Friday 16 August 2013

Objections to new "No Entry" restrictions

I've just sent off objections to three proposed Traffic Regulation orders:

1) Park Road

"I object to the proposed order in so far as pedal cycles are excluded from lawful passage from Park Road to Quinton Road.

I have no objection to pedal cycles being excluded from lawful passage from Quinton Road to Park Road. Whilst legalising such a manoeuvre would be a useful improvement to the cycle route from Parkside to Park Road, the council would probably consider the turn too hazardous without alterations to the road layout. 

The ground for this objection is that Park Road provides a direct route for cyclists from the railway station to the Gulson Road area of the city. Experience from London and other cities shows that even where a cycle route does not have a high level of perceived safety (e.g. the ring road) it will generate cycle traffic if it is convenient. Using the ring road to cycle from ring road junction 5 to Gulson Road is far more convenient than a route past the Council House. Coventry Council does has a policy of encouraging cycle use to both relieve traffic congestion and improve public health.

Allowing lawful passage for cyclists from Park Road to Quinton Road would need no civil engineering measures, merely the addition of a word to the sign indicating that taxis are exempt from the entry prohibition. Without the exemption some cyclists may be tempted to cross the footway, creating a hazard for pedestrians."

2)  Lammas Road

"I object to the proposed order in so far as pedal cycles would be excluded from lawful passage from Holyhead Road to Lammas Road. 

I have no objection to motorists being prevented from using Lammas Road as a "rat run" to avoid the traffic lights at the Moseley Ave. / Holyhead Road junction. Cars are noisy, polluting and are usually driven at an inappropriately fast speed on "rat runs", posing a hazard to other road users. Pedal cycles, in contrast, make no noise and move relatively slowly. Use of the road legally by cyclists would be a way of promoting cycling as a means of transport to drivers waiting in the Holyhead Road traffic queue. Coventry Council has a policy of encouraging cycle use to both relieve traffic congestion and improve public health.

Allowing lawful passage for cyclists from Holyhead Road into Lammas Road would need no civil engineering measures, merely the addition of a sign below that showing "No Entry" indicating that pedal cycles are exempt from the entry prohibition. Without the exemption some cyclists may be tempted to ignore the prohibition which would reduce the standing of cycling in the public mind which would in turn create difficulties for the council when it wishes to improve conditions for cycling by means of measures which mildly inconvenience other road users.
"

3) Little Park Street and various Roads

"I object to the proposed order in so far as it applies to pedal cycles. 

The proposal will lead to increased cycling on the footways of those roads included in the order. This will be a hazard to pedestrians. We already see much cycling on the Hales Street footway as a result of it becoming one-way.

Little Park Street, Much Park Street, Earl Street and St. Johns Street form a shape which is approximately a square. There will be little incentive to cycle against the main flow of vehicular traffic for those people wishing to travel between diagonally opposite corners of the square . But the following movements will be much shorter if the cyclist travels contrary to the main flow of traffic, on carriageway or footway:
  1. Gosford Street (and thus the whole Coventry University area) to Broadgate.
  2. Broadgate to New Union Street (and thus to the Friargate area and the railway station)
  3. New Union Street to the Much Park Street / Short Street subway (and thus to Coventry University's Technocentre)
  4. Much Park Street / Short Street subway to the Herbert Art Galley (and further to the Cathedral and Priory Street)"

6 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ha. I should have written:

    Very good news on the Little Park St / Much Park St / Earl Street / St John's Street proposals.

    The council plans to allow "contraflow" cycling on all four roads. On Little Park Street and Earl Street, I'm told, it will take the form of off-carriageway provision. I would imagine that Much Park Street and St. Johns Street are too narrow for that.

    I expect that the contraflow routes on Little Park Street and Earl Street will be shared pedestrian/cyclist paths.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Well done George.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I wasn't just my efforts. I've been trying just as hard for years without getting very far.

      At the moment cycling is fashionable, among both the public and politicians. However the same could have been said back in 1996 with the National Cycling Strategy. Its target was to double cycle use by 2002 and double again by 2012. Alas Pie in the Sky.

      Some of the reasons for the failure of the National Cycling Strategy were that council officers and cycle advocates had little grasp of what measures would increase cycling and the sums of money (about a pound per inhabitant per year for a few years) made available were ridiculously small.

      Delete
  4. Good news about Park Road as well.

    Council officers are recommending that "an alternative TRO is advertised for Park Road creating an access onto Quinton Road for taxis, buses and cycles."

    See section 2.6 of
    http://democraticservices.coventry.gov.uk/documents/s13008/Friargate%20Report%20Obj%20to%20TRO%20Sept13%20v3.pdf

    ReplyDelete
  5. I've just received the "Notice of Making" for Lammas Road.

    Quoting from it:

    Notice of Making

    City of Coventry (Lammas Road) (No Entry) Order 2014

    Coventry City Council, under the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 (as amended), has made the above Order ("the Order"), which comes into operation on Monday, 10th February 2014.

    The effect of the Order is to introduce a prohibition of entry (No Entry) on the south western end of Lammas Road at its junction with Holyhead Road (A4114). Vehicular traffic will be prohibited from turning into and/or entering Lammas Road from Holyhead Road.

    A number of objections were received to the original proposal and these were considered at a meeting held on 8th October 2013, chaired by Cabinet Member (Public Services). At that meeting the decision was made to revise the Order thereby exempting pedal cycles from the prohibition.

    [...]

    ReplyDelete

Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.