Contractor's or Council's cock-up in Heygate Street?

In December I wrote positively about Southwark's revised plans for Heygate Street. The cycle lane going away from the Walworth Road was not only to be retained, but was to be widened to 1.5m. This could be achieved by narrowing the bus lane on the other side of the road to the minimum allowed.

In fact the proposals could have been based on proposals I made in my previous blogpost on the subject, where I pointed out that the narrow cycle lane in the bus lane going towards the Walworth Road was not only too narrow to be usable but also essentially redundant given the bus lane.

I checked with Southwark's Public Realm engineer, Clement Agyei-Frempong, who wrote to me confirming, "We intend to remove the cycle lane in the bus lane."

The work appears now to be complete. There is now a ground level pavement in preparation for the demolition of the at-height walk-ways. There is a cycle lane running away from the Walworth Road and it's pretty wide (though I haven't checked it's fully 1.5m).

The bus lane running the other way has been narrowed with the white edge line now inside the coloured tarmac, but look what's back in exactly the same place as before: a too narrow cycle lane!

The reality is that a double-decker just fits between the edge of the narrow cycle lane and the edge of the newly narrowed bus lane. Trust me, you wouldn't want it to pass that close to you while you're riding your bike on the yellow lines.

I really hope that this is a contractor's cock-up rather than a Southwark Council approved cycle lane, If it's the latter then there can be no doubt that the people involved in that decision making really don't understand what planning for cyclists is about.

UPDATE
I was delighted to receive a reply to my query from Mr Agyei-Frempong yesterday (10 April) saying
"I will urgently instruct the contractor to burn of the cycle lane within the bus lane. This was an omission by the contractor."

and even more delighted to hear that the paint is being burnt off today.

Input to the future of the E&C (incl. the new swimming pool)

You have a chance to make a difference to the development of the Elephant and Castle area over the next 15 years as a planning framework is being established by Southwark Council with comments welcome by February 7th. Details with a link to the document to download are on the Council's website.

If you use the E&C and its adjoining areas please try to get to one of the following events and send an email or fill in a form with feedback/suggestions.

This Wednesday, 11 January, at Southwark Cyclists monthly meet, there will be a presentation on the Draft Elephant and Castle Opportunity Area Supplementary Planning Document by Southwark Council's Planning Policy Team. The meeting is from 6.30 to 8.30pm at Better Bankside Community Space, 18 Great Guildford Street (behind Tate Modern).

There will also be exhibitions of the plans:
12,13,14 January 2012 at 182 Walworth Road. (10am -4pm each day)
25, 26, 27, 28 January 2012 at Elephant and Castle Shopping Centre (11-1pm each day)

In greater detail, there is also a public consultation event to view and comment on the outline designs for the new Elephant & Castle Leisure Centre (including a swimming pool) and the supporting residential led mixed-use development at Elephant & Castle Leisure Centre, 22 Elephant & Castle, London SE1 6SQ on:
Saturday 14 January 10am – 5pm
Monday 16 January 10am – 5pm
Tuesday 17 January 11am – 8pm

I'm going to suggest Southwark investigates building a pool like the Claudius Therme in Cologne, pictured above.

TfL's seasonal funding announcement for 2012/13

Transport for London’s Press Office for south London appears to have had an excellent seasonal lunch on December 15th prior to issuing an individual press release for each borough revealing TfL’s financial Christmas present and what the borough will spend it on during 2012/13.

While the press releases for north London boroughs highlighted their individual successes in the last year, the south London boroughs of Southwark, Lambeth, Merton and Lewisham were all left to bask in the achievements of Bromley.

It’s vaguely interesting to discover that Bromley installed 118 new on-street cycle parking spaces but I’d rather know what my local boroughs achieved.

Let’s hope TfL can issue corrected press releases once the New Year hangover has subsided.

In the meantime here's what we can expect in 2012/13 from Lambeth and the neighbouring boroughs of Southwark, Wandsworth and Westminster: Overall, TfL report that funding to the boroughs to deliver improvements is to remain stable to 2013/14 at £147m per annum, rather than be reduced each year as they previously forecast..

LAMBETH
The £5m funding package in 2012/13 will finance a range of transport projects in Lambeth, including:

£1.16m to help pilot Lambeth's new 'cooperative approach' to designing transport and environment schemes and carry out improvements to pedestrian and cycle facilities in Oval, Stockwell, Vassall, Coldharbour, Ferndale, Larkhall and Clapham Town areas of the borough. As part of its plans to become the country's first cooperative council, Lambeth Council is developing a new 'community led' approach to designing transport improvements, working much more closely with residents through its 'Neighbourhood Enhancement Programme'. The LIP funding will help get this off the ground in the pilot wards of Oval, Vassall, Coldharbour, Ferndale, Larkhall and Clapham Town
£550,000 to encourage more cycling in the borough, including cycle parking (both on street and residential), greenways for off-street cycling and route and junction improvements to facilitate safe cycling
£110,000 for phase one of a two year project to make crossings and residential streets safe around Loughborough Junction


