COGS response to Cllr Wayman for reallocation of road space

Response to Councillor Bridge Wayman for ideas from the public for "suggestion onreallocation of road space" 26th May 2020

Dear Members and Officers

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to support the Council's and Government's approach to creating and maintaining modal shift to walking and cycling during the present circumstances.  It cannot have escaped even the most enthusiastic motorists that quieter streets and cleaner air have been the benefits of less traffic, and family groups have been able to exercise safely during lockdown.

I have read the documents prepared by Salisbury City Council and COGS as well as the ideas put forward by my fellow residents Benji Goehl, Pam Rouquette and Councillor Sven Hocking and would fully support them as long as measures are agreed with traffic planners and an accommodation can be found that allows residents' access, disabled parking and bus services to continue. Also relevant is a report for Wiltshire Council by Sustrans on routes to stations prepared some years ago.

These comments concern the wider picture-even if the city centre becomes safer for cyclists and pedestrians, if people cannot reach the city safely from where they live, there is no encouragement to use sustainable transport. In some cases taking space from the carriageway is not feasible and therefore more imaginative and radical solutions may be necessary.  Many of the following suggestions have been made repeatedly over the last 20 years in responses to planning applications, but have largely been ignored or dismissed by Planning.  Perhaps now is the time for a rational discussion by all parties and a more robust negotiating stance with developers and landowners.

Executive summary

Cycling and walking have been identified by Government as means of transport that will assist the recovery of the economy as well as enabling people to take shorter journeys without using public transport in the post-lockdown period.  Salisbury is well-placed to take advantage of this being a small scale city where many journeys to work, school and shops are less than a reasonable cycling distance of 5km/3 miles.  Others have made suggestions for the city centre, these comments highlight some of the barriers that prevent more people from cycling and walking now. They are intended to act as a stimulus to Planning officers, Members and others in authority to begin implementing measures to ensure that the increase in walking and cycling for exercise during the pandemic is maintained and strengthened.

Save the NHS, travel actively!

General points

Please could the Area Board system be temporarily abandoned to allow a rational plan for Salisbury as a whole to be devised, as opposed to "Salisbury"? The Area Board system creates artificial divisions when we all need to work together for the benefit of the city

Robust negotiations with major landowners are needed to open up cycling and walking routes to where people live avoiding major roads (Wilton to Alderbury, Downton Road, Clarendon)

Traffic speeds on both major and minor roads need to be controlled and enforced

Maintenance of the road surface on the near side of each carriageway must be prioritised to give cyclists a comfortable ride without having to constantly avoid potholes and rough sections

Where off road paths can be used, surfaces should be of good quality, regularly swept and maintained, and vegetation kept under control

Proper comprehensive signage of alternative routes for cyclists and pedestrians is needed

Shared use paths will not work if social distancing is to be maintained

Prioritising routes

As lockdown is eased, people start returning to work and schools and businesses open, and a new normal is established, it is important that active travel is encouraged further.  Journeys to shops, employment and education are essential and need to be prioritised for permanent modal shift.  These journeys do not necessarily involve Salisbury city centre so however welcome changes there might be, getting people in and out safely from where they live and to other places they need to go must be the focus in the future. 

Getting to and from Salisbury

Radial routes in and out of Salisbury are not well provided with pavements that are wide enough for social distancing between pedestrians, nor for cycling safely in the carriageway where cyclists might have to move out to maintain a safe distance from others on the pavement.  In some cases there is no quiet, safe, direct alternative for cycling or walking and road space needs to be reallocated where possible.

Priorities in Salisbury are:-

London Road A30-no pavement on the eastern side between Barrington Road traffic lights and the railway bridge.  The western side pavement is being used frequently by both pedestrians and cyclists moving in both directions.  A cyclist travelling east needs to move out into the carriageway to give them the correct distance or avoid anyone who has stepped off the pavement. Alternatives are indirect and hilly (Bishopdown) or unsurfaced (Bourne Valley community farm and Cow Lane). More signage is needed to highlight the cyclists right turn lane near the crematorium

Wilton Road A36-facilities for cycling advisory only and only on the north side.  The only alternative is Churchfields Road where parked vehicles and HGV traffic make the route too hazardous for many cyclists, although a safer alternative that is often used by cyclists and pedestrians is through the station car park. The pavement is only on one side and too narrow for pedestrians maintaining social distancing passing in both directions.  Further west, parked vehicles are a hazard to safe cycling and pedestrians have no pavements at all in sections through Lower Bemerton.  At Park Wall junction, there is no assistance for cyclists in Netherhampton Road wishing to join the cycle way on the north side and they would in any case need to cross over again to reach Wilton. A cycle and improved pedestrian facility is urgently needed on the south side from the junction into Wilton (NCN route 24).

