Royal Parks agree to east-west cycle superhighway
21st August 2015
Plans for the east-west cycle superhighway, where it runs in front of Buckingham Palace, have finally been agreed by the Royal Parks, and opened for consultation by TfL. This allays fears that there would be a 300m gap in one of London's two new flagship cycle routes - although TfL say that the new arrangements will initially be introduced on a trial basis for 12 months.
Hedgehog Cycling reported on the routes in September last year. The east-west cycle superhighway is to be a continuous, largely segregated route from Tower Hill, via Lower & Upper Thames Street, Victoria Embankment, Parliament Square, the Royal Parks, and the Westway flyover, to Acton. TfL has an overview map of the route from Tower Hill to the Westway.
The new consultation is on the proposed arrangements at Spur Road, a short road which runs from Birdcage Walk, around the Queen Victoria Memorial past the end of The Mall (which is where the viewer is, in the image at the top of this page), as far as Constitution Hill (which leads up to Hyde Park Corner). The consultation states that a segregated two-way cycle track will replace two traffic lanes between Birdcage Walk and The Mall, and one traffic lane between The Mall and Constitution Hill. This map shows exactly what is proposed (with the cycle superhighway shown in mid-grey):
The cycle track is to be 6m wide (narrowing to 4.5m at traffic signals), and separated from traffic by 'flexible bollards.' Dedicated traffic light phases for cyclist at the Birdcage Walk/Spur Road and Spur Road/The Mall junctions will keep traffic and cyclists separate.
When there are events in St James's Park with road closures affecting Spur Road, the cycle superhighway will also be closed. Changing the Guard requires all traffic, including cyclists, to stop for the duration of the event.
Change of head of Royal Parks
The breakthrough may be related to the departure of the old head of the Royal Parks, Linda Lennon. In May this year, the Evening Standard reported that she opposed the routing of the superhighway along Birdcage Walk, in her formal response to the TfL consultation, citing tree maintenance operations. She was also against the cycle route passing in front of Buckingham Palace. It looked as though the superhighway would have to be re-routed along Horse Guards Road, and The Mall, with cyclists given less protection.
Boris Johnson has credited new chief executive Andrew Scattergood with the agreement. In an article yesterday, the Greater London Authority website quoted Johnson as follows: 'This is the final jigsaw piece in what will be one of the world's great cycling routes. The new East West superhighway will be a treasured part of our new network, running through the heart of the capital and past the front door of some of our most loved landmarks such as the Houses of Parliament and Buckingham Palace. I am absolutely delighted that we and the Royal Parks have been able to reach agreement and I applaud the agency's new chief executive, Andrew Scattergood, his staff and TfL for the immense work they have put in to make it happen.'
Public exhibitions and consultation
There are to be public exhibitions in Green Park, at the Buckingham Palace end of Constitution Hill, on Tuesday 8th September 2015, 7.30-9.30am, and Thursday 17th September, 4-8pm. Consultation via TfL's website is open until 4th October 2015, and construction will begin early in 2016
A section of superhighway near-finished, on Victoria Embankment
Meanwhile, London Cycling Campaign recently reported that a section of superhighway on Victoria Embankment, leading up to Westminster Bridge is 'near-finished' and is being well-used by cyclists.
LTDA judicial review
The Licensed Taxi Drivers' Association has lodged an application for judicial review of the cycle superhighways, according to the Evening Standard. It claims TfL should have sought planning permission for the cycle routes, and is complaining about the disruption caused by building them.