to/from the station for cyclists.
Saturday, 18 April 2009
New on line cycle route planner and maps.
Camden branch of LCC have been putting cycle route maps of London on line for some time now. They use the familiar Google base maps and add cycling specific layers familiar from London Cycle Guides, but also provided by other sources. see http://maps.camdencyclists.org.uk.
Camden LCC wrote recently: "The [cycle route] planner now uses the excellent new OpenStreetMap-based route planner developed and hosted by www.cyclestreets.net . You can plan a route anywhere in London or the UK (though there is currently a limit of 30 km on the length of routes that can be planned).
Camden LCC wrote recently: "The [cycle route] planner now uses the excellent new OpenStreetMap-
Many thanks to our Cambridge CC colleagues who did all the hard work to make this possible!
Notes:
- The cyclestreets.net planner is a Beta version. It works pretty well, but there is more work to be done. E.g. route planning does not yet take gradients into account.
- The London coverage of the underlying OpenStreetMap community mapping database is now pretty comprehensive and includes many cycle-specific details that other maps lack, but it relies on feedback and the voluntary effort of the OSM community. Feedback is best provided through the link that will appear at the bottom of each route that you plan.
With the current level of community involvement cyclestreets.net and OpenStreetMap have achieved an amazing result. With further feedback and effort they can be the most effective cycle route planner available."
Road to nowhere
The "road to nowhere" (which still hasn't got a name as far as I can tell) having been built all the way from Jenkins Lane to Highbridge Rd is still blocked off - now because the southern end has been included in a building site. My photo shows the "no-entry except buses" sign which has been there for many years - even though the road didn't go anywhere, they got their punches in early by barring cycling.
Hazard at Eastbrook End Country Park (The Chase)
If you're cycling down "The Chase" across Eastbrook End Country Park, be careful of the speed bumps there. I've had a report from someone who came off her bike on hitting one of them and broke a couple of bones. I've asked the council to look into the size, location and signage, etc.
You can see a report at http://www.fixmystreet.com/report/53987 showing the location on a large scale map.
You can see a report at http://www.fixmystreet.com/report/53987 showing the location on a large scale map.
Saturday, 11 April 2009
The Story of Stuff
This website www.storyofstuff.com centres on a nice little animation showing how our linear production / consumption 'cycle' is no good as we live on a planet with finite resources. It shows in very plain english how we are exploiting both the planet and each other in the cause of consumerism, not only by over producing, but alo through the pollution caused along the way. A lot of the figures are about the USA, but the principles apply further afield. I particularly liked the expression "designed for the dump" for planned obsolescence - the way in which goods are made so that they break and have to be replaced.
(One way out of this wasteful cycle is the use of leasing. If you leased, say, your washing machine, it would be in your interest for it to be cheap to run, reliable, cheap and easy to repair and effective, but crucially it would also be in the lessor's interest, too. )
The story of stuff also shows how 'perceived obsolescence' - the idea that you need a new whatever is created and supported by advertising.
(One way out of this wasteful cycle is the use of leasing. If you leased, say, your washing machine, it would be in your interest for it to be cheap to run, reliable, cheap and easy to repair and effective, but crucially it would also be in the lessor's interest, too. )
The story of stuff also shows how 'perceived obsolescence' - the idea that you need a new whatever is created and supported by advertising.
Thursday, 9 April 2009
RT Bus 30th Anniversary
Believe it or not it's 30 years since the RT bus was last used in regular service. The last route to use them was the 62 out of Barking garage. To mark the anniversary, preserved buses (RTs they hope) are running between Romford and Brentwood, Romford and Ongar, and Brentwood and Epping (via Ongar) on Sunday and Monday 12 and 13 April 2009. See www.thelondonbuscompany.co.uk.
Ongar Station will be open for visitors to see the restoration work towards opening the Epping and Ongar Line as a preserved railway - see www.eorailway.co.uk and there will also be classic buses running from Victoria to Ongar via Aldgate - see http://tclbs.org/2009_programme.htm
Ongar Station will be open for visitors to see the restoration work towards opening the Epping and Ongar Line as a preserved railway - see www.eorailway.co.uk and there will also be classic buses running from Victoria to Ongar via Aldgate - see http://tclbs.org/2009_programme.htm
Revision of London Cycling Guides
Dr Natarajan Veena is collating amendments / errata for the 4th edition of the London Cycling Guides due to be published in January 2010. We have a golden opportunity to put in corrections, additions and amendments by the end of May 2009. Please make sure you are working from the latest edition of the guides - the code on the back is TFL11xxx.06.07 (xxx being unique for each guide number).
You will need to be precise in explaining your amendments and this is not helped by the lack of a reference grid on the maps. If you are able to copy your amendments to me I will collate a local list and pass on any to other LCC branches as appropriate.
Please send them to Veena.Natarajan@tfl.go.uk
or by Fax to (020) 3054 204
or by post to: TfL CCE Cycling, Walking and Accessibility, 9th Floor, Palestra, 197 Blackfriars Road, LONDON, SE1 8NJ
You will need to be precise in explaining your amendments and this is not helped by the lack of a reference grid on the maps. If you are able to copy your amendments to me I will collate a local list and pass on any to other LCC branches as appropriate.
Please send them to Veena.Natarajan@tfl.go.uk
or by Fax to (020) 3054 204
or by post to: TfL CCE Cycling, Walking and Accessibility, 9th Floor, Palestra, 197 Blackfriars Road, LONDON, SE1 8NJ
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)