Mini Holland New Malden Raynes Park link

The next Mini Holland project, following Portsmouth Road, from RBK, is a connection between New Malden and Raynes Park; a new walking and cycling route. It will run alongside the railway on Thames Water supply pipes and go under the A3 dual carriageway. The new route is planned to open up an area of valuable green space for all ages to enjoy, cycle, walk, learn and relax; making it quick and easy to travel on a traffic free route between the two town centres in a way that has not previously been possible.

The long term plan, perhaps aspiration, at present, is that this route will link with the planned Transport for London Quietway from Waterloo to Clapham and on to Wimbledon which will extend to Raynes Park. It is not yet clear what route the Quietway will take nor, as far as we are aware, has funding been made available.

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2 part Bread Pudding Ride to Molesey and Wimbledon Common

Sunday 22nd March.
Part 1
A mostly bright but chilly day saw 19 Cyclists leave via Lower Marsh, Berrylands, Tolworth greenway, Hogsmill path, Bonesgate path, Chessington, Barwell, Claygate, Littleworth common, Esher to Molesey for lunch at ‘the Bell, then Sumner Rd, Thames Ditton, Portsmouth Rd to Kingston. Sub total 14 Miles, 4 new faces.
Part 2
Farewell to 9, with 4 fresh faces, so 14 Cyclists, via Lower Ham Rd, Aerospace estate, Ham, Ham gate of Richmond park, to Roehampton gate, Roehampton, Putney heath to Wimbledon common for Tea & BP at the Windmill tearooms, then Crooked Billet, Copse hill, Malden golf course, New Malden, Norbiton to Kingston. Subtotal 15 Miles, Total 29 Miles.

Map :-www.trimbleoutdoors.com/ViewTrip/2923736

Mini Holland Portsmouth Road Revised Proposals

We welcome the revised proposals for the Portsmouth Road mini Holland scheme which have been published by the Royal Borough of Kingston, today, Monday 16 March 2015;

http://www.kingston.gov.uk/downloads/file/1212/portsmouth_road_revised_scheme

These proposals are a considerable improvement on the original proposals. We will be seeking further assurances about the design but, in the round, we support it.

The northern part of the route is a two way cycle track on the river side of Portsmouth Road. This has some impressive features; fully protected space, floating bus stops, refuges for turning cyclists, possibly crossings which can detect bicycles and a well thought out link to Surbiton via Palace Road. It will be valuable for family and novice riders, particularly if it joins the Boardway link along the Thames. It is a reversion to the original design in the bid document which featured such a two way track and is certainly better than the “white paint” in the original proposal in February.

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Bread pudding ride to Peckham

Sunday 8th March
A mostly bright morning, with more Clouds later, saw 22 Cyclists leave via Fairfield, Coombe, New Malden, Malden golf course, Copse hill, Wimbledon village, Wimbledon park, Earlsfield, Wandsworth common, Clapham common, Clapham, Kennington, Burgess park, where the option to sign the Petition in favour of keeping the Subway open was taken, then the Peckham Canal path to Peckham for lunch at the ‘Kentish Drovers’. Afterwards, via Camberwell grove, pausing briefly to observe a very shame faced motorist with a very awkward predicament, Dulwich, Brockwell park, Tulse hill, Streatham hill, to Tooting Bec common for Tea & BP, then Tooting, Mitcham, Morden hall park, Merton park, Bushey mead, Raynes park, Motspur park, New Malden, Berrylands, to Kingston. Total 33 Miles, 6 new faces.
Map :-

Bread Pudding ride to Little Venice

Sunday 22nd February,

A mostly bright morning saw 15 Cyclists leave via Canbury Gardens, Tow-path to Ham, Aerospace estate, Ham, Ham gate of Richmond park, Roehampton gate, Barnes common, Putney, Putney Bridge, Fulham, Parsons green, Brompton Cemetery, West Kensington, Kensington gardens, Hyde park, Paddington Basin to Little Venice for lunch at ‘the Warwick Castle’.Afterwards, with increasing threats of Rain which were soon delivered along with a very cold head wind, along the Grand union Canal to Park Royal, West Acton, North Ealing, Ealing Common to Gunnersbury park, With Iyad suffering a fall resulting in a few Bruises just before the Tea stop with BP, then more Gunnersbury park, Kew Bridge, Kew Rd, Richmond, Richmond park, to Kingston gate and Kingston. Total 31 Miles, 3 new faces.
Map :-

Little Venice Route Map

KCC Responds to Kingston’s Mini-Holland Proposal

· The Kingston Cycling Campaign strongly objects to the design of the scheme set out in the consultation documents.

· This is Kingston’s first Mini Holland scheme; it is important to set a satisfactory standard and precedent for later schemes.

