Inspired by other blogs covering road safety and urban design, I thought that a local one could help raise the profile in our area. Hope that this will help us have a better Tooting and Wandsworth.
Showing posts with label Tooting High Street. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tooting High Street. Show all posts
Wednesday, 19 November 2014
Wandsworth Town Centre - Gyratory removal consultation
Right, this is more of a local post than recent ones about the proposed new Cycle Superhighways, but not quite Tooting (yet)!
TfL are now consulting on proposed new traffic flows in Wandsworth Town Centre, with removal of the gyratory system that local groups have been calling to be taken out for decades. In fact, probably from as soon as it went in, but that is speculation.
The proposed traffic flows look good to me, and I would urge you to respond to support TfL in this phase of the consultation.
I have, however, flagged concerns that the artists impressions omit high quality cycle routes.
This is all the more galling given the great proposals that we've now seen that TfL are capable of with the North South, East West Cycle Superhighway proposals.
The detailed design work will be done following the hopefully positive outcome of this consultation, in a secondary consultation phase.
I think this is a significant step forward in TfL evolving how they engage with local stakeholders, rather than, as has been done in the past presenting a fait-a-complis which for all intensive purposes can't be amended however valid the comments and critiques may be from the consultation process.
Please add your views here.
If we don't engage with the bodies that are re-designing our streets, then we can't be surprised when our views aren't taken into account.
Deadline for responses is the 5th December.
PS If you live in/around Tooting, consultations are in the pipeline for us too (Balham High Road, Tooting High Street/A24).
Sunday, 7 September 2014
Why Tooting should support TfL's proposals for new Cycle Superhighways
You may have heard the news this week that Transport for London have launched two new consultations for a North-South and East-West cycle superhighways that will run through the centre of London.
You can, and should respond supporting these consultations on these links:
For sure there are some details which could be improved as with any major project, but the core thrust of what could be will be a game changer.
Local impact?
You may be thinking if you live in and around Tooting / Balham, this is all quite nice, but actually I don't really go into the centre of town so this doesn't really affect me.
It does for the following reasons. A few years ago I proposed radical changes to Balham High Road. The Mayor announced funding for TfL to work on it this spring. Looking at some of the details in the Blackfriars Road visualisation gives me a lot of hope that the consultation for Balham High Road next year will be of similar quality.
Tooting High Street and Upper Tooting Road are gridlocked almost every weekend. Earlier this year, with the local Lib Dem team as part of the local elections, we got over 700 signatures on a petition (including paper signatures) calling on the Mayor to make Tooting High Street safe for all.
The proposals for the centre of town show everyone that not only is TfL is capable of doing high quality street design. It also shows that campaigning does work. These proposals wouldn't exist without the efforts of campaigners across London and the London Cycling Campaign.
Will it slow down traffic?
Experience from New York suggests that it won't.
Next steps
Please support the consultations. There are organisations and individuals who don't think that what has been proposed will work, or that it is needed or that people deserve it.
I'd like my children to be able to grow up in a London where as a family we can all ride into the centre of town and the only worries we might have would be if it's going to rain.
PS - I'd also add that the proposals to deal with rat-running on/around the Fishponds Road area, in my view are part of the wider solution to improving our streets. Current views from our elected representatives is that doing nothing is acceptable.
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Blackfriars Road visualisation - North-South |
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Victoria Embankment visualisation - East-West |
For sure there are some details which could be improved as with any major project, but the core thrust of what could be will be a game changer.
Local impact?
You may be thinking if you live in and around Tooting / Balham, this is all quite nice, but actually I don't really go into the centre of town so this doesn't really affect me.
It does for the following reasons. A few years ago I proposed radical changes to Balham High Road. The Mayor announced funding for TfL to work on it this spring. Looking at some of the details in the Blackfriars Road visualisation gives me a lot of hope that the consultation for Balham High Road next year will be of similar quality.
Tooting High Street and Upper Tooting Road are gridlocked almost every weekend. Earlier this year, with the local Lib Dem team as part of the local elections, we got over 700 signatures on a petition (including paper signatures) calling on the Mayor to make Tooting High Street safe for all.
The proposals for the centre of town show everyone that not only is TfL is capable of doing high quality street design. It also shows that campaigning does work. These proposals wouldn't exist without the efforts of campaigners across London and the London Cycling Campaign.
Will it slow down traffic?
Experience from New York suggests that it won't.
New York: bike tracks are actually speeding up average travel times http://t.co/r1wUvZBqe0 pic.twitter.com/Joofjxc8vm
— cyclistsinthecity (@citycyclists) September 5, 2014
Next steps
Please support the consultations. There are organisations and individuals who don't think that what has been proposed will work, or that it is needed or that people deserve it.
I'd like my children to be able to grow up in a London where as a family we can all ride into the centre of town and the only worries we might have would be if it's going to rain.
PS - I'd also add that the proposals to deal with rat-running on/around the Fishponds Road area, in my view are part of the wider solution to improving our streets. Current views from our elected representatives is that doing nothing is acceptable.
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