Issues

This section lists issues - problems on the street network and related matters.

Issues always relate to some geographical location, whether very local or perhaps city-wide.

You can create a new issue using the button on the right.

Listed issues, most recent first, limited to the area of Westminster Cycling Campaign:

  • Cleveland Street Cycleway

    Created by linus // 1 thread

    This is a joint Camden and Westminster consultation of the design of a short route of part of the longer Fitzrovia to Pimlico cycle route. https://westminstercycleways.co.uk/cleveland-street-cycleway.html 

    Westminster Council is leading on this project. Consultation closes 3 March. There will also be a drop-in community event about the plans from 3pm to 7.30pm on Tuesday 7 February 2023 at Fitzrovia Community Centre, 2 Foley Street, London W1W 6DL.

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  • Electric Scooter Trial in Camden

    Created by Jean Dollimore // 1 thread

    On the 7th June 2021 Transport for London launched a trial on the use of rental electric scooters across some parts of London.

    E.g. in Ealing, Hammersmith and Fulham, Richmond, Kensington and Chelsea and Tower Hamlets (ride through only) and Canary Wharf.

    The City of London and Westminster plan to join the trial on the 5th July 2021.

    Camden Council is now consulting on taking part in this trial.

    Service operators Dott, Lime and Tier.

    The e-scooters would be unlocked through the operator’s app on the user’s mobile phone and would be required to be parked within a designated parking bay at the end of a journey.

    They would be permitted on public highways in Camden and cycle lanes and will share cycle contraflow facilities.

    They would not be permitted on pavements or any public pedestrian space.

    Riders would need to be 18 years of age or over and have a full or provisional driving licence to rent an e-scooter

    Speed would be limited to 12.5mph. GPS managed speeds..

    They would be parked on street in assigned dockless hire parking bays, GPS enforcement of using bays

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  • Burlington Gardens, Sackville Street, Vigo Street experimental traffic order

    Created by Dominic Fee // 1 thread

    Westminster City Council made an experimental traffic order on 8 February 2021, which will have effects including to:

    "(a) prohibit all vehicles from entering or proceeding in Vigo Street, between Savile Row and Sackville Street (except pedal cycles which will be able to travel in both directions);

    (b) introduce one-way working south-westbound in Burlington Gardens, between Savile Row and Cork Street (except pedal cycles);

    (c) reverse the one-way working in Sackville Street so that it applies in a northwestbound direction"

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  • Oxford Street plans: Chance to fix Marble Arch bike lanes

    Created by nix // 1 thread

    The bike lanes across Marble Arch have long been chaotic and poorly marked. Confusion has been increased by the hurried COVID additions. I have found taking my 14 year old to practice learning to ride on North Carriage Drive scary.

    I have heard our Chair  despair on the subject before.

    Specifically there are no clearly marked lanes on the Marble Arch island, through an area mobbed in Summer with visitors, and with a table tennis table on the intuitive route. But a chance has emerged - see below. Link via Westminster web-site to oxfordst@westminster.gov.uk.

    Views are sought to "stakeholderteam@murphycareyjv.co.uk by Friday 19 February 

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  • King Henry's Road area Safe and Healthy Streets

    Created by Jean Dollimore // 1 thread

    This scheme is intended to reduce through traffic on King Henry’s Road and Elsworthy Road, both of which have ~ 2000 motor vehicle movements per day in each direction, 74% of which is through traffic. In addition, average speeds are well in excess of 20 mph.

    To stop the rat-running and to reduce the traffic volumes and speeds on King Henry’s Road and Elsworthy Road, Camden proposes the following point closures:

    • Elsworthy Road at the junction with Avenue Road
    • Elsworthy Road to the east of the junction with Elsworthy Rise
    • King Henry’s Road to the east of the junction with Elsworthy Rise

    In addition, Camden proposes:

    • A Healthy School Street for St Paul’s School (in the eastern end of Elsworthy Road) operating 8am to 9am and 3pm to 4pm with exemptions for people who live in that section of road
    • Footway widening on Primrose Hill Road near to St Paul’s School
    • and a new Zebra crossing near Oppidans Road

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  • Lower Kilburn High Road

    Created by Jean Dollimore // 1 thread

    Camden Council, Brent Council and Westminster Council  are consulting on the following joint proposals for the section of Kilburn High Road from West End Lane to Greville Place:

    • Extending bus lanes and standardising bus lane hours
    • Changing a zebra crossing to a signalised pedestrian crossing
    • Adding more trees
    • Widening the pavement
    • Providing more informal crossing points and a central island
    • Adding new cycle lanes and longer Advanced Stop Lines

    If the scheme goes ahead, it will be implemented under an ETO with a further consultation after 12 months from the start of the ETO period.