SOUTHWARK
The £4m funding package in 2012/13 will finance a range of transport projects in Southwark, including:

£400,000 to improve walking routes on Forest Hill Road, connecting communities and providing a link to local shops and schools
£342,000 for widespread improvements in East Walworth supporting 'Pocket Parks'. These will include improved walking and cycling routes between green spaces to encourage more walking and cycling trips
£150,000 for improved walking and cycling facilities in Camberwell to get more people walking and cycling for shorter journeys. Funds will also facilitate environmental improvements to link green spaces and the town centre


WANDSWORTH
The £4.7m funding package in 2012/13 will finance a range of transport projects in Wandsworth, including:

£1.4m towards an on-going scheme to improve Clapham Junction town centre and tackle traffic congestion. Works include improving the road layout, renewing pavements and road surfaces, decluttering footways, planting new trees and upgrading lighting, wayfinding and street furniture
£280,000 for public realm improvements and to create new pedestrian areas
£210,000 to promote cycling through improved cycle parking, cycle training courses, completing cycle route links and a programme of promotional events
£350,000 to improve the look and feel of streets around local shops and provide better pedestrian access to shopping parades.


WESTMINSTER
The £5.9m funding package in 2012/13 will finance a range of transport projects in Westminster, including:

£500,000 to extend the Legible London pedestrian signage in the City of Westminster
£1.173m to implement public realm improvements to the West End. This includes improvements for the vital pedestrian link from Leicester Square to Covent Garden
£1,000,000 to deliver Westminster's programme of urban realm improvements, including the implementation of the first phase of the important project at Queensway/Westbourne Grove

Heygate update

A quick response from Lend Lease's consultation company:

I've managed to find out some more information on the proposed works. Please note that these works do not change the proposals in the masterplan for the area that I previously describe to you, which are to make Heygate Street a more pedestrian and cyclist friendly environment.

The proposed works are a solution to pedestrian access during the demolition of the existing estate and redevelopment. Demolition requires that the estate be secured around its perimeter, but this will result in loss of the pedestrian through routes that use the elevated walkways. However, there needs to be some east west pedestrian access due to the large size of the estate. Currently, as I'm sure you know, there are no footways alongside Heygate Street.
The proposals you have seen are to create a footway on the northern side of Heygate Street to create the required east west pedestrian permeability, albeit at the expense of the cycle lane.

I understand that Southwark Council discussed these works with Southwark Cyclists, who of course shared your concerns, but did acknowledge the difficulties the council is encountering in delivering facilities for both cyclists and pedestrians during demolition.

First off, the need for a decent pavement along here is totally valid.

Below are some ideas, though I haven't checked the details of what's intended to be built by the road or what underground pipes etc. are involved that may influence the line of the pavement.

The photos show where the cycle lane will remain just after the junction, where it will disappear under pavement, and where it will reappear shortly before the second junction. You will notice a straight line of trees - I don't know if some of these are destined for the chop but if not it seems reasonable for a pavement to continue in a straight line, retaining the cycle lane.

Presumably there are works that render a pavement in line with the trees impractical (though the plans suggest it's not the removal of the pedestrian flyover), hence the pavement buildout over the cycle lane.
I wonder (as someone who never uses this route in rush hour) whether it would make more sense to reallocate space for the cycle lane from the other side of the road, by removing the substandard cycle lane and making a narrower shared bus/cycle lane (as it is used in practice in my experience). The railings need to go too!

On a final note, I'm delighted the advertised scheme plans to narrow the turn into this side road, so traffic needs to slow to take the corner:

Piecemeal cycle disaster in Heygate Street?

A couple of weeks ago the consultation company working for the Heygate developers, Lend Lease, told me (my bold):
Heygate Street will remain a more traditional highway, but Lend Lease are working to gather evidence to support its reduction in width to make it more pedestrian and cyclist friendly. They are also working to increase the number of pedestrian and cyclist crossings to ensure north south accessibility.

I'm not sure that I believe them.

Southwark Council have today published draft plans (under the misleading title MINOR PUBLIC REALM IMPROVEMENT) to 'tweak' one side of Heygate Street, a wide road with a long, useful mandatory cycle lane on the E&C cycle bypass going from the Walworth Road to the New Kent Road. It's not clear whether they've really considered the whole street (they plan to keep the bus lane on the other side but say nothing about the stupidly narrow cycle lane within it, for example). They're seeking comments on their plans and I really urge you to demand to see the whole plan and find out whether this part of it really delivers for cyclists.

The draft plans for this side of the street
a) make part of the existing Mandatory Cycle Lane (i.e. motorists can't enter it) into an Advisory Cycle Lane (i.e. motorists can enter it). SURELY LESS CYCLE FRIENDLY

b) has this lane end, with cycle and motor traffic merging/fightingt into a shared traffic lane. SURELY LESS CYCLE FRIENDLY

c) before splitting again to an Advisory (rather than existing Mandatory) cycle lane and general carriageway. CERTAINLY NO IMPROVEMENT

I think there's lots wrong with this road and lots wrong with the E&C cycle bypass that this currently forms part of. From this document it really appears that the Council plans to fiddle around half a street at a time rather than work out and publish a cohesive plan that is unequivocably active travel friendly.

