GoBike member, Peter, was out and about in the city centre this week and has sent in these disturbing pictures:

It’s not clear what the purpose is of these closed off lanes. Are they just for pedestrian overspill or meant to be cycle lanes; or both? This bit on St Vincent Street didn’t seem accessible or much use and yet this is a busy street and needs a cycle lane.

Ah, perhaps this is what the barriers are for – for drivers to adjust them to suit their parking requirements?

Ah, it’s much easier to move the traffic cones, as has been done here on Hope Street near the junction with Renfrew Street.

Is this a cycle lane or pedestrian overspill – allowing for when the pub on this corner of George Square opens soon?

And just looking down Queen Street from the previous picture, more “parking places” protected by cones.

On the other side of George Square, just how does one cycle up North Hanover Street? Why’s our lane blocked off?

And look, the promised ability, as per the Experimental Traffic Regulation Order that GoBike commented on, to cycle in front of City Chambers and around the square has been stopped. Why?

This looks good: is it a new cycle lane to help residents and visitors alike to cycle away from Central Station down Union Street and on to their destination? Let’s hope so!

Oh no, it’s just an elongated taxi rank with what looks like a bit of private motor parking thrown in. Och well, we’ll just have to keep braving the buses and taxis.

As if all that wasn’t enough, what about the on-off cycle lane on Dumbreck Road? Some of you might have seen this failure to provide a competent bit of infrastructure as reported by the Evening Times and Road.cc.

Initially created as a coned trial lane, when the cones first disappeared a week ago (and the paint remained) Glasgow City Council told us that the cones would be reinstated, but one week on, they are now saying that they won’t be reinstating the cones “for the safety of all users”!! Clearly not the safety of road users on bikes!

It has also emerged that the way the council have removed this section of the lane goes against agreed policy.

Our council have declared a climate emergency and should be working to transport hierarchy principles, creating a safe network for active travel. Removing protected cycle lanes that have used spend and resource time is not that. Glasgow city council must redesign this lane safely and do it now.

And they try to tell us that painted lines on our roads make for safe cycling?

We know it’s a difficult time but surely the life of people walking and cycling should not be put at risk in this way. Could Glasgow City Council please make it clear where people may go, whether they are walking, cycling or driving?

Byres Road is at the centre of an approved major city region deal regeneration plan, that will include wider, more people friendly pavements, and a safer active travel route through the heart of the high street. Work on this is not due to happen any time soon and in the meantime, it is also one of the streets earmarked for Covid based improvements to “Neighbourhood Space” as a part of Glasgow City Councils Space for People Program. While proposed designs for Byres Road haven’t yet been released, designs in other areas in Glasgow show plans to reutilise on-street parking spaces to extend pavement areas around shops, allowing for safer queuing, and safer and easier social distancing while out and about.

** NOTE: Plans have NEVER proposed the removal of ALL parking on Byres Road. Parking will remain available on-street for people who have accessibility needs, and three nearby car parks will remain in place for others who need to use their cars. **

Byres Road pavements are currently as busy as ever and are now a clear danger zone for two meter encroachment. This is despite current restrictions on car journeys to under 5 miles, and current reticence to using public transport – far more people are now walking and cycling to and around Byres Road. Providing safe space to get around is key to keeping businesses going during these difficult times. If people feel safe, they will want to stay longer, wander more, spend more, and want to return. And so we are extremely disappointed to have seen in local press on Friday (here and here) that the Byres Road and Lanes Business Improvement District (BID) are now lobbying the council to remove parking charges along Byres Road in order to “help businesses recover” as Covid restrictions ease. 

Last year the Byres Road BID also opposed the removal of on-street parking during the Byres Road Placemaking proposals consultation process. GoBike wrote to the Byres Road BID outlining a wealth of evidence that shows how good for business people-friendly places are, and demonstrated with research from other regenerated high streets that car parking isn’t actually as important to business as many people think. So let’s look again at that updated evidence, and apply it to our current status during lockdown.

PLACE IS MORE IMPORTANT TO SHOPPERS THAN PARKING
* Case studies from all around the UK including Edinburgh, Leicester and London found that people’s decisions about where to shop are more influenced by the range of shops, prices, and how pleasant the area is, rather than by parking.
* This is borne out by the Byres Road placemaking survey, which found that People consistently identified the dominance of traffic and car parking spaces as the worst part of the Byres Road experience; they also commonly mentioned that poor air quality put them off.