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  • Camden Council review of parking permits and parking charges

    Created by Jean Dollimore // 1 thread

    Camden Council is consulting on a review of its parking permits and parking charges

    Motivation: diesel vehicle ownership and trips have not reduced sufficiently to address the AQ impact.

    The proposed changes are from April 2021 unless stated otherwise.

    Residents Parking permits

    The diesel surcharge to be raised from 21.5% to 50% of the petrol vehicle permit price  (surcharge ranging from £65 to £237 per annum).

    The petrol vehicle permit price depends on CO2 emissions and ranges from £130-£274 p.a.

    Electric vehicles get free permits.

    Visitors permits

    Not mentioned in the consultation document so presumably remain the same e.g. £1.12 per hour.

    Car clubs

    The current permit price is £289. This will change to a price based on CO2 emissions with a diesel surcharge.

    The price for electric cars will be £86. The lowest CO2 emission polluter pays £289.

    Doctors’ permits

    The same charges as for a  Car Club vehicle.

    Paid for parking sessions

    Currently, the borough is divided into four areas each with different tariffs. The areas with the two lowest tariffs will be merged.

    CO2 emission based charging will be introduced and the diesel surcharge will be raised from 21.5% to 50%

    Electric vehicles pay from £2.40 to £4.14 per hour in areas 1 to 3 while the charge for petrol cars range from £3.43 (lowest polluter in the cheapest area) to £5.15 (highest polluter in most expensive area).

    Increased price for coaches £13.82 per hour.

    Maximum stay of 1 hour where there is currently no maximum and in CPZs with only 2 hours of operation.

    South of Euston Road maximum stay reduced from 2 to 1.5 hour. From April 2022.

    Motorcycle parking

    Discount electric m/c residents’ permit (to £22 p.a.) and increase the price of petrol ones (to £130 p.a.). They also have business permits and visitor permits.

    Convert all dedicated solo m/c bays to shared use with one of the various permits. No more free parking for m/cs.

    Paid for parking £3.42-£5.92 per hour for petrol and £1.72-£2.96 electric per hour.

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  • 2-way Cycle Tracks - do cyclists use them in the contraflow direction?

    Created by Bruce Lynn // 2 threads

    Observations on the recently opened Cycleway 4 in South London indicate that 25% of cyclists choose NOT to use it in the contraflow direction. This is consistent with the view of many cyclists that it is better to be on the "correct" side of the road.  A short report of the counts on CW4 is at

    https://drive.google.com/file/d/1RONkTFVNwjOZgjpeTdxw_W06R08d9h9_/view?usp=sharing

    I would be interested if anyone else has similar findings. and in general how people feel about 2-way tracks.  TfL seem to like them (use a bit less space, a little cheaper). But if they are significantly less likely to be used than two 1-way tracks, this information might get us better designs.

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  • OSM cycle routing engines in London

    Created by Simon Still // 1 thread

    https://www.lcc.org.uk/articles/finding-your-way-on-londons-cycle-infrastructure-1

    none of the apps that use OpenStreetMap as a base - Citymapper, Cyclestreets and Cycle.Travel amongst them - offer a great user experience and they all tend to prioritise complex back street rat run routes over Londons main road infrastructure. There's a real need to tweak these app routing algorithms so that new cyclists can benefit from the high quality infrastructure thats being built.

    In future theres also the potential to do more with OSM - we would love to see “accessibility graded” routing as a future capability using information about path surfaces, gradients or things like width restrictions that are a problem for some types of cycle or rider

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  • Riding House Street Public Realm Improvements

    Created by Colin Wing // 1 thread

    The proposals are:

    • Formalised permanent road closure at east end of Riding House Street.
    • Creation of a pedestrian zone with a flush surface throughout paved with two tone concrete paving.
    • Benches and planting to improve public amenity and change the nature of Riding House Street from a road to a functional pedestrian space.
    • Removal of the existing zebra crossing as it is no longer required. An informal pedestrian route between All Souls School sites is highlighted in the proposed paving pattern.
    • Cycle parking facilities.
    • Two-way operation to the east of Nassau Street to maintain access to motorcycle parking and for servicing vehicles.

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  • Cycleway Shepherd's Bush to Notting Hill

    Created by Simon Munk // 1 thread

    Council says:

    Encouraging cycling is one of the Council’s borough transport objectives. We want to make sure cycling is safe, easy, attractive and inclusive for all. We are also concerned about the impacts of poor air quality on our residents, and believe making cycle trips safer is part of the solution to providing alternatives to motor vehicle trips. We hope that new and existing cyclists alike will appreciate being able to use clearly signed routes along quiet side streets.

