October 2015 – Newcastle Cycling Campaign

City Centre South East – Our Reply

23rd October 2015 Infra Team Consultation replies

Regarding Durant Road/Ellison Place and Market Street/Pilgrim Street Improvements The changes being proposed for both of these schemes offer improvement for cycling in the city centre. We congratulate the council on continuing to produce plans that could create a city centre that is much more accessible and hopefully also traversable by those using cycles. As the schemes are still in an engagement phase we nonetheless have some points that we would like to raise. We urge the council to act on these before any further phase. Width The drawings are not clear about the width planned for the two way[…]

How a trip to the cycle Paradise of Bremen was food for thought for a Newcastle campaigner

23rd October 2015 Peter Press

Evening Chronicle (22/10/2015) – http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/how-trip-cycle-paradise-bremen-10309914 Space for Cycling (and walking!) in Bremen, Germany, August 2015 – photos courtesy of Richard Grassick

Cllr Ged Bell – quotes

21st October 2015 NewCycling Politics

Added 21 October from Bikelife report: “Enabling Newcastle to be the best place it can be, with everyone having access to opportunities, is central to our ongoing success. We want parents and carers to feel safe letting their kids bike to school, and older people to feel able and confident enough to get about on two wheels. By designing space that works for young and old, we are ensuring it works for everyone.” Source Space for Cycling ride, 25 April 2015, Newcastle “I love cycling, I always have done and I will continue to love cycling. What we need to do[…]

Working together for a successful outcome requires accountability

20th October 2015 NewCycling Uncategorized

We at Newcycling want to support the council in their plans to turn Newcastle into a city fit for the 21st century with a transport system to boot. A city that we can be proud of and which enables everyone to travel safely and sustainably. However, there are some big barriers to our lending this support. We describe one of the most important ones here. Following the money You often hear “simply follow the money” when trying to analyse root causes, motivations or decisions taken on policy – and perhaps politics more generally. Following the money on local transport matters[…]

‘Traffic lights are so dictatorial’ … but are roundabouts on the way out?

19th October 2015 Peter Press

The Guardian (19/10/2015) – http://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/oct/19/traffic-lights-roundabouts-way-out The article looks at two differing perspectives from the UK and the USA, largely focussing on vehicle traffic flow. The dangers of roundabouts to pedestrians and cyclists is acknowledged. Our Chair emphasises the point of implementing safer designs: In Newcastle, the double-roundabout at Haddricks Mill in South Gosforth has achieved notoriety among cyclists for its blind spots, narrow lanes and confusing road markings, as well as the speed and volume of cars, trucks and buses that pass through. Local cycling campaigner Kat Leyendecker calls it “the Mincer”: the site of 14 crashes, with 21 people[…]

National consultation – road traffic law enforcement

8th October 2015 NewCycling Consultation replies

We are replying as newcycling.org (Newcastle’s cycling campaign) to the Inquiry on traffic law enforcement by the Transport Select Committee. We have 1,600 local members; and we are an organisation entirely run by volunteers, a constituted community group, formed in 2010. We would like to take this opportunity to make a strong point about the ‘wider picture’ which appears to be missing from the inquiry: There are benefits of structuring the UK road safety system more effectively (to avoid death and damage to occur in the first instance and avoid state resources getting wasted). Government departments should start cooperating much[…]

Monument Area – Our Reply

7th October 2015 Scott Consultation replies

Our reply to the recent TRO for the Monument Area of Newcastle City Centre Regarding GH/P44/1055 – Monument Area We are struggling to understand what problem(s) this TRO is attempting to resolve; the number of different parts that make up this TRO make it rather difficult to follow. There are sections of this TRO that will make cycling in the city centre more difficult than it already is, and in places also includes changes that could make movement through the area as a pedestrian more difficult. Some issues we were able to identify are: I 2c – Currently it is[…]

Grow your Tenner 2015 – NewCycling call for donations

4th October 2015 NewCycling News

UPDATE – 23 OCTOBER 2015: GYT 2015 IS NOW CLOSED – NEWCYCLING WOULD LIKE TO THANK ALL THE MEMBERS WHO DONATED. WE RAISED AN AMAZING £620 IN JUST 11 DAYS. THANK YOU ALL It’s Grow Your Tenner time again! The scheme opens at 10am on Tuesday 13 October and runs until Wednesday 18 November 2015, or until the funding pot runs out – whichever comes first. Last year we raised an impressive £680 and this year, with your help, we are hoping to raise even more! To give simply go to https://localgiving.com/charity/newcycling How does it work? GYT will match up to £10[…]

Haddricks Mill – what cycle provision is needed?

2nd October 2015 Infra Team Uncategorized

We started talking about Haddricks Mill last month because we think this is a big and complex location in our city’s road network; and it warrants a proper debate and assessment. This process should be led by Newcastle council and their Councillors, combining their vision, policy and leadership with local knowledge and experience. Every debate starts with facts and figures, and setting out your position and views. Here is ours – on the needs of cycle infrastructure for priority, safety and comfort. In this article we will look at the six roads that the junction connects and look at what[…]