BIGGEST SPEND ON BYRES ROAD IS VIA ACTIVE TRAVEL
On Byres Road (pre Covid), even with poor walking/cycling provision:
* 69% of shoppers arrived by walking or cycling (40%) or public transport (29%).
* People walking or cycling generate more of the monthly retail spend than those arriving by car – especially during university term-time, when there’s an almost seven-fold difference.

SPACE FOR DISTANCING DURING COVID IS IMPORTANT ON A HIGH STREET
* Post covid we have seen from scenes on Oxford Street in London when shops reopened there, that extra space for queuing and milling about on pavements is needed now more than ever. An area like Byres Road where social distancing is difficult on the pavement, could become a turn off for returning shoppers. Incidentally, there is no on-street parking on Oxford Street.

REDUCING TRAFFIC DURING COVID HAS PROVED POPULAR
* A post Covid YouGov survey in Europe has found that seeing the benefits of reductions in traffic during lockdown has resulted in three quarters of those polled expressing support for “reallocating public space to walking, cycling and public transport”. 68% of the 7545 respondents said they wanted to see air pollution reduction policies – including restriction on car access to city centres – kept in place.

REDUCED TRAFFIC IMPROVES HEALTH
Air quality improvements as a result of the reduction in levels of traffic have improved respiratory health during lockdown in the UK:
* Research by the British Lung Foundation has found that two million people in the UK with respiratory conditions such as asthma have experienced reduced symptoms during the coronavirus lockdown.
* The British Lung Foundation survey found that more than 50% of people with health conditions said they had noticed a decrease in air pollution since the start of lockdown.
* According to Public Health England data, visits to hospital emergency departments for asthma in England fell by half during lockdown.
* Byres Road is currently rated by Air Quality Scotland as one of the 10 worst polluted streets in Scotland with nitrogen dioxide levels in 2019 recorded at an annual mean of 36.7.

BYRES ROAD PARKING FACTS
In our blog on parking and business on Byres Road we have examined and cited the following facts about parking spaces in more detail:
* Motor car lanes on Byres Road have a capacity of no more than 2000 vehicles per day, while pre-Covid, pavements on Byres Road were able to move 19,000 people every hour into and around the street.
* Byres Road currently has 144 on-street parking bays. If we assume a turnover time of 30 minutes and an occupancy of two people per car (generous, given the UK car occupancy average is less than this), that gives a parking load of just over 450 people per hour. Give this same space over to pavements and you add in the region of 26,000 people per hour capacity. Or as in the Space for People Byres Road proposal, split the space half and half with cycle lanes and you get 9,750 on foot and 6,400 by bike moving up and down the street with ease. That’s still allowing for through traffic and buses, which would flow better without suffering the stop-start-death-by-a-thousand-parallel-parks.
* Plus there’s the trade concentrating effect of on-street parking. Offer a parking spot outside the door of a favourite shop and people will often circle the block waiting for it to become free. Yet move the parking provision, and people visiting by car pass through more of the street on foot. A visit to a single shop now becomes a sales opportunity for dozens of businesses.

HIGH STREET ECONOMY IS IMPROVED BY PRIORITISING WALKING AND CYCLING
* Evidence commissioned by the Department for Transport also shows that cycle parking delivers five times higher retail spend than the same area of car parking.
* The evidence showing the benefits to business that converting on-street parking into space for people is repeated all around the world.
* Transport for London found after making improvements to high streets that:
– Walking, cycling, and public realm improvements on high streets can increase retail sales by up to 30%.
– People travelling on foot or by cycle visit the high street more frequently and spend more per month than those visiting by car.
– Cycle parking delivers up to 5x more retail spend per metre than car parking.
* Pedestrians will linger longer on “sticky streets” where there is less traffic and cars don’t dominate. People who cycle make loyal customers, and will flock to streets where they feel comfortable. You can’t easily window shop from a car, so even if parking is moved from outside the shop to nearby streets, public realm improvements and cycle lanes bring more customers to local shops.
* In New York pedestrian improvements at one junction increased local retail sales by 48% and in Kelso, traffic management and public realm improvements increased town centre footfall by 28%.
* In London, projects to improve walking, cycling and the public realm on high streets and shopping areas were followed by 17% reduction in retail vacancies and a 7.5% rise in retail rental values.
* In San Francisco, the first trial ‘parklet’ increased pedestrian traffic in the area by 37% on weeknights and increased people walking with bikes at the weekend by 350%. A similar scheme in Shoreditch, London, increased takings in an adjacent shop by 20%.
* A survey of 38 BIDs in London as part of the evaluation of the ‘Healthy Streets’ approach found that 9 in 10 felt that walking and cycling creates more vibrant areas and 83% said it attracted more customers.
* Bank analysis has found that closing central Madrid to cars resulted in a 9.5% boost to retail spending.

