New Artwork on South Croydon's Roads

Some fresh council graffiti in the area, this one is a left turn only, shame I always want to turn right here - lots more to follow.




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cycling, cycle lane, croydon

Bollards in the Road - Old Town

Have you ever seen cast iron bollards placed in the middle of a road?

I doubt it.

But the sight of a bollard in the middle of a cycle track is commonplace.







The reason is that the people who plan these sorts of routes don't care about the safety of cyclists - most of them don't even ride bicycles.



This particular example is a footpath conversion on a route called Old Town.

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cycling, cycle path, cycle track, croydon

Works Delayed - East Croydon Station

The cycle related works to the east of East Croydon Station have been delayed yet again.



However, the black plastic bin liners have now degraded and fallen off the signs to reveal the routes, and they are not too encouraging - I strongly suspect there will be dismount signs at the crossing, and the rest of the route to the station will be on a busy pavement.



It has even been the subject of an exchange of letters in the local papers, with the council making some pathetic excuses about unexpected problems. However, since it is not that long since the building of the tram tracks in the area this excuse does not hold water.

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cycling, cycle lane, cycle path, cycle track, croydon

http://croydon.cyclestreets.net/

A project originating from Cambridge Cycling Campaign, arriving in Croydon.

It's only in Beta form at the moment, but it looks promising.

http://croydon.cyclestreets.net/

Funny what you come across at Open Tech...

The best news for this site is the ability to add photos of crap cycle facilities :)

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cycling, croydon, open tech

More secure cycle parking a must for London

from http://www.london.gov.uk/view_press_release_a.jsp?releaseid=22598

More secure cycle parking a must for London

Report available at http://www.london.gov.uk/assembly/reports/transport/stand-deliver-cycle-parking-report.pdf


The Mayor wants to see a million journeys made by bike every day in London by 2025, but a lack of secure cycle parking will hold Londoners back from getting on their bikes, a London Assembly report today warns.

‘Stand and deliver: Cycle parking in London’1, by the London Assembly Transport Committee, assesses cycle parking provision in London – at stations, in public areas, and in residential developments - and finds it falls far short of demand.

A survey2 of Londoners conducted as part of the investigation also revealed that the security of parked bikes remains one of the most serious concerns for cyclists3. Almost three-quarters (71%) rated the security of cycle parking facilities in London as poor; only 2 per cent said it was good.

Poor security is contributing to the tens of thousands of bikes stolen in the capital each year. The number of bike thefts reported in 2008/09 was just over 18,000 but research4 indicates only one in four thefts is reported, making the real annual figure likely to be more than 70,000.

Although Transport for London (TfL) has installed over 53,000 new cycle parking spaces across London since 2000, the number of trips by bike has almost doubled over the same period – and the Mayor wants to see the rate double again by 20255. He is making £2 million available to fund an increase in secure cycle parking – but even TfL is concerned this might not be enough.

The report calls for TfL to publish a clear strategy that covers every aspect of cycle parking provision in London, including an assessment of demand, proposals for new locations, and how available funding will be allocated.

The Committee’s survey asked Londoners for their views on how easy it is to find somewhere to park their bike at a range of locations. More than three-quarters (77%) said there was not enough cycle parking on the high street, and almost 70 per cent said Tube stations have inadequate facilities. Over half said the amount of cycle parking provided in new developments is insufficient.

Joanne McCartney AM, who led the investigation on behalf of the Assembly’s Transport Committee, said: “In virtually every area I looked at, from new residential developments to mainline stations, the situation was the same: there is not enough secure cycle parking in the right places to meet the soaring demand in London.

“Boroughs, Transport for London, rail operators and the private sector need to work together to find innovative solutions to increase cycle parking, or the wheels will come off the Mayor’s commendable aspirations to encourage more Londoners to cycle.”

Specific findings and recommendations:
The report makes a number of recommendations to improve provision, including calling on boroughs to conduct cycle parking audits and for Transport for London (TfL) to publish a cycle parking strategy for consultation by the end of the year.

In line with Transport Secretary Lord Adonis’s comments earlier this week, the report found there is a woeful lack of secure cycle parking at mainline stations. This is despite the efforts of some operators, including First Capital Connect, South Central and South West Trains, to increase provision. The eleven central London mainline stations share a total of 1200 spaces6 for the half a million people they serve each day. The report says that improving cycle parking at stations will require conditions to be built into train operating companies’ franchise agreements.

Central London Tube stations present a significant challenge because of space constraints. The report notes TfL’s plans to install cycle parking in carparks at six outer London stations, but urges them to bring work forward at further locations.

Secure spaces at new office buildings also fall short of demand. Developers are typically required to install one cycle parking space for every 25 employees - while at some businesses one in five employees is already cycling.

To accommodate the growth in cycling, the report notes that the number of spaces required at new developments, including residential, will need to be increased from those in the current London Plan. As well as numbers, specifications should cover design, layout and security standards so boroughs can more easily apply and enforce the guidelines when considering planning applications for new developments.

New standards should be developed in advance of the revised London Plan, which is due in 2011: TfL should produce a draft standards document for boroughs by the end of this year and publish agreed standards as supplementary guidance by the end of June 2010.

Other opportunities to increase cycle parking are also highlighted in the report. These include the Velib docking stations which, when introduced, could incorporate general cycle parking if designed appropriately. Vacant underground car parking spaces may also have the potential to be converted to cycle parking. The report urges TfL to explore both of these possibilities.

