miniholland

Kingston’s completing two Cycleways! 🎉

Following a long pause, construction has restarted to finish two of Kingston’s long planned Cycleways:

  • Cycleway 29 (Kingston to Tolworth) – construction is taking place to fill in a 600m gap in safer cycling provision along Ewell Road on the Surbiton/Tolworth border.
  • Cycleway 32 (Kingston to New Malden) – construction of improved cycling facilities has just started on a 1.4km stretch of road along Cambridge and Kingston Roads.
New Cycleway in construction on Ewell Road

Kingston Cycling Campaign are delighted that construction is finally taking place to finish these Cycleways that have been in development for more than a decade. When complete, the Kingston to Tolworth Cycleway will stretch almost 7km from Kingston Station to Tolworth Broadway along a mix of separated cycle paths and quiet roads. Finishing this Cycleway creates the beginning of a Cycleway ‘spine’ route from North to the South of the Borough. It also connects to Cycleway 28 (Kingston High Street towards Long Ditton) and Cycleway 30 (Kingston to Kingston Vale)

Cycleway 32 currently begins from Cycleway 30 near Asda on London Road before ending a couple of hundred metres later along Cambridge Road. When complete, the Cycleway will continue past the Cambridge Road Estate (over 4,000 cycle parking spaces due to be installed as part of its redevelopment), past Kingsmeadow and the proposed new secondary school before ending close to the Fountain junction in the centre of New Malden. Along the way, it also gets very close to the beginning of Cycleway 31 which takes people on bikes (and those walking) along a mostly traffic free route to Raynes Park. Whilst much of Cycleway 32 will include cycle lanes which are separated from other vehicles, part of it will unfortunately involve people cycling sharing a lane with buses. We will be asking Kingston Council to monitor this carefully and to make further improvements if necessary.

The completed Cycleways will offer improvements for people walking too, with three new zebra crossings to be installed and a crossing at Hawk’s Road junction made easier for pedestrians too. After these have been finished, there will have been 20 new zebra crossings installed along Kingston’s Cycleways so far. Improvements will also be made at some side roads to make it clear that people walking (and cycling) have priority over motor vehicles when crossing the road.

When will the new Cycleways be finished?

Construction on both routes is expected to last until mid to late 2026 with works being planned around other major roadworks in the Borough.

Cycleway construction on Ewell Road

What might be next?

Kingston Council has also applied for funding from Transport for London to commence initial feasibility studies on other potential Cycleways in the Borough. Whilst the original ‘Mini-Holland’ Cycleways will be complete after these works, the network will still not not cover many parts of the Borough including North Kingston (Kingston Station towards Ham), South of the Borough (Surbiton/Tolworth towards Hook and Chessington) as well as to Old Malden and Worcester Park.

Fountain junction in New Malden also remains a dangerous place for people walking and cycling and we hope the Council will take further steps to improve safety there.

In the meantime, Kingston Cycling Campaign will continue working with the Council to make further improvements to the current and planned Cycleways to enhance safety and usability for those on a bike or on foot.

Other links

You can see a map of Kingston’s Cycleway network here.

Consultations open until 18 July 2016

Kingston Council have four Mini-Holland consultations open until 18 July 2016  – see

http://consult.kingston.gov.uk/portal/planning/go/consultations_summer_2016/

These schemes need real improvement  so we’re asking you to respond to all four, calling for the routes to be completed and for cycles to be separated from both motors and pedestrians.  We have suggested responses at:

kingstoncyclecampaign.wordpress.com/2016/06/30/suggested-response-to-mini-holland-consultations-july-2016/

And please feel free to join in our discussion on Cyclescape:

http://kingston.cyclescape.org/

Suggested response to Mini Holland Consultations July 2016

Kingston Council have four consultations open until 18 July 2016 on their Go Cycle or Go Programme (previously Mini Holland).

http://consult.kingston.gov.uk/portal/planning/go/consultations_summer_2016/

The schemes need real improvement. So please complete all four and call for the routes to be completed and cycles to be separated from both motors and pedestrians.

These are our brief suggested responses which please feel free to use as the basis for your own responses. Do complete the “comments” sections – the questions asked are closed and will not allow you to seek what cyclists really want.
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Mini Holland Consultations

Kingston Council have four Consultations open until 18 July 2016 on proposed Go Cycle or Go Programme (their branding for Mini Holland) cycle routes.

  • Kingston Station
  • Wheatfield Way
  • Kingston to Surbiton
  • Fountain Roundabout, New Malden (below)

Fountain Roundabout proposed layout

You can access the consultations here;

http://consult.kingston.gov.uk/portal/planning/go/consultations_summer_2016/

Please complete all four and call for fully protected space for cycling separate from both motor traffic and pedestrians. Our initial view is that the proposals are disappointing. Mini Holland and the Mayor’s Cycling Vision for London were intended to be transformational. Kingston’s proposals have a lot of space shared by pedestrians and cyclists, creating conflict for both. Junctions which are challenging for inexperienced cyclists are sometimes ignored.

