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North Tyneside schemes for #SpaceForDistancing and #activetravel

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[…]

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Newcastle Bridge Filters #SpaceForDistancing

Uncategorised

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[…]

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

Uncategorised

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[…]

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Huge support for safer neighbourhoods

News

A big thank you for those who responded to our call for action, wrote to Newcastle City Council and want to see safer streets in their neighbourhoods for social distancing.  In this article, we would like to share the thoughts and stories of local residents in Newcastle. We hope we can amplify their voices, inspire others to re-imagine their neighbourhoods and ask for change to support local decision-making.   The pop-up cycle lane on Queen Victoria Road in the city centre is a a great start and a clear example of road space reallocation and how quickly it can be done.[…]

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Queen Victoria Road #SpaceForDistancing

News

Newcastle City Council have rolled out their first emergency Covid-19 related scheme on Queen Victoria Road, outside the Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI). We would like to congratulate the council on this for two key reasons: The speed at which the scheme has been rolled out. The removal of car parking to create space for cycling. The cycle route runs directly in front of the RVI, providing a link between Exhibition Park to the north and Leazes Park to the south. It provides a much needed link for key workers at the hospital. The measures are not just limited to a[…]

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Huge social distancing changes to Newcastle’s iconic Grey Street are still weeks away from starting

Press

Evening Chronicle – 3 May 2020 (Daniel Holland) Plans were unveiled in May for a major reconfiguration of the historic city centre street to give pedestrians and cyclists extra space as more shops and businesses reopen. A dramatic redesign of Newcastle’s iconic Grey Street will not start until the end of June. Plans were unveiled in May for a major reconfiguration of the historic city centre street to give pedestrians and cyclists extra space for social distancing. But while new cycle lanes and one-way pavements have been introduced on busy routes around the Royal Victoria Infirmary, it will still be several weeks[…]

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Transport planning and advocacy in a pandemic

Event

If you want to join the national debate on walking, cycling and transport in these uncertain times, you need go no further than #ideaswithbeers. This started as a pub meet up hosted by Brian Deegan, one of cycling’s champion engineers working at Urban Movement, to discuss all things to do with cycling and infrastructure. Sadly it’s not currently in an actual pub, but it’s turned into a great place to meet advocates, practitioners and academic researchers from across the country to discuss what needs to change in response to the current crisis. This afternoon, I gave a talk on how[…]

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Action you can take! Campaign: Safe streets for social distancing

Politics

Newcastle City Council has announced ambitious plans to make more space for walking and cycling in response to Covid-19. We need your help to let them know how urgent and necessary this work is and where changes are needed in your neighbourhood to enable you to get around safely at this time. You can use one of the links below to generate an email to the Leader of the Council, Cllr Nick Forbes, and the Cabinet Member for Transport and Air Quality, Cllr Arlene Ainsley. If these don’t work, you can copy and paste the text below. Please consider adding[…]

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Dramatic changes to Grey Street unveiled which will give people more space to walk and cycle

Press

Evening Chronicle – 15 May 2020 (by Daniel Holland) The temporary plans include one-way walking routes, markings on the ground to indicate a safe two metre distance, the removal of benches, and new cycle lanes. Dramatic changes to Newcastle city centre have been revealed to make sure people can maintain social distancing as lockdown is eased. Newcastle City Council bosses have revealed an initial set of measures, which will start coming into force next week, to give cyclists and pedestrians extra space as workplaces and shops begin to open again in the coming weeks. Sally Watson, of the Newcastle Cycling Campaign,[…]

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Cycling, walking and Covid-19: Our thoughts on what Newcastle can do now to help keep people safe

Uncategorised

The spread of Covid-19 and the lockdown have dramatically changed the way we live and move around our city. It’s looking increasingly likely that physical distancing is going to be with us for a while and we want to take a look at some ideas that Newcastle City Council could consider implementing now to make living in the city safer and easier. We think that these ideas could be implemented quickly and with limited resources – eg. with temporary measures such as those used in roadworks. The dramatic reduction in traffic in Newcastle appears to have resulted in considerably more people walking and cycling, whether[…]

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