March 2014 – Newcastle Cycling Campaign

Gosforth High Street – a member’s action

31st March 2014 NewCycling Uncategorized

A campaign member decided to take action and contacted us to discuss their idea. In the process a poster was designed and printed (attached below), and distributed to traders on Gosforth High Street. Here is a quick report from their experience and the data and feedback gathered. This is really useful information for us all and worth sharing! And looking at different parts of the plans separately seems a sensible thing to do too. The cycleway could be created whilst the Salters Road junction goes back to the drawing board and a “less 1960s motorway design” is found. I had[…]

Shifting up a gear: AGM 2014

30th March 2014 Claire Uncategorized

Absolutely thrilled to report a record attendance at our AGM last Tuesday: 42 people invaded the excellent Cycle Hub to listen to our speakers, debate the state of city cycling and campaigning and plan the next steps. We formed a new Management Committee: with a warm welcome to Geoff Turnbull who is joining Katja Leyendecker, Scott Dawson, Rod Joyce, and Claire Prospert on the committee for 2014/15. Scooting through the ‘business and organisational matters’ we saw that the Campaign is in good shape. You can of course read the Annual and Finance Report [pdf] and check for yourself. Our politicians[…]

Management Committee Meeting

30th March 2014 Katja Uncategorized

Following the excellent, energetic and energising AGM, we will discuss opening up the Committee meetings to members – the frequency, locations and format of the previously held Quarterly Members Meetings may change. Check the events section for public members meetings. This time we are joined by Cllr Ged Bell (cabinet) and Cllr Marion Talbot (cycle champion) to discuss the outlook for cycling improvements in Newcastle, and what can be expected to happen in 2014/15. There is a bit of ground to break and gaps to bridge. We are welcoming Ged’s and Marion’s offer to meet the Committee as there is[…]

Meeting the force

30th March 2014 Katja Uncategorized

Members of the Management Committee are meeting with the Police Liaison Officer to discuss how we could work with the police and vice versa to understand and tackle cycling problems and concerns. Our members told us what they want to see from the police, and we took that to the Police and Crime Comissioner. Read the background and history here: Our letter https://69c8f3.n3cdn1.secureserver.net/sites/default/files/2012_PCCcands_Oct.pdf Vera Baird PCC reply https://newcycling.org/news/20121009/pcc-candidate-vera-baird-lab-outlines

Gosforth High Street needs protected space for cycling

21st March 2014 NewCycling Uncategorized

Newcycling clearly comes out in support of option 2 for Gosforth High Street for its innovation, continuity and safety. Katja Leyendecker, chairwoman, says “There’s been much hype and also misinformation out there, including the council’s own communications. Option 1 offers nothing for cycling, it’s the same-old token effort that’s been painted on Newcastle’s roads for decades. And doing nothing is not an option – for Gosforth High Street to improve it must improve for people. Cyclists, and pedestrians for that matter, make excellent and reliable customers, usually outspending car users. We are clear. We support Newcastle council on option 2[…]

Gosforth High Street – your views

21st March 2014 NewCycling Uncategorized

Following the publication of our view, and in no particular order, here is a selection of what some of you have said so far. More views added on 3 April 2014, go to 20 onwards. Keep writing. Every letter counts. Contact us with your questions. ###### 1 ###### Having just looked through the proposals for the redevelopment of Gosforth High St I would like to make my support known for the ‘Option 2’ plan, (the one with the two way cycle path). This is far superior to option one which is very poor and will likely not be very well[…]

Gosforth High Street – our view

15th March 2014 NewCycling Uncategorized

Yesterday, Newcastle City Council published two options for the future of Gosforth High Street. The third option would be to simply carry on and change nothing – but given the poor state of the high street’s public realm, its car dominance and people unfriendliness, it’s not a real option. Back to Option 1. It presents the usual ‘traditional’ road scheme with a token effort lobbed in for cycling: advisory cycle lanes ending at every bus stop (and there are many), thereby putting public transport and cycling in conflict – when both of these modes should be celebrated and catered for[…]

Message from a fellow cyclist

13th March 2014 Claire Uncategorized

Why do we campaign for cycling and a safe quality infrastructure? Above all, there is huge sense of unfairness faced by the small minority of people who cycle as a means of transport, to go from A to B, everyday or regularly. The people we call the brave ones, because, despite the hostile conditions on the roads, they do it. As most minorities, we are not cared for, abused and blamed in many ways. Do people have choices when it comes to transport? Is cycling a genuine option when the provision in our cities is so poor and unsafe? Last[…]

Still ambitious chaos

5th March 2014 Katja Uncategorized

You remember the Cycle City Ambition Fund? Maybe not? And you’d be forgiven, as the council keeps strangely quiet about it in its communications, newsletters and updates to residents. Why is that? Why do they find it so hard to communicate their ambitious transformation to a city fit for people? Is it too ambitious and they are hesitant and uncertain where to start? Or do they simply not see the value in shouting it from all roof tops? The story began last year. In April 2013 we, amongst many other groups, full-heartedly supported Newcastle’s ambition to transform its roads and[…]