Author: bigdai100

bigdai100http://www.dhwilliams.me.uk

Ordinary People on Bikes use Mini Holland

Its an expensive play area for the mamils of Kingston they said.
No, everyday people with bikes will use it, we said.

Its not finished but people are using the Portsmouth Rd cycle lane. Who would have thought!

 

Turns out the the most populous mamil is homo sapiens.

Portsmouth Rd is being built in 3 phases. Phase 1 (Palace Rd to north of Brighton Rd) has been constructed but we understand can not be officially opened until certain signs which are on order have been installed. Phase 2 High St to Palace Rd) is under construction now (May 2016) and will be completed this Summer. The last Phase 3 (south past Brighton Rd) should, we’re told, be built by the end of 2016.

We look forward to all types of rider enjoying the completed, almost 1 mile long, fully protected cycleway.

Congratulations to the Royal Borough of Kingston for being nominated for Portsmouth Rd in the best Borough Infrastructure Scheme category at the London Cycling Awards;

http://lcc.org.uk/articles/2016awards

Sadly runners up this year to Camden’s worthy winner in Tavistock Place but we’re in august company with joint second Waltham Forest’s Lea Bridge Rd. Let’s make Portsmouth Road the benchmark, improve and win next year RBK !

 

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

Portsmouth Road Consultation

The public consultation on the proposed Portsmouth Rd mini-holland scheme opens today. You can find all the details on what is proposed and how you can make your voice heard:

RBK Portsmouth Rd Consultation

You can also read the Portsmouth Road Full Proposal Document (PDF)

If we don’t let the Council know what we think, we can’t complain about what they give us. Rich, one of our supporters, has produced a template to respond to the consultation:

https://stuffrichwrites.wordpress.com/2015/01/20/response-to-portsmouth-road-consultation/

Please feel free to adopt it or adapt it.

The Council’s proposals will not prevent this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KxqtgYon0Lk

We want protected space infrastructure so truck drivers can not endanger their fellow citizens in this way and 8 to 80 cyclists will use this route.

First Ride of 2015 – Great Bookham and Effingham

Meeting for our first bread pudding ride of 2015

Meeting for our first bread pudding ride of 2015

Sunday 11 January 2015:

A bright Sunny morning, with more cloud later, saw 20 Cyclists ready for the first ride of ‘15 via Lower Marsh, Berrylands, Tolworth greenway, Hogsmill & Bonesgate paths, Horton country park, Ashtead common, Leatherhead, Fetcham to Great Bookham where a small detachment stopped for lunch at ‘Domestique’ Cafe, while the remainder continued to Effingham for lunch at the ‘Sir Douglas Haig’. With everyone back together via Effingham junction, Martyr’s green, a partially flooded Plough lane, Cobham, Fairmile to Claremont lake for Tea & BP, then Esher, Littleworth, Hinchley wood, Long Ditton, Surbiton to Kingston. 1 new face, 28 Miles.

Map :-www.plotaroute.com/route/30393

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/kingstoncyclingcampaign/16068794710  11/01/2015 Kingston Market Place meeting point

Promoting Cycling: ‘Get Cycling’ guide launched at Kingston Bike Festival

KCC booklet - Get Cycling

KCC booklet – Get Cycling

At the Kingston Bike Festival on Sunday 10th August 2014 the Kingston Cycling Campaign (KCC) launched its new guide to traffic-free and quiet cycle routes around Kingston which we’ve called ‘Get Cycling’.

There are 6 routes described in words and shown on full colour maps, with lovely design carried out by local designer Alison Groom. The booklet is 20 pages long and as well as the six rides it shows a handy guide to crossing Kingston town centre from all directions.

Members of KCC contributed to researching the routes, checking them, writing text descriptions, mapping, taking photographs and co-ordinating the design and printing.

KCC had 1,000 ‘Get Cycling’ guides printed. They are currently available for free from all the borough’s libraries and we hope that bike shops will each have a stock of them soon.

The cost of  designing and printing the guide was paid largely by an Environment Grant from Kingston Council  supplemented by the group’s own income.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/kingstoncyclingcampaign/14691597849/

Kingston Cycling Campaigners promote a new guide of six easy rides to places around Kingston. Left To right: Nick Davies, Jon Fray, John Legate and Rob James.

You can find routes taken from the Get Cycling booklet here.