From all of the evidence it remains that economically, even now during post Covid times, a parking space is simply not a viable tradeoff to the amount of people walking, wheeling and cycling that a parking space can accommodate. These are people who can, and will spend money on the high street, people who need to be kept safe. And that is to say nothing about the clear benefits to air pollution, road safety and creating a more pleasant place to be.

We implore Glasgow City Council, press reporting on such campaigns, and once again, the BIDs, to consider the evidence when making decisions on parking vs placemaking.

A street that provides a better shopping experience, cleaner air, and safe provision for walking and cycling will bring a big boost to the economy on all high streets, including Byres Road.

This should be great news and we are very happy that cycling access has been maintained, as contraflow lanes already on eastern sections of these streets.

However, we are disappointed that these new lanes’ are below the national required minimum width, being 1.45 meters at its widest and much narrower along most of them. There is also no segregation, with these also being busy streets, Gordon St being a taxi rank for Central Station and Argyle St being a part of the bus route.

The Argyle St section is the worst, it’s dimly lit and has a surface which can only be described as the surface of the moon, with bumps and craters that would intimidate cyclists of any ability. 

Its effective width is narrowed by the extremely damaged kerb slabs making the lane less than 1 metre, and add in the fact that you will have oncoming buses coming towards you with so little room, it means that this situation means there is no chance of forgiveness if a mistake or course correction to avoid the worst parts of the surface was made! Here we have the experience (via twitter) of someone who tried to cycle on it: 

We brought this immediately to the attention of Cllr Anna Richardson via email, and she responded promptly informing us that:

“1. Resurfacing works will take place to improve the road condition on this lane. 

2. Soft segregation will be ordered and installed as soon as possible. I can’t give exact details of what form this will take at this stage”

We are glad that this issue is to be sorted soon, but we are disappointed that these issues occurred at all and were not resolved before the lane was installed.

We hope to not see issues like this again. GoBike are very supportive of the council and their Space For People programme and want them to act quickly, but to not make a situation worse for those walking, wheeling or cycling in the process.

Follow us on twitter and our blog for updates!

Compare that with the money being spent on trunk roads alone. £580m compared to the annual £80m having been spent on cycling over the last few years and it’s not hard to see why.

The active travel budget has just been increased to £100m per year, which we do welcome, but in a climate emergency this is still far too low, particularly considering these terrifying emission stats.

The other cycling research published this week has come from the Glasgow Centre for Population Health and outlines a review of cycling casualties, near misses and under reporting.

“Several recommendations are made including the need for new and accurate reporting of cycling casualties and more detailed monitoring of who cycles in order to really understand risk, behaviour change and trends; sustained government investment to increase spending levels in line with European cities with high–levels of cycling; lower road speeds; a comprehensive safe cycling infrastructure; and improvements in police enforcement and investigation of cycling casualties.” See the report here.

Both reports back up GoBike’s stance that far more investment is needed in quality cycling infrastructure (and that means getting the design right as well as getting putting the spending in the right place). Until this happens, active travel will not be an option for everybody, of all ages and abilities.

We have a massive resource of evidence pages on our website, including the reports above. Please take a look.

The three TROs (found here for Hillhead and for Byres Road) relating specifically to parking restrictions and the reduction of the speed limit to 20mph. Both of these changes will allow for safer walking and cycling along Byres Road and will make the area a far nicer place to be. We do have some concerns with the specifics of the designs we see in the plans and are working at pushing the council to improve these, but it’s important to state that these TROs relate not to the designs, but to the particular points of parking and speed limit only.

If you do have a moment please drop an email of support in to HillheadTRO@glasgow.gov.uk , ByresRoadTRO@glasgow.gov.uk and ByresRoad20mph@glasgow.gov.uk respectively. Your own words would be preferable but you could state something along the following lines:

Dear Byres Road TRO Team ( ByresRoadTRO@glasgow.gov.uk )
The Glasgow City Council (Byres Road) (Traffic Management and Parking Controls) Order 20_
I would like to add my support to the proposed changes to the parking restrictions outlined in the above TRO. A reduction in parking will allow Byres Road to be a more pleasant place to be. We are pleased to see provision included for disabled parking and believe the changes will further encourage people who can, to use active travel and public transport to access the area.