I'm gobsmacked - I'll be writing in demanding they don't proceed with the half-baked plan presented and I urge you to also.

Persons wishing to object to the proposal, or make any other representations in respect of it, should send a statement in writing to that effect, and in the case of an objection, stating the grounds thereof to, either: the Traffic orders officer, Southwark council, Environment & leisure, Public realm, P.O. Box 64529, London SE1P 5LX, or via e-mail to traffic.orders@southwark.gov.uk quoting reference PR/PD/TMO1112-028 by 22 December 2011.

Dugard Way developers against active travel

Given that both Lambeth and Southwark Councils are keen to promote walking and cycling, and that some half of all households here don't have cars, you'd think that new developments here would be at the vanguard of active travel. As the Dugard Way development, on a former NHS property, shows, the reverse is the case.

This development provides the only non A-road link between Lambeth and Southwark at this point (and in fairness, one that didn't exist recently, though a convenient alley was in place further along a few years ago). This should be the perfect route for local pedestrians and cyclists to avoid the traffic, noise and pollution of Kennington Lane, the inner ring-road around the congestion zone.

 Dugard Way in Kennington is a little semi-gated enclave where the developers seem set against nurturing active travel. The ever-shut pavement door has the toughest spring closure you're likely to encounter, while the on-road entrance is unobstructed during the day. A pavement has just been painted the other side of the door, and a ridiculous zebra crossing added that I doubt I'll ever see being used.

As far as I can see the express purpose of the crossing is to try to get pedestrians to walk further than they need to and to seek to absolve responsibility from drivers in a 5mph cul-de-sac should they manage to run someone over, like the bloke in the photo below who is using the logical pedestrian route to enter the enclave unless you want to use the door for muscle building as a Bullworker alternative.

Rather than a wide, gentle ramp to provide a link for pedestrians and cyclists, a flight of steps and a narrow, twisting ramp with a blind corner  has been installed. Given the foul A-road alternative  it's hardly surprising that a number of cyclists take this calm back route, though it clearly hasn't been designed for this purpose.

 The pavements are very narrow given such a volume of available space. I wouldn't consider the ramp, shown above which descends to the pavement in the photo below with a dropped kerb some way along, to be very wheelchair friendly.

As you've probably guessed by now, there's absolutely no short-term/guest cycle parking.

All in all, it's a pretty dire example of a 21st century inner-London development.

School picnic

It was a privilege a few days ago to take a group of Southwark primary school children off to Hyde Park for a picnic. First stop after braving Lambeth Bridge was outside the UK's European Parliament and Commission building in Smith Square.

 We then passed by Westminster Abbey, where a certain wedding will take place shortly, before heading up Horse Guards Road, pointing out the Treasury, Cabinet War Rooms and the ivy clad Admiralty Citadel.

 We took the cycle path along the Mall to see the Guards outside St James's Palace

 then had to divert off the Cycle Path

 across several traffic lanes

 to cycle along the road

 to Buckingham Palace.

 We took the cycle path through Green Park to Hyde Park Corner, where we went through the Wellington Arch

 and into Hyde Park up to the Serpentine

 for our picnic

 After lunch and an informal game of football we returned, pausing in St James's Park to admire the Pelicans.

 We could take our time to see the sights and were able to stop where we chose. Visiting central London by bicycle beats the coach, bus or underground hands down!

Bling your bike

 Workshop two at a Southwark primary school gave pupils the chance to personalise their bike (as well as playing a number of bike games). We had about 16 pupils today.

Pedal Power at Charlotte Sharman Primary School

Today is the first day of a number of cycling activities at a local Southwark primary school. Pupils and staff were invited to bring in their bikes for a 'Dr Bike' check up.

23 bikes arrived (unsurprisingly more by a long shot than seen all winter I was told) and the bikes for check up were in the typical condition found in a central London school. Aside from flat tyres, a puncture and rusty chains we had:

Two bikes with the forks put on back to front, so the brake is behind the fork causing the noodle to wear

A bike with the front brake cable run in a way to affect the braking

a couple of missing brake pads

a seat post inserted an inch into the frame, much less than the marked minimum

a bike with no brake levers or front brake

a front brake missing the cable adjusting screw

A bike where the handlebars could turn without turning the wheel

handle bars ready to 'core' you if you landed on them

and a tyre with the side wall gouged by a poorly positioned brake pad (which had been replaced prior to us having a look \at the bike)

Two of use were kept busy for the best part of the day but we managed to get all but two in good running order before the bike club we ran after school. The kids had a great time as did we and we're looking forward to continuing the bike club for the next few Thursdays.