Agenda item

Update from Tom Sweeney (Programme Manager for Walking and Cycling)

The Programme Manager for Walking and Cycling updated the forum using a map of the town centre.

Referring to the map, the roads effected by Phase Schemes were identified and keyed as:

·         Phase 1 (Green) – existing routes that met the London Cycle Network or Quietway standards

·         Phase 2 (Red) – key missing links in and around the town centre which were a priority for change

·         Phase 3 (Purple) – Area based cycle improvements in the wider area

·         Phase 4 (Blue) – long-term project routes (typically associated with larger developments and infrastructure changes in the town centre).

The forum heard more detail about the following improvements:

·         The Ampere Way route which would connect to the cycle route along the tram system (down to Wandle Park)

·         Wandle Park crossing – a new designated cycling facility north of the Wandle Park tramstop

·         Routes around West Croydon which in the long-term would link to a widened Poplar Walk which will provide space for a segregated cycle contraflow

·         The Bedford Park contraflow - design had been agreed and March 2019 is being considered as a start date for construction

·         Lower Addiscombe Road between Leslie Park Road and Grant Road -cycle connections in and out of the East Croydon area

·         Fairfield frontage and College Road – linking from the west and south to East Croydon station

·         New crossings around the Old Town roundabout

·         The Drummond Road cycle contraflow

A member of the forum was asked if more could be said about routes coming from the South of Croydon. The presenting officer stated that:

·         Longer term work relating to buses and general traffic on Brighton Road corridor was being progressed

·         Routes were being examined in Waddon and these would extend further south over time

·         All the existing London National Cycling Network were being reviewed and re-signed

A question was asked whether there were any plans in Purley. The presenting

officer replied that the need to continue the walking and cycling corridor through Purley had been identified.

Any significant changes to the Purley Gyratory would have to be coordinated with current developments in the town centre as this was a key route for construction traffic of the growth zone. It was stated that an interim proposal may therefore be needed and would need consent from TfL in order to implement this. It was noted that cycling and walking improvements in Purley may need to be raised in a future meeting. The Principal Impact Assessment Engineer informed the panel that there was an enforcement issue involved with vehicles with blue badges parking on junctions. The parking restriction regulations needed to be revised to resolve the issue of car park space being left occupied.

The Principal Impact Assessment Engineer also stated that a long-term project was planned for a corridor on Lower Addiscombe Road which would first need to be considered by the network management team.

A question was asked about current TfL Funding. The presenting officer stated that TfL Quietway funding had been reduced for the current year, in line with the reduction of the overall budget for the TfL. Although the overall level of funding the same. The Council also liaised with the Quietways team on potential new Quietway routes in the borough. New routes would have an emphasis on the ‘Healthy Streets’ approach identified in the new Mayor’s Transport Strategy (MTS).

The Chair stated that this was a large number of complex projects and recommended that individual projects reported back to the Cycle Forum one at a time. It was also suggested that a cycle around the Croydon Town Centre be useful for members of the forum and could be arranged after the meeting in September 2018.

Members of the forum NOTED this update.