Notes to Editors

1. The embargoed report: ‘Stand and deliver: Cycle parking in London’ is available at: http://www.london.gov.uk/assembly/reports/transport.jsp#cycle-parking
2. The survey results are available in full as Appendix 1 of the report (p.29)
3. Research by Steer Davies Gleave (for TfL), Cycling in London, May 2008, p. 32, showed that the security of parked bikes is one of the two biggest cycling-related concerns, along with availability of spaces.
4. Evidence from Bikeoff at a stakeholder meeting on 25 March 2009.
5. Mayor of London, Way to Go!, November 2008, p. 24. This would mean journeys increase from the current rate of 1.6 per cent of trips made in London, to 5 per cent
6. See table on p.22 of the report for cycle parking by station.
7. The report will be considered for formal agreement at a Transport Committee hearing on 8 July 2009.
8. Joanne McCartney AM, who led the investigation on behalf of the Transport Committee, is available for interview. See contact details below.
9. As well as investigating issues that matter to Londoners, the London Assembly acts as a check and a balance on the Mayor.
For more details, please contact Dana Gavin in the Assembly Media Office on 020 7983 4603/4283. For out of hours media enquiries please call 0207 983 4000 and ask for the Assembly duty press officer. Non-media enquiries should be directed to the Public Liaison Unit, Greater London Authority, on 020 7983 4100.

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cycling

Bike Mounted Advertising

Seen by East Croydon Station...



not in a fit state to ride home though.

Not that this is a new idea...



...this was the bike I left in North End back in 2005.

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cycling, croydon

April Fool Debate on Public Photography

No doubt nothing will come of this...

Westminster Hall debates
Wednesday, 1 April 2009
Photography (Public Places)

..and the police will continue to harass innocent photographers following the other events on the same day.

Suburban cycling cut to pay for central London cycling

News from Jenny Jones: Suburban cycling cut to pay for central London cycling

Analysis of new figures released by Transport for London shows how the Mayor is planning to spend £57m on a Velib style cycle hire scheme in central London whilst spending less on schemes which would benefit cycling in outer London. New figures show that out of a total of 383 schemes which have not been funded in the coming year, 260 are in outer London boroughs.

A provisional breakdown of the £111m cycling budget for 2009/10 has been sent to Jenny Jones. TfL have allocated nearly half the money to cycle hire and £12m to the cycling superhighways, which are fast commuter routes into central London. However, nothing is specifically allocated in the coming year to cycling hubs in outer London and the total spent on the pan London Cycle Network will be just over a third of what it has been this year.

Jenny Jones said:
“I think that the cycle hire scheme is brilliant and so is the idea of cycling superhighways, but the London mayor is paying for these high profile schemes by cutting hundreds of local schemes which would make cycling safer in London. We have a zone one cycling mayor who is giving far less money to the London Cycle Network in outer London, despite the advice from experts who tell him that four fifths of the potential new cyclists come from the suburbs.”

Notes to Editors

1. Analysis of the money provided to the boroughs for the LCN+ shows that a total of 383 schemes have not been funded in the coming year, 260 of them in outer London boroughs, see attached table based upon Question to the London mayor No: 2698 / 2008.

2. TfL’s cycle hire scheme is aiming for 55,000 cycling trips per day by bike. At present there are around 540,000 cycling trips.

3. Money spent on LCN+ was £33m in 2008/09, but drops to only £12m in 2009/10. These total figures are divided up between borough roads and the Trans London Road Network (TLRN). The LCN+ expenditure on the borough roads drops from £20 to £10m, whilst the LCN+ spending on the TLRN drops from £13m to £2m.

4. The London mayor has the target of a 400% increase in cycling, but the Transport for London report which proposed this target showed that 80% of the new potential cyclists would have to come from outer London.


For more details please contact the Green Party Group Press Officer - Ian Wingrove on 0207 983 4424, 07967 205 330 Ian.Wingrove@london.gov.uk

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cycling, croydon

South Croydon Station and Seltrans..

I'd never heard of Seltrans till today, but it turns out that they are responsible for the works at South Croydon Station.

from the Autumn issue of the Seltrans newsletter.

South Croydon Update

We are pleased to announce that the final allocation from TfL for stage 1 of our holistic “station access scheme” has been approved. The major part of the scheme involves a joint cycle pedestrian access link to the station from the near by A212 and its neighbouring LCN route. This scheme has been delivered on time within budget, with the help of our partners from BRB, Network Rail and Southern Railway. The industry has complemented the Seltrans scheme with a refurbishment for not only the station building and the car park but they have also created a new station forecourt designed for passenger/pedestrian safety. This innovative scheme includes elements to remediate the heavy engineering required. This includes the provision of nesting boxes, too enhance bio-diversity and future funding is being sort to provide solar panels that will deliver a carbon zero project. We are hoping to invite our Seltrans partners to a formal opening ceremony in the very near future. Our thanks goes out to all the stakeholders that have been involved in delivering this relatively complex scheme.

Watch this space!!

I occasionally use this station, and have never noticed any information about this scheme or any information about Seltrans.

Satellite Image - pre-new carpark

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cycling, croydon

South End Dual Use Cycle Lane

Croydon's anti-cycling department are known for their innovative approach to cycle facilities.



This example is a combined car parking space and cycle lane. A dual use facility. It allows Croydon Council to claim a few metre's more cycle lane without inconveniencing drivers.



Satellite Image - with a car in the parking space

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cycling, cycle lane croydon