Agenda item

Report – to follow.

7.1       The Council adopted the Westminster Cycling Strategy in November 2014, which was approved by Councillor Acton, in response to the Mayor for London’s ‘Vision for Cycling in London’ published in March 2013.  The Committee had played a key role in the development of the Strategy, including establishing a Task Group to scrutinise this.  The Committee received a report on the progress made on implementing actions and meeting the Strategy’s Core Targets to date, one year after the Cycling Strategy was adopted. 

7.2       Councillor Acton wished to put on record that officers had worked particularly hard on meeting an intense cycling programme schedule, particularly in respect of the Cycle Superhighway schemes.  Barry Smith, Head of City Policy & Strategy, introduced the report.  He stated that the Strategy had always been viewed as a living document that would be updated regularly to reflect emerging priorities and funding streams.  The Strategy covered the period up to 2026.  The adoption of the Strategy had taken place in November 2014, this current meeting one year later was taking place eight months into the 2015/16 financial year so there remained another four months of potential spend for the year and further actions would be taken forward.  Some measures were easier to implement in the short term than others.  There were approximately forty actions in the Strategy with four high level objectives, ‘to create safer and more legible routes’, ‘to improve road user interaction, education and enforcement’, ‘to facilitate bicycle ownership/access and parking’ and ‘to raise awareness and participation in cycling’.  Actions designed ‘to create safer and more legible routes’ were more complex and challenging to deliver as they encompass physical infrastructure works on the public highway.  Mr Smith referred to the flowchart submitted with the report at Appendix 1 which showed how it was intended that the vision would be delivered in the form of actions.  Appendix 2 was a detailed action tracker which had an entry against each of the forty actions.  Appendix 3 was indicative of the Westminster Cycling Grid.     

7.3       In response to questions from the Committee, Councillor Acton, Jayne Rusbatch, Project and Programme Manager (Public Realm)and Toby Jacobs, Cycling Projects Officer made a number of additional points:

·           Councillor Acton identified that one of the main areas of difficulty was to manage the limited kerb space and avoid conflict between cyclists and pedestrians and cyclists and motorists.  It was difficult to deliver Cycle Quietways routes so that they were satisfactory for people to use (who were not used to cycling) without there being the necessary segregation. 

·           Councillor Acton stated that people needed to be persuaded in certain cases not to park their car right outside their homes or close by.  Car ownership was going down quite significantly in Westminster.  The car club membership was increasing.

·           The Cabinet Member had met with TfL and their modelling indicated that the proportion of vehicles at certain junctions on the East-West Cycle Superhighway would reduce significantly.  Traffic flows had already started to improve over the last month. As part of the negotiations with TfL in respect of the Superhighway, the Council had made it conditional that in addition to ensuring the Active Traffic Management system worked successfully so that traffic was flowing through Westminster properly, it would be subsidised for managing the road network.  Some of the compensation received in respect of costs incurred included the displacement of coaches.  Alternative coach parking had been found. 

·           Mr Jacobs advised that there had been a promotional campaign in respect of the annual cycling training programme and the numbers who had become involved were up approximately 20% on the previous year.  The training was for cyclists at different stages of proficiency and included considerate road use and awareness of pedestrians.

·           Ms Rusbatch explained that the strategy for secure cycle parking across estates had commenced in 2012.  There were five estates that officers had been working with initially.  Officers had also been working with CityWest Homes and the Peabody Estate.  Planning permissions were approved or in progress for eleven further sites being funded in 2015/16.  Locations for secure cycle parking were being identified with Churchill Gardens Estate.  Councillor Acton also advised that on street cycle parking was increasing and she was speaking with car park operators to encourage more off-street cycle parking.  Cycle parking was being requested for new developments.  Ms Rusbatch added that the West End was where many wanted to park their bicycles but was where there was most pressure on the kerb side.  There was cycle parking in developments for visitor purposes and officers were not fully aware of all of these.  They needed to be mapped and work undertaken with key landowners.

·           Ms Rusbatch stated that as part of the proposals for Cycle Superhighway 11 through Regent’s Park, officers had engaged with cycling groups.  The groups were encouraging other cyclists, including sports cyclists to behave in an appropriate fashion.  The Council was working with TfL to take this matter into account in the consultation and implementation of the proposals.  Councillor Acton added that the Royal Parks Police were now going to specific areas of the Parks where there were issues and had fined 29 cyclists.  In the five months prior they had fined 44 cyclists.  

7.4      RESOLVED: That there would be regular monitoring by the Committee of the progress made regarding the actions in the Strategy.