Dear Byres Road 20mph Team ( ByresRoad20mph@glasgow.gov.uk )
The Glasgow City Council (Byres Road) (20MPH Speed Limit Zone) Order 20_
I would like to add my support to the proposed changes to the speed limit outlined in the above TRO. A reduction to 20mph will make Byres Road a more pleasant place to be, and safer for people walking and travelling by bicycle and car.

Dear Hillhead TRO Team ( HillheadTRO@glasgow.gov.uk )
The Glasgow City Council (Hillhead) (Traffic Management and Parking Controls) Order 20__
I would like to add my support to the proposed changes to the parking restrictions outlined in the above TRO. A reduction in parking will allow Byres Road to be a more pleasant place to be. We are pleased to see provision included for disabled parking and believe the changes will further encourage people who can, to use active travel and public transport to access the area.
However, we are concerned that there is the option for households to apply for a second parking permit. In a city that is trying to reduce the use of private cars, one permit per household, particularly in an area well-served by public transport, is plenty.
We also consider that the cost of parking, at 80p per hour, is far too low, not just here but across the city, and should be more in line with the cost of a return bus fare.

If you want to help further spread the word to increase support, one of our members Jo from Space for People Byres Road has made a print at home handlebars flier pdf. If you’re around the West End and fancy printing off a couple of sheets, these can be easily cut up (cut into strips and then half way up along the dotted lines on either end) and placed on other bikes you see parked up.

https://www.gobike.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Byres-Road_handbar-flyers_v2.pdf

Thanks folks – let’s hope we are nearly on the road to success for a better Byres Road for EVERYBODY.

The results are out from the latest travel survey undertaken at the University of Glasgow and are online here and here for everyone to peruse.

We have been looking through it at GoBike and have major concerns with the wording of one of the provided responses to questions about cycling – “More cycle routes away from busy roads”.

Table 3.12 – Encouraging Cycling (top responses for Gilmorehill Campus)
What would encourage you to cycle more?
39% – Better / safer cycle routes and improved lighting
39% – More cycle routes away from busy roads
34% – Nothing would encourage me to cycle / cycle more
28% – More direct cycle routes

We would argue (and we know others had highlighted this during the survey process too) that “away from busy roads” could as easily be read as “protected from busy traffic” and therefore “segregated cycle lanes” as opposed to the assumption the report is making, that respondents are indicating a preference for quieter cycle routes through the campus, and away from direct routes such as University Avenue. We certainly would suggest that a fear of mixing with traffic is at the heart of why these respondents have chosen this answer for why they don’t cycle more, and not necessarily that they want to be able to cycle a longer more convoluted route to get to where they are going.

The finding of a preference for “away from busy roads” is repeatedly referred to within the final report (e.g. 5.3.2 The most popular response for both staff and students is a desire to see better / safer cycling routes and improve lighting around the University campuses and / or more cycle routes away from busy roads.)

We fear that the ambiguity of the wording may allow for this finding to be artificially skewed. UofG are likely to be looking for backing for their plans to provide cycle routes through their campus in lieu of ignoring the more important direct arterial route of University Avenue. We are highlighting it here in the hope that it might avoid this happening and the 700 people who signed our petition agree.

Protected bike lanes seem the most obvious solution to providing space for cycling “away from busy roads”, and they also tick the important requirement for routes to be direct.  The cost of inconvenience is that people will often choose not to cycle. There has also been another suggestion from within our team though. How about solving the need to create space “away from busy roads” by “making the roads not busy”. Now wouldn’t that be a mind blowing idea!

Buried within the appendices of the UofG Travel Survey Report 2019 are a couple more pertinent comments which we sincerely hope will be taken on board:

GoBike have for years been asking GCC to stop using such an artificially inflated figure as 310kms, which is found repeatedly in the Strategic Action Plan for Cycling, and touted regularly in their press releases. This figure does nothing to help people who find it intimidating to cycle in the same space as multi-tonne buses and cars. Bus corridors typically follow high-traffic roads such as along A82 Great Western Road or A8 Edinburgh Rd, which are very desirable direct routes for cycling but are currently only a realistic option for a small number of people willing to brave these roads on bikes. The small number of high quality protected cycle lanes in Glasgow haven’t been built on these roads, despite the obvious utility to thousands of people, in part because according to the previous cycle route criteria they were already fine!

