July 2020 – Newcastle Cycling Campaign

Councils urged not to back down amid anger over huge road changes to boost walking and cycling

20th July 2020 NewCycling Press

Evening Chronicle – 17 July 2020 (Daniel Holland) Opposition from motorists and businesses has led campaigners to fear that emergency overhauls of busy streets across the region could be watered down or scrapped Campaigners are pleading with North East councils to not back down over emergency walking and cycling measures being installed, amid mounting objections from motorists and businesses. Busy roads across the region are seeing major changes to help pedestrians and cyclists get around while safely social distancing, with highway space and parking for vehicles reduced or road traffic completely banned. … Sally Watson, from the Newcastle Cycling Campaign,[…]

Queen Victoria Road – July Update #SpaceForDistancing

18th July 2020 Infra Team Uncategorized

In June we gave our opinions on the temporary scheme that the council put in place on Queen Victoria Road. Click here for that article. The council have continued to review the scheme and have now improved it. The changes have led to the cycleway now being one lane in each direction with the flow of traffic, and the installation of poles to separate the cycle lanes from motor traffic. Both these changes are great improvements. The move to with flow cycle lanes was one of our suggestions when we looked at the initial measures in June. This change makes[…]

Shopping Streets #SpaceForDistancing

17th July 2020 Infra Team Uncategorized

In a previous post we outlined recently confirmed funding and government guidance for local authorities to enable the creation of safe walking and cycling space in response to COVID-19. Newcastle council has now published the first of its plans for #SpaceForDistancing in neighbourhood shopping streets. Four of its five shopping streets proposals have been announced, leaving Shields Road in Byker still to come. You can see the plans and provide feedback by following the links below: Adelaide Terrace West Road Gosforth High Street Chillingham Road Shields Road General Feedback If you go shopping at any of these streets, we recommend[…]

North Tyneside schemes for #SpaceForDistancing and #activetravel

12th July 2020 NewCycling News

What has happened Not so far from Newcastle, North Tyneside Council is also making use of the government funding to put in place temporary measures across the borough to create space for distancing and increase active travel. These are progressive and more ambitious than anything that Newcastle has proposed yet and could prove to be transformative for the coast both in terms quality of life for its residents and as an attractive destination for visitors. Here we look at what their plans are and how they are getting on with it. Phase 1 plans were publicly announced on 11 June[…]

Newcastle Bridge Filters #SpaceForDistancing

10th July 2020 Infra Team Uncategorized

Some good news! Newcastle City Council has announced plans to filter a number of bridges across the city as part of its Covid-19 response. Click here for their article. We welcome the news that Newcastle is to trial the removal of through motor traffic on five bridges across the city. We think these filters are a fantastic first step towards creating low traffic neighbourhoods, making Newcastle a more liveable city and enabling more journeys to be made on foot or by cycle. The five bridges will be filtered using temporary measures. The bridges are: Salters Bridge – At the eastern[…]

What do we know about Newcastle City Council’s #SpaceForDistancing plans?

10th July 2020 NewCycling Uncategorized

The Government has now announced the successful funding bids for measures to make walking and cycling safer in response to COVID-19. They state that there is an urgent need to keep people cycling: The coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis has had a terrible impact on the lives and health of many UK citizens, as well as severe economic consequences. But it has also resulted in cleaner air and quieter streets, transforming the environment in many of our towns and cities. And millions of people have discovered, or rediscovered, cycling and walking. In some places, there’s been a 70% rise in the number[…]