The Greater Cambridge Partnership (GCP) will implement a number of measures this month to make it easier for people to travel around on foot or bike during social distancing.
These experimental schemes - which include the closure of some through roads to cars and the extension of the busgate at Silver Street to 24 hours a day, seven days a week - have been developed with Cambridgeshire County Council.
Cllr Roger Hickford, Chair of the Greater Cambridge Partnership, said: “Supporting more people to walk and cycle has been identified as vital to the national recovery from Covid-19 - and local authorities across the country are working hard to make walking and cycling easier and safer while observing social distancing.
“Bringing forward trial schemes means they can be installed quickly to support people during the pandemic, while also giving people the chance to try them out and tell us what they think before any decisions are taken about which, if any, to make permanent.
“These measures work with the county council’s schemes and will not only support people and businesses in the short-term, but will also provide a strong foundation to help create a step-change in the way people travel sustainably in Greater Cambridge.”
The GCP is also talking to businesses about how it can support them through the recovery period, including considering additional cycle parking, improving access to ebikes and cargo bikes, and working with businesses to develop a pilot for deliveries and freight in the city centre.
Work will soon begin delivering Experimental Traffic Regulation Orders (ETROs) which become operational from 12 August:
- Carlyle Road: a point closure to prevent through traffic movements
- Luard Road: a point closure to prevent through traffic movements
- Newtown Area: various point closures to prevent through traffic movements combined with a reversal of the one-way flow in Norwich Street
- Nightingale Avenue: a point closure to prevent through traffic movements
- Storey’s Way: closure of the existing width restriction to all motor vehicles
The following experimental order comes into effect from 24 August:
- Silver Street, Cambridge: extending the bus gate restriction to operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
These ETROs enable the GCP to deliver these schemes quickly to support the recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic. Alongside these measures, Cambridgeshire County Council is bringing forward similar measures to promote cycling and walking in towns across the county.
Cllr Mark Howells, Vice-chair of the Highways & Transport Committee at Cambridgeshire County Council, said: “We’re keen to ensure that our county makes a sustainable, green recovery from lockdown. Cambridgeshire County Council and the Greater Cambridge Partnership are acting quickly to put these cycling and walking schemes in place during these extraordinary times.
“Alongside Cambridge projects, a range of schemes will be delivered by mid-August across market towns including Ely, Huntingdon and St Ives to make it easier than ever before for people to travel by bike.”
A period of formal public consultation will begin later in the year and people will be able to provide feedback from the day the measures become operational. The trial period can last for a maximum of 18 months before decisions need to be made on whether or not to keep the changes or revert back.
Information leaflets for each GCP scheme will be delivered to directly affected properties before they are installed. The full details of each scheme, including how they will be monitored, will be available on the GCP website.
For more information visit the project page on the GCP website.
For information on the full list of Cambridgeshire County Council measures visit https://www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/coronavirus-walking-cycling-schemes