Devizes Road A360-a safe route is identifiable to the west of the main road as far down as Highbury Avenue to accommodate cycling to and from Fugglestone Red, but requires the use of pedestrian only cut throughs that need improvement. The current on and off the pavement piecemeal route on the eastern side of the northern end is quite unsatisfactory and cannot be used by anyone travelling north. At the southern end, contra flow cycling in Coldharbour Lane would accommodate cyclists safely in both directions and provide a route into the city centre using the ring road underpasses

Southampton Road A36 from Petersfinger Road to the light controlled crossing near Marshmead Close (NCN route 24).  Pavement is too narrow for two way pedestrian use, or cycling and is obstructed by overhanging vegetation.  Undeveloped land to the south of the pavement would provide enough space to build a path to accommodate cyclists and pedestrians

Downton Road A338-social distancing is less of a problem at the end nearest to Salisbury, nevertheless cyclists are only provided for in the bus lane on the west side.  Routes to the hospital are well surfaced and signed through Rowbarrow which demonstrates what can be achieved.  It would be helpful if the Park and Ride could be used for hospital visitors and/or staff with a pleasant walk up the bridle way to the entrance.  Further south, the"New Forest route" beside the A338 is unpleasantly close to traffic and surface not wide enough or of good enough quality to encourage cycling.  It is usually obstructed by overhanging thorny vegetation at the Downton end. It can only be reached safely by climbing over a steep hill by the hospital because of the lack of a route through Longford estate to bypass a narrow dangerous section through Britford

Routes to schools

School traffic under normal circumstances undoubtedly contributes to a significant amount of congestion and poor air quality during the mornings.  Most people would consider their journeys at this time as essential, but the chaos outside most primary schools on term time mornings is unacceptable and needs to be a major target for modal shift.  Most children attending primary schools live locally and could easily walk or cycle with their parents if safe routes were available with crossings and/or attendants.  20 mph limits and parking restrictions that are strictly enforced outside all schools are necessary to improve safety and encourage a proportion to use more sustainable modes.

Secondary and tertiary education inevitably involve more lengthy journeys, but this does not necessarily exclude using walking or cycling for a significant proportion of these.  Older children are more independent and should have completed Bikeability training at their primary schools.  

Completion of the link from Longhedge to Laverstock via Old Sarum and Green Lane is urgently needed to provide a traffic free route from housing areas to Laverstock schools and allow Longhedge residents access to the Salisbury cycle network.  Signage also needs to be in place before the next year begins in September.  

The grammar schools could be reached by existing cycle ways (Avon valley path, or the Golden Way) from some housing areas, but others are less well served, particularly Sarum Academy (see Wilton and Devizes Roads above).  Use of Park and Ride for dropping off students from further afield to avoid traffic entering the city needs serious consideration.

Employment

This is generally covered above, the major employers being Bourne Hill, Salisbury District Hospital, and companies on Churchfields.  Out of city employers do not contribute so significantly to traffic to and from Salisbury as they are travelling against the flow at peak times. Nevertheless, safe routes for cycling would contribute to the overall picture of community health and fitness and would benefit residents of the surrounding villages where cycling demand has been suppressed by volume and speed of traffic for many years.  Porton Down and Boscombe Down are key destinations for Salisbury residents' employment and the Winterbournes and Old Sarum carry more traffic as a result.  Some sections of the A338 and The Portway are narrow and vehicles travelling at the national speed limit are intimidating for many cyclists.  Alternative routes are not direct or poorly surfaced rights of way that may be fine for leisure cycling but not for fast commuting.

Dr Gill Anlezark

On behalf of COGS

May 2020