The realisation has been dawning within GCC over the last few years that people cycling really do need segregation from motor traffic on busy roads, and that realistic cycling journeys depend on a connected, comfortable network. We’re seeing more and more ambitious projects like Connecting Woodside, the Avenues strategy, and the proposed southern extension of the South City Way from Victoria Road to Battlefield and beyond. Hopefully the new recognition of the uselessness of bus lanes and bus corridors for cycling everyday journeys will translate into better prioritisation of roads for investment into cycling-specific infrastructure built to the highest recognised international standards, and an accelerated programme of filtering through motor traffic from residential neighbourhoods and shopping streets.

The council certainly haven’t got it right in the past, and continual scrutiny is needed to ensure that officers don’t become complacent – it is only through the campaigning efforts of GoBike and other organisations, that the key network link of Byres Road will have segregated cycling provision, and the ongoing disappointment of nearby University Avenue (still counted by the council as “traffic calmed with low traffic”!) shows how often developers are still allowed to get away with sticking on dangerous painted “cycle lanes” as an afterthought. Currently, on road painted lanes such as those in the door zone on Kilmarnock Road, and the newly painted particularly dangerous ones on Clarence Drive, are still counted as “cycle routes” (many of the blue lines on their updated map), and we would challenge the council now to take an even braver look at exactly what they should really be including as safe cycling infrastructure in their city

By looking at Glasgow’s online cycle map it’s possible to see how much the previous assessment of the cycling network relied on the presence of bus corridors.

With bus corridors (red lines):

Without bus corridors:

It’s very clear from the maps now how patchy the usable cycling network is, and where investment needs to be targeted to fill in the gaps. GoBike will continue to support Glasgow City Council where they plan infrastructure to make it easier, safer and more pleasant to cycle, and we’ll continue to challenge them where they don’t.

Thanks to member John Chivall for writing this blog for GoBike.

Contents

Section 1: Current Consultations

1. Battlefield design proposals, on-line consultation, closes 14 June
2. Denmark Street, Possil, no waiting and loading at any time, closes 18 June
3. Sunnybank Street, Dalmarnock, traffic calming, closes 20 June
4. Garscube Road, parking and loading restrictions to allow construction of 2-way cycle lanes, closes 12 July
5. Future Policy Development of Taxi and Private Hire Car Licensing, closes 29 July

Section 2: Forthcoming Consultations

1. Safer Streets Pollokshields, Drop-in event Monday 17 June
2. St Enoch area consultation expected to be out on Friday 14 June

Section 3: Consultation Feedback

1. University Avenue consultations, GoBike responses and feedback on Campus Development meeting held 28 May
2. Laurieston 20mph proposal, Glasgow City Council response to our support for the proposal.
3. (City Centre)(Traffic Management) Order 2010 (Variation No24)(Bus Priority) Order 2019

Section 1: Current Consultations, in date order for responses

1.1 Battlefield design proposals, on-line consultation, closes 14 June

There’s plenty of room on Grange Road, above, and Langside Road to connect the South City Way to Battlefield so please do respond to Sustrans’ request for comments on the proposals on-line

Here’s the message that we received from Emily Gait of Sustrans on 04 June:

“Thank you to everyone who has got involved in the Battlefield Street Design project so far. I’m emailing to let you know we have design ideas for the next area of the project which are open today for public feedback.
During March we asked for your comments on the design proposals for Battlefield Rest, Battlefield Road, Mount Florida, Queen’s Drive and the Monument. The feedback and comments from this public consultation will help develop and refine the concept design which will be presented again next month at our next public event where we’ll be outlining the next steps for the project.
Design proposals open for the northern project area
In the meantime we have been focusing on the northern project area and specifically the connection between Battlefield and the city centre. Following on from the feedback and comments we’ve received from the public so far we have created design ideas along Grange Road and Langside Road which include cycle segregation and look at improving pavement widths, bus stop locations and simplifying junctions.
Leave your feedback online
From today until 14^th June the designs are available online for public feedback and comments. Follow this link to view the designs –

https://battlefieldproposals.commonplace.is/overview and please share this with anyone else you think maybe interested.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions at all.
Best regards,
Emily
Emily Gait
Community Engagement Officer | Street Design
Sustrans Scotland | Rosebery House | 9 Haymarket Terrace | Edinburgh | EH12 5EZ
07766 577774 | emily.gait@sustrans.org.uk“