    We are consulting on a new cycle route - incorporating a section of route we have already consulted on - which serves our communities in Shepherd’s Bush, Holland Park and Notting Hill Gate. The route has been co-designed alongside major resident's associations and local cycling champions.

    The route begins at Holland Park Roundabout, passes through the large paved space between Holland Park Roundabout and Norland Road, then progresses the length of Queensdale Road until it joins a route that we have previously consulted on, and which we will be building in mid-2020.  The new route then picks up again at Clarendon Road, turns into St John’s Gardens and along Lansdowne Crescent before crossing Ladbroke Grove and into Kensington Park Gardens.  Crossing Kensington Park Road, it progresses down Chepstow Villas before meeting a route due for implementation by May 2020.  Please see the cycle route map below for the full alignment.

    In general, the measures that we are proposing are designed to reduce the speed and volume of traffic – where our surveys have suggested these are higher than permitted under TfL’s Cycle Route Quality Criteria – and to reduce the risk of conflict at junctions. The route does not propose fully segregated cycle lanes along the alignment, apart from on the approach to the Kensington Park Road junction. As with all our cycle routes, if implemented, the route will be monitored annually to ensure our proposals have secured the levels of speed and traffic volume appropriate to a cycleway.

    We are asking what you think of our proposals regarding the new cycleway. Please read the following information carefully before filling in the questionnaire no later than 22 March 2020.

    Proposed changes

    At the junction of Queensdale Road/St Ann’s Villas, a new raised table is proposed, aiming to encourage drivers to slow down where cyclists and pedestrians are crossing. 

    On Lansdowne Road, at the junction with St John’s Gardens, we are proposing to permit two-way cycling in this section of one-way road. To facilitate this, we propose to cut back the build out on the western side, providing more carriageway space to allow a short section of cycle lane. This short lane will help warn drivers that the road is two-way for cyclists, and encourage cyclists and vehicles to correctly position themselves at this junction. 

    Where Lansdowne Crescent meets Ladbroke Grove, we are proposing to close Lansdowne Crescent to enable cyclists to safely reach a new proposed parallel crossing facility across the busy Ladbroke Grove. Vehicles will still be able to use St John’s Gardens. To facilitate a new turning circle for vehicles at the proposed ‘cul-de-sac’ end of Lansdowne Crescent, we are proposing removal of three resident parking bays.

    To allow cyclists to cross Ladbroke Grove, we are proposing upgrading the current zebra crossing to a parallel crossing (that can be used by both pedestrians and cyclists) and extensions to the footways on the eastern side to provide small areas of shared-space footway.

    On Kensington Park Gardens, where traffic speeds are on the high side, we are proposing three sinusoidal road humps and an entry treatment at the junction with Ladbroke Grove. Sinusoidal humps are designed so that when driving or cycling over them at lower speeds, they are more comfortable to drive over than traditional humps, but if travelling at an inappropriate speed, they cause a noticeable ‘bump,’ encouraging slower speeds. We know that some people are concerned that road humps contribute to poor air quality, when they lead to drivers braking and accelerating hard. We have designed the proposals in line with government guidance on the correct spacing between the humps to avoid hard braking and acceleration. We have recently introduced sinusoidal humps in St James’s Gardens and we also use them when we resurface roads with traditional humps – for example, Abbotsbury Road already features some sinusoidal humps. 

    We are proposing some restrictions at the junction of Kensington Park Gardens/Kensington Park Road/Chepstow Villas, where traffic flows are high on both Chepstow Villas and Kensington Park Road

    Kensington Park Gardens will be entry only from Kensington Park Road. Traffic will still be able to access and exit Kensington Park Gardens at the western junction with Ladbroke Grove.

    At the junction of Kensington Park Road and Chepstow Villas, traffic exiting Chepstow Villas will have to turn left (south). Traffic would not be able to enter Chepstow Villas from Kensington Park Road, but vehicles will be still be able to access and exit Chepstow Villas at the eastern junction with Portobello Road

    These proposals would reduce rat-running through Chepstow Villas and Kensington Park Gardens and enable the introduction of a short section of segregated bi-directional cycle path and a new parallel ‘tiger’ crossing for pedestrians and cyclists across Kensington Park Road. We are also proposing some changes to the planting in Chepstow Villas, with the addition of new planters and potentially a rain garden. Should the proposals go ahead, we will monitor the effects of any traffic displacement carefully to see if further changes are required on neighbouring roads.

    At the junction of Chepstow Villas/Portobello Road - where we know many of our residents and tourists cross regularly to explore Portobello Road - we are proposing a raised table and footway extensions to encourage slower vehicle speeds where cyclists and pedestrians are crossing the junction. 