There are some promising features such as segregated cycle tracks, but the schemes need real improvement if they are to work. We managed to get the Council to improve Portsmouth Road so please let’s get these schemes improved by completing the consultation.

Our detailed discussion of all 4 schemes is publicly available on Cyclescape.org;

http://kingston.cyclescape.org/

Please feel free to contribute.

 

FAQs for the Portsmouth Road scheme

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We’ve seen comments on social media and in the local papers about the mini-Holland two-way cycle track that’s under construction on the Portsmouth Road, and we’d like to help clarify any issues and correct any misinformation that is in circulation. Therefore we have put together a list of responses to frequently raised issues. Kingston Council is responsible for the design and implementation of the scheme. We hope that you will find these answers to “Frequently Asked Questions” helpful.
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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 !

 

Consultation on mini Holland routes in Surbiton

This is the middle section of the Kingston to Surbiton to Tolworth route via Surbiton Crescent and Avenue Elmers. We are told Kingston Council will consult on these proposals in mid June 2016.

Heading south on Surbiton Crescent a modal filter for bikes and buses, at the junction with Surbiton Road, is to be trialled for 3 or 4 months. The route then continues on Avenue Elmers which will get a quietway treatment with logos and humps and consultation on 20mph (where it is currently 30mph).

Links to Surbiton station are provided by Claremont Road and St Marks Hill. On Claremont Road a two way segregated track is planned on the west side with the footway routed through Claremont Gardens. On St Marks Hill a segregated cycle track will be provided on the uphill but only logos on the downhill.

This looks very promising to us. A modal filter should work and Avenue Elmers is a quiet road. The scheme does need to get riders safely across Maple Road. The consultation does not include the sections of the route along Penrhyn and Surbiton Roads to the north nor on Ewell Road to the south. Plainly unless those sections are dealt with, and the crucial junction of Surbiton Hill Road and Ewell Road, so the route is continuous, then these schemes are of little value. Our understanding is that those sections will be consulted on in due course.

The links to Surbiton station will only be complete if the mini roundabout outside the station is tackled. We are a little concerned that logos on the downhill side of Saint Marks Road are sub standard and provide no safe space for cycling on a busy road. The Claremont Gardens footway should be sufficiently attractive and direct to ensure pedestrians use it not the cycle track.

We look forward to details of the consultation in June.

 

Cycle track on Wheatfield Way

We understand this proposal will be consulted on in June 2016. It is proposed to install two way fully segregated cycle tracks (3m) on the east (Fairfield) side of Wheatfield Way from College Roundabout to the station except at Old London Rd and Wilkinsons. At this pinch point shared space of at least 3.6m width is proposed for a short distance. Kingston’s mini Holland bid envisaged the two way track being continuous with the one way system being reduced from three to two motor lanes at this point. The Borough Officers tell us this is not possible because Transport for London’s traffic modelling suggests unacceptable delays would be caused.

There will also be more direct cycle crossings at Palmers Crescent and Lady Booth Road. Consultation on 20mph (currently 30mph) speed limit and raised crossings and junctions. Wider pedestrian and cycle crossings opposite Old London Rd are also proposed. There is also to be a link from Old London Road to Castle Street, the details of which, so far as we are aware, remain to be decided.

In our view this is a great proposal; a safe space for cycling on a scary urban gyratory. There are also urban realm improvements and a reduction in the severance caused by the ring round. Sadly there is one major defect; shared space does not work on a transport cycling route. We suggest a reduction to two traffic lanes could be trialled (a practice favoured by new Mayor, Sadiq Khan) for the short “pinch point” section outside Wilkinson’s; it may be the world does not end and remember TfL’s traffic modelling does have a record of not reflecting reality.

 

Mayoral Debate – Friday 29 April

Final hustings of the mayoral campaign

The Mayoral Debate 29 AprilNick and Ruth from KCC were in a packed audience at the cycling (and transport) hustings held at The News Building this morning. You may have already seen our tweets at #asklondonmayor and now you can watch the debate on Facebook.

The Deputy Editor of The Times, Emma Tucker, chaired a panel featuring most of the main candidates: Sian Berry (SB), Zac Goldsmith (ZG), Sadiq Khan (SK), Caroline Pigeon (CP), Sophie Walker (SW) – all of whom have signed for cycling – and Peter Whittle (PW). George Galloway has also signed for cycling, unfortunately he couldn’t be there.

After introductions the candidates were asked to outline their solutions – see the LCC website for these and their answers to questions submitted at the door and from the floor and the Chair posed some direct questions which only needed simple answers:
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