1.2 Denmark Street, Possil, no waiting and loading at any time, closes 18 June

Denmark Street in Possil does not seem to be a cycle route but why not? Cycling is a cheap form of transport and would be just the thing to get people to the community centre on the right of the photo. Apparently, though, there is obstructive parking that puts pedestrians in danger, so Glasgow City Council propose to bring in “No waiting and no loading/unloading at any time” restrictions. Two questions come to mind:

1. Will they be enforced? We don’t see much sign of enforcement elsewhere.
2. Why aren’t cycle lanes being constructed?

Here’s the email that GoBike received on 28 May:

“MESSAGE SENT ON BEHALF OF ANDY WADDELL, DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS, NEIGHBOURHOODS AND SUSTAINABILITY

Dear Sir / Madam,
THE GLASGOW CITY COUNCIL, (DENMARK STREET), (TRAFFIC REGULATION) ORDER 201_
The Council propose to consider the introduction of the above named Traffic Regulation Order.
Please find enclosed a copy of the press notice of the proposed Order, relevant map, statement of reasons and detailed report.
Details of the proposals will also be available on the Glasgow City Council website at www.glasgow.gov.uk/proposedtro . 
As stated in the attached documentation, any person wishing to object to the proposed Order should send details of the grounds for objection in writing to Andy Waddell, Director of Operations, Neighbourhoods and Sustainability, Exchange House, 231 George Street, Glasgow, G1 1RX or by e-mail to land@glasgow.gov.uk  by Tuesday 18 June 2019.
Yours faithfully “
etc.

These are the documents referred to: Press Notice, Plan, Statement of Reason and Report.

This is one that GoBike will be supporting but we will point out the shortsightedness of the proposals.

1.3 Sunnybank Street, Dalmarnock, traffic calming, closes 20 June

Here’s a street that has a roadway and a footway, but where’s the cycleway? Not far from NCN75 and Cuningar Loop and the new housing development built for the Commonwealth Games in Dalmarnock has no cycling provision. Can you believe it? Course you can, it’s Glasgow. Never too late, though and there is plenty of room to get cycle lanes in before there is any more development – or is there?

Here’s the email that we got on 31 May from the City Council, proposing traffic calming – yes, more speed cushions:

“MESSAGE SENT ON BEHALF OF ANDY WADDELL, HEAD OF INFRASTRUCTURE AND ENVIRONMENT, NEIGHBOURHOODS AND SUSTAINABILITY

Dear Sir / Madam

THE GLASGOW CITY COUNCIL (Sunnybank Street) Traffic Calming Scheme 20__

The Council propose to consider the introduction of the above named Traffic Calming Scheme and I wish to establish the views of your organisation.
Background to the proposed Scheme
The scheme is aimed at improving road safety by reducing vehicle speeds, especially around the area of the new primary school.

Roads affected by the proposed Scheme. The list of roads affected by these proposals are:-
·        Sunnybank Street

Details of the proposed Scheme
The proposed Scheme (as depicted on the attached plan) will comprise of:-

• 5 sets of 1.9m x 1.9m, 75mm high speed cushions

Please provide any comments you wish to make on these proposals within 21 days.

In the meantime, should you require any further information or clarification on any points arising from the proposals, do not hesitate to contact my assistant Jordan Tracey on 0141 287 9173.
Should the Council proceed with these proposals; I will write to you again and confirm this.
Yours faithfully”
etc

So how counter-intuitive is that? A new development, a new primary school and no provision for active travel! We have just responded to consultation on road closures around 6 primary schools in other parts of the city and here’s a new school with planning measures now being taken to restrain those parents who choose to take their children by car.
The new school is being built on the east side of Sunnybank Street between Springfield Road and Auckland Wynd.

Here are the documents provided by the City Council: Plan and Spec.

GoBike will be opposing this measure and suggesting that measures be taken to restrict car use and to definitely construct good cycle facilities.

That was written before Rachel submitted this screenshot of the entrance to Sunnybank Street from Springfield Road:

So what is happening here? This view clearly shows that only buses, taxis and cycles are allowed into the northern part of Sunnybank Street!

This picture taken at approximately 16:45 on 12 June, shows the south end of the bus gate – shame about the road sign – that runs between Garvald Street and Springfield Road. While your Digest author was at the site numerous vehicle drivers ignored the signage – at one point 4 vehicles, 2 in each direction were on this short length of road, while others obeyed the signage. One driver turned back to inform your author, who was taking photos with a mobile phone, that this hasn’t been a bus lane since 2014! How kind, but how curious.