    What happens next?

    A full report of the results of the consultation will be presented to the Executive Director for Environment and Communities, who will then make a decision on whether the proposed changes should be implemented. 

    After this consultation, should the initial response be positive, the Council will be carrying out further statutory consultation in order to amend traffic orders to facilitate implementation of the proposals.

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  • Highway Code changes

    sound+fury // 1 thread

    A bill is being put forward to sentence any cyclist convicted of dangerous cycling to a 14 year prison term.

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  • TfL Safer Junctions - Edgware Road and Harrow Road consultation

    Created by Dominic Fee // 1 thread

    Shortened description from TfL webpage https://consultations.tfl.gov.uk/roads/edgware-road-junction/:

    "We would like to know your views on proposals for the junction of Edgware Road and Harrow Road in the Paddington/Marylebone area.

    Background

    Our Safer Junctions programme is reducing road danger at some of the most hazardous junctions in London. These junctions have high collision rates for vulnerable road users, including people walking and cycling. This programme directly contributes to our Vision Zero target to stop people from dying and being seriously injured on London’s road network by 2041.

    The objectives of the Safer Junction programme are to:

    - Reduce road danger and help eliminate Killed and Seriously Injured (KSI) collisions
    - Help create streets where people feel safe to walk, cycle and use public transport
    - Make hostile junctions more welcoming and less dominated by motor vehicles, demonstrating the Healthy Streets Approach

    Why we are consulting

    In the last three years there were 29 personal injury collisions, of which five resulted in serious injuries (17.2%).

    A number of issues have been identified with the current junction layout:

    - Pedestrians not using designated crossing points
    - Existing pedestrian islands are narrow
    - There is a lack of cycle facilities, especially southbound where the road layout is not cycle friendly

    Our proposals

    We would like your views on the following proposals which aim to reduce the above issues.

    Applies to the whole junction

    - Introduce a 20mph speed limit across the junction
    - Widen all pedestrian crossings to make for a more comfortable and safer crossing

    North of the flyover

    - Ban left turn from Harrow Road into Edgware Road northbound
    - Build out northwest corner to remove slip road and provide a better pedestrian environment
    - Convert staggered crossing to straight across crossing to create better and safer routes to and from Edgware Road Bakerloo line station
    - Make Bell Street no exit onto Edgware Road
    - Change current three lane road layout to two traffic lanes and a cycle lane through the junction
    - Widen southbound bus lane to 4.5m as it passes the bus stop
    - Install cyclist early start signal on southbound Edgware Road

    South of the flyover

    - Convert the short section of Edgware Road northbound bus lane beneath the flyover, into cycle lane
    - Install a cyclist early start signal at the junction heading northbound on Edgware Road
    - On Harrow Road westbound reduce the road width to two lanes by building out the footway on the southwest corner, to provide a better pedestrian environment
    - Reduce the width of the westbound slip road from Marylebone Road to one 4.5m lane by building out the footway on the southeast corner of the junction to provide better pedestrian environment
    - Remove the guardrail and narrow the pedestrian island of the pedestrian crossing to the south of the flyover to allow for an 8.0m width on the southbound Edgware Road to prevent traffic merging with cyclists

    Additional proposals for the area around the junction

    These proposals are not part of the Safer Junction improvements. However, opportunities have been identified to improve air quality and priority space for buses in the area and we would like to know your views on these additional proposals.

    Improving the road layout for northbound buses

    Just north of the Edgware Road/Harrow Road Junction the road narrows and creates a bottleneck for traffic.

    Changing the footpath layout here allows for the bus lane to be extended north of Newcastle Place, removing the bottleneck for northbound buses."

    Westminster Cycling Campaign will be preparing and submitting a response to this consultation, and we will be grateful for any comments you provide. TfL usually describes responses in quantitative terms, e.g. 'XX% of reponses supported or strongly supported the proposals', so we therefore encourage you to submit your own response too.

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  • Safe speeds for central London – introducing 20mph speed limits

    Anon // 1 thread

    Overview

    We want your views on our proposals to make the streets we manage in central London 20mph by 2020 and the associated measures.

    Last year, in partnership with the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), we published the Vision Zero Action Plan. The Action Plan sets out our ambition to eliminate death and serious injury from London’s transport network by 2041.

    It details our plans to reduce road danger, including proposals to implement a 20mph speed limit on the roads we operate and manage in central London. 

    We’ve been working to determine the most effective way of implementing the new speed limits and are now ready to share our plans with you.

    We’ve provided more information about our proposals on this page and would like your feedback before we progress this important safety programme.

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