· We believe that full segregation, (protected space), can be provided along the length of this route. Connections with facilities to the north and the south need to be designed at the same time to ensure continuity.

· In the bid document it was stated this road was to get a fully segregated two way cycle track for about half its length and the remainder was to be semi- segregated. Around 70 to 80% of the carriageway length is proposed to have no protected space for cycling, rather there will be Mandatory Cycle Lanes (“white paint” as people call it).

· The proposal may be of some limited value to existing cyclists but will do very little to encourage non-cyclists, or the hesitant, to use bicycles; which is the objective of the mini-Holland programme.

· It is not the dramatic or step change in cycling provision which the mini- Holland schemes are intended to achieve, as in the Mayor’s Cycling Vision for London.

· We met with Councillors from the Administration and without giving any promises they said they would speak to Officers about increasing segregated provision. We welcome this.

· We do not want this fantastic opportunity for our Borough to be wasted and we are confident that if aspects of the scheme are redesigned to incorporate protected space along the entirety of this short route it will prove an outstanding achievement for Kingston.

Portsmouth Road response Final v1

Meeting to discuss Mini Holland proposals

Our next meeting is on Tuesday 10 March 2015 at 8pm at the Richard Mayo Centre, Eden Street, Kingston on Thames KT1 1HZ http://mayocentre.org.uk/. We hope to discuss the revised Portsmouth Road Mini Holland proposals and feedback from the Sustrans workshop on the New Malden to Raynes Park Mini Holland Link. If you cycle, or would like to cycle, in Kingston please join us.

Bread Pudding Ride to Windsor Park

Sunday 8 February 2015, Windsor Great Park

Sunday 8th February saw 19 Cyclists leave via Portsmouth Rd, Giggshill green, Weston green, Esher, Walton on Thames, Weybridge, Addlestone, Victory park, Homeland park, Foxhills, Knowle hill, Wentworth to Sunningdale for a ‘split lunch’, some at ‘the Nags head’, some at a local Cafe. All back together, via Titterhust, Cheapside, Windsor Great park, with some superb views of Windsor Castle, Englefield green, Egham, Staines, Ashford, Lower Feltham, Hanworth, Hampton, Bushy park for Tea & BP at the ‘Pheasantry’, Hampton wick & Kingston bridge. Total 43 Miles, 1 new face.

Map :- http://www.trimbleoutdoors.com/viewtrip/2894668

Mini Holland Meetings with Officers and Councillors

Officers

On Thursday 22 January 3 campaigners from Kingston Cycling Campaign met with Officers from the Royal Borough of Kingston to discuss their Mini Holland proposals for Portsmouth Road. We were accompanied by the Campaigns Officer from the London Cycling Campaign http://lcc.org.uk/. We saw detailed plans of the proposals for the first time. These were frankly disappointing. The plans confirmed our fears that this is largely a “white paint” scheme with limited protected space for cycling. The areas of segregation are small; perhaps the southerly, heading away from Brighton Rd, 20% of the Northern bound carriageway, which is fully segregated. Additionally semi segregation by means of armadillos is proposed towards the north end, near Kingston, on both sides of the road but only for a short distance, particularly on the southbound. In all, so far as one can tell, only about 20% of the scheme has any protection at all. We are awaiting copies of the plans so we can comment further. There are some nice landscaping features and 2 raised pedestrian crossings but the cycling provision is certainly not to Dutch standards. We made the point that proposals such as these will do little or nothing to encourage cycling among those who don’t already ride. Schoolchildren will not want to ride along Portsmouth Road protected by white lines.

Councillors

On Monday 26 January another 3 campaigners met with 2 Councillors from the Conservative administration of RBK. Cllr Richard Hudson who chairs the Infrastructure, Projects and Contracts Committee, responsible for the Mini Holland Projects, and Cllr Andrea Craig, Lead member for Children and Young People, who is also a keen cyclist. This was a positive meeting. All wanted the Mini Holland schemes to be realised and to succeed. All, whilst recognising we may not agree on everything, want a degree of consensus to be achieved. All wanted schemes to be designed, so far as possible, for new or occasional cyclists, particularly children. All recognised schemes should benefit the whole community. We discussed various forms of physical protection for cycling such as armadillos and stepped kerbs. On the face of it there is room on Portsmouth Road for more protected space for cycling than is in the current proposal. Without making any promises Cllr Hudson said he would speak to Officers following the consultation to see if the degree of segregation can be improved.

Please do complete the consultation; link below. Everyone we speak to wants protected space unless you say so you can hardly blame Councillors or Officers for being unaware of that;

http://www.kingston.gov.uk/info/200355/mini-holland_cycling_programme/1118/mini-holland_cycle_routes/2