Prior to submission of the GoBike response, a check on the status of this signage will be made with Glasgow City Council, but either way, if 50% or so of vehicles ignore the signage, what is the point of it? If it is no longer valid it should be removed; if it is still valid it should be enforced.

If you live in the area, or have an interest, do please get in touch with the local councillors, or write into

1.4 Garscube Road, parking and loading restrictions to allow construction of 2-way cycle lanes, closes 12 July

We now have a proposal for a two-way cycle lane on the east side of Garscube Road (to the right on the photo above) from Firhill Road to Dobbies Loan. Here’s the email that GoBike received on 31 May:

“MESSAGE SENT ON BEHALF OF ANDY WADDELL, DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS, NEIGHBOURHOODS AND SUSTAINABILITY

Dear Sir / Madam

The Glasgow City Council (Garscube Road) (Traffic Regulation and Parking Controls)  Order 201_

The Council propose to consider the introduction of the above named Traffic Regulation Order.
Please find enclosed a copy of the press notice of the proposed Order, relevant map, statement of reasons and detailed report.
Details of the proposals will also be available on the Glasgow City Council website at www.glasgow.gov.uk/proposedtro.

As stated in the attached documentation, any person wishing to object to the proposed Order should send details of the ground for their objection in writing to Group Manager, Sustainable Transport, Exchange House, 231 George Street, Glasgow, G1 1RX or by email to land@glasgow.gov.uk by Friday, 12 July 2019.
Yours faithfully”

Here are the documents referred to in the email: Press Notice, Relevant Map 1of 2, Relevant Map 2 of 2, Statement of Reasons and Detailed Report.

This is one that we will be supporting, although we do wish there would be a one-directional cycle lane each side. We will, though, be looking carefully at the plans to ensure they don’t repeat any concerns from elsewhere.

1.5 Future Policy Development of Taxi and Private Hire Car Licensing, closes 29 July

This is one that we heard about from a Community Council contact but you might be interested in the Future Policy Development of the vehicles you so often share an Advanced Cycle Box with?

Here’s the message that we received on 11 June:

“Message and attachment sent on behalf of Glasgow City Council’s Licensing and Regulatory Committee:
Glasgow City Council’s Licensing and Regulatory Committee
Future Policy Development of Taxi and Private Hire Car Licensing

Glasgow City Council’s Licensing and Regulatory Committee‘s consultation on the future policy development of taxi and private hire car licensing in Glasgow is now live. The Licensing and Regulatory Committee would be interested to hear views. The consultation document can be viewed using the link below:  
Consultation link to the Future Policy Development of Taxi and Private Hire Car Licensing:  https://www.glasgow.gov.uk/consultations

Please note that the consultation will close on Monday 29 July 2019 so all responses must be received by this date.“

This is the document that was attached to the message. GoBike has not yet determined its view on this but please do contact us if you consider there are critical points to raise.

Section 2: Forthcoming Consultations

2.1 Safer Streets Pollokshields, Drop-in event Monday 17 June

Bill Fraser, GoBike member, Pollokshields Community Councillor and chair of the Pollokshields Trust tells us that the local community has:
” funding approval from Sustrans for this project. We also have the necessary endorsement from GCC.
The attached proposal lists the objectives of the programme although this phase is principally a data gathering and opinion gathering exercise:

– Reduce dangerous driving behaviour within the area
– Facilitating safer walking and cycling
– Provide safer crossing points for pedestrians
– Create culture where active travel is given priority over car travel

We would appreciate Go Bike input based on your campaigning elsewhere:

The point of this research is to ensure it is holistic, remains community-led and contributes to the emerging Pollokshields Local Plan whose development has been funded by Making Places plus a live plan for Asset Transfer of a major piece of land as a Community Common. You can read about our progress so far on www.markmakers.org.uk . Subject to more funding scheduled for Summer 2019 we will complete this site’s refurbishment as an active community space by 2020-21.

Look forward to your input.
Best wishes
Bill Fraser
Chair, The Pollokshields Trust
A charity registered in Scotland (no.SC047413)“

2.2 St Enoch area consultation expected to be out on Friday 14 June

According to the Evening Times on 11 June, we can expect proposals for the regeneration of the St Enoch Area from the riverside to Argyle Street to be available from Friday!

