From Tuesday, 4 March, Cambridgeshire County Council will be launching a consultation on the proposals which are part of a £4.1 million investment in cycling in and around the city.
The Council wants to make it safer to cycle along these routes and encourage people to commute to work, college and school by bike. It is planning to create wider and safer cycleways, which could be segregated from other traffic as well as introducing a new type of bus stop to the city for the first time.
A series of road shows and events will be held in and around Cambridge, starting with a breakfast launch event in Huntingdon Road on Tuesday 4 March, to get people’s views on the proposals.
Currently there are around 2,800 journeys by bike on Huntingdon Road and over 4,000 on Hills Road each day and these are set to increase substantially as the city grows. Since 2008 some 65 per cent of accidents on Huntingdon Road involved cyclists while on Hills Road it is 55 per cent. The new improvements would make it safer for both cyclists and motorists.
On Hills Road a new cycle lane is proposed on both sides of the road between the junctions with Long Road and Cherry Hinton Road.
On Huntingdon Road a new cycle lane is proposed, city-bound between Girton corner and Oxford Road. This may be extended to run all the way into the city centre.
The Council is asking for views on three design options:
- a segregated cycle lane where the lane is separated from traffic by a kerb (there are breaks in the kerb at junctions and driveways)
- a raised cycle lane which is slightly above the road height but below the height of the pavement
- another option which is a combination of the two different ideas
Both schemes include the creation of a new style of bus stop where the cycle lane continues behind the bus stop so cyclists can continue their journey without having to mix in with motor traffic, even when a bus is stationary.
This type of bus stop, as well as the new cycle lane, should also make journeys less stressful for car drivers who will have fewer overtaking cyclists to deal with.
Draft proposals for these stops will also look at safety measures for pedestrians crossing the cyclelane.
The plans, drawings and visuals of how the new road layout will look, together with a feedback form are online at: http://www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk
The proposals are going to be on display in Rock Road and Cambridge Central Libraries and at public events throughout the city including:
- Tuesday 4 March, Breakfast Launch, NIAB frontage, 7.45am to 9.15am
- Thursday 6 March, St John the Evangelist Church, Hills Road, 5pm to 7.30pm
- Wednesday 12 March, Girton Glebe School 5pm to 7.30pm
- Friday 14 March, Main Foyer, Addenbrooke’s, 11am to 2pm
- Tuesday 18 March, St Augustines Hall, 5pm to 7pm
- Monday 24 March, Foyer, The Kaetsu Centre, Huntingdon Road, 5pm to 7pm,
- Wednesday 26 March, The Perse School, Hills Road, 6.30pm to 8.30pm
You can also have your say by emailing the Transport Delivery Team at transportdelivery@cambridgeshire.gov.uk or by calling 01223 699906, or by writing to Transport Delivery Team, Box CC1211, Castle Court, Castle Hill, Cambridge, CB3 0AP.
Cambridgeshire County Councillor Ian Bates, Cabinet Member for Growth and Planning said: “We have to be ambitious in our ideas to improve road use in the city and provide sustainable transport for a population set to increase by 28 per cent by 2031. We need local residents and commuters to have their say on these ideas, we want to improve transport for all in Cambridge and the best way to do this is to ask local people. Nothing has been decided yet – and it will not be until everyone has had a chance to see the ideas in full and given their views.”
The Council’s innovative plans are similar to schemes which have already been operating successfully in London, Brighton and European countries including Denmark, Germany and The Netherlands, which have received overwhelmingly positive feedback from users, and cycling, particularly amongst children, has substantially increased.
Both projects are being funded by the Council’s successful bid last year which secured £4.1 million from the Department for Transport’s Cycle City Ambition Fund. The so called GC3 (Greater Cambridge Cycling City) programme for Cambridgeshire has two key themes. The first is to provide good quality cycle links to business parks in South Cambridgeshire while the second is about providing segregated lanes on main arterial roads.
New cycle links to Granta Park and Babraham Research Campus are already well on the way to completion.
Quotes from local members:
Cambridgeshire County Councillor John Hipkin, Local member for Castle, said: “I too welcome the scheme and hope that it will be supported despite being only a modest first step toward the cycling revolution that Cambridge badly needs.”
Cambridgeshire County Councillor Noel Kavanagh, Local Member for Coleridge Ward and Cycle Champion for Cambridgeshire, said: “Segregated cycle routes on Hills Road and Huntingdon Road will be a major contribution to improving safety for cyclists, pedestrians, motorists and bus users on these busy roads. This is because they will be separated from each other by the innovative road design. Any initial anxieties about new "floating" bus stops should disappear as users become familiar with them, as has happened in Brighton and London. Following the introduction of these two new segregated cycleways I look forward to an expansion of these Cycle City Ambition schemes on other routes across the City and the County.”
Cambridgeshire County Councillor John Reynolds, Local member for Girton, said: “It is vital that everyone has their say on these proposals. Huntingdon Road is a very busy artery into the city and is used by local residents and visitors from across the County. New development is also earmarked for this area and this route is set to get busier. We must provide a practical and safe balance for all road users while encouraging more people to, if they can, use alternative transport to the car. As local member I want to hear what people have to say to these proposals.”
Cambridgeshire County Councillor Amanda Taylor, Local Member for Queen Edith’s, said: "Segregated lanes will keep cyclists and motorists out of one another's way, and the floating bus stops are an innovative idea that will improve safety for bus users as well as cyclists. I would urge people to call into the local venues hosting exhibitions on the plans and take a look."
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