Section 3: Consultation Feedback

3.1 University Avenue consultations, GoBike responses and details of Campus Development meeting held 28 May

In our Consultation Extra last Friday, 07 June, we published the 2 letters we have written in response to the 2 consultations for University Avenue.
This is the letter we sent in support of the proposal for 20mph and this is the objection we submitted to the proposal for waiting and loading restrictions and painted uphill cycle lanes.

Euan was one of the GoBike attendees at the Campus Development meeting held by Glasgow University on 28 May and has sent this short summary: ” It would appear the new campus will be accessible to cycles but unlikely to form a primary route. Their position on University Avenue remains unchanged: primarily for passing private motor traffic. “
Here are some images from the presentation given by the University:

3.2 Laurieston Phase 2 20mph Speed Limit Order 201_

We submitted our qualified letter of support for this proposal on 28 June. The closing date for the consultation was 07 June but already on 31 May we received this reply from Glasgow City Council:

MESSAGE SENT ON BEHALF OF MICHAEL BRADY, GROUP MANAGER – TRAFFIC AND ROAD SAFETY, NEIGHBOURHOODS AND SUSTAINABILITY

Dear Miss Fort,

Thank you for your undernoted email and your support for the proposed 20mph zone as part of the Laurieston Phase 2 development.
With regard to your comment about introducing a mandatory 20mph zone throughout the city, I can advise that there is currently a bill being considered by the Scottish Parliament to reduce the speed limit on restricted roads from 30mph to 20mph. Restricted roads are normally street-lit urban or residential streets, although there are some exemptions to this. If this bill is passed into law, it would then set then a default mandatory speed limit of 20mph on restricted roads. Under current legislation, Local Authorities do have the ability to change the speed limit of roads to 20mph, however this has to be carried out on a road by road basis and as you can imagine is resource intensive.
I can advise that the enforcement of the permitted speed limit on a public road, be it 20mph or otherwise, is the responsibility of Police Scotland, not the local authority.

I trust the above information is of assistance, however, should you require any further information please contact (name and phone number deleted by GoBike)

Michael Brady, Group Manager – Traffic and Road Safety, Neighbourhoods and Sustainability“

Just notice that very traditional salutation! That apart, it will be interesting to see Glasgow City Council’s reaction to the outcome of the 20mph default urban speed limit bill currently going through the Scottish Parliament.

3.3 (City Centre)(Traffic Management) Order 2010 (Variation No24)(Bus Priority) Order 2019

Back in November last year, in Digest 22, in Item 1.5, we detailed consultation on Oswald Street (north of Midland Street) and Union Street plus parking changes that impinge on the contraflow cycle lane on West Nile Street. Here’s the letter of qualified support that we submitted.

We have now, 11 June, received this reply:

MESSAGE SENT ON BEHALF OF ANDY WADDELL, DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS, NEIGHBOURHOODS AND SUSTAINABILITY

Dear Ms Fort

THE GLASGOW CITY COUNCIL, (CITY CENTRE)(TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT) ORDER 2010, (VARIATION No24)(BUS PRIORITY) ORDER 2019

I refer to your support of the above named Traffic Regulation Order on behalf of Go Bike and can advise that your support was reported and considered. The Council have decided under its scheme of delegated functions to proceed with the proposal as advertised.
The Order was made on the 3rd June 2019 and an advert was placed in the Evening Times on 6th June 2019 stating that the Traffic Regulation Order has been made.

Should you require any further information on the above named Order please contact my assistant (name and contact phone number removed by GoBike).

Yours sincerely“
etc

So no improvements to the original proposals to actively encourage cycling but at least there should be fewer cars for those of us who do cycle in the vicinity of Central Station.

That’s it for now, but let’s hope that Mark Ruskell’s bill for a default 20mph limit is successful this week.

Consultation on both the 20mph proposed speed limit and the waiting and loading regulations, which includes the uphill painted cycle lanes, close today so there is just time, if you haven’t done so already, to sign our petition:

https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/make-university-avenue-safe-for-cyclinghttps://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/make-university-avenue-safe-for-cycling

Here are the 2 letters that GoBike has submitted this morning:

20mph proposal which we support, and the waiting and loading proposals to which we object most strongly since they do not make cycling safer.

There’s still time to get your views in, by email to land@glasgow.gov.uk but only do this after you have signed the petition!

However the £1bn campus redevelopment plans have failed to future-proof transport-links around campus. Many staff, students and commuters have been left disappointed by the absence of a safe route for cycling on University Avenue.  Consequently the petition for University Avenue to include such provision has now achieved over 500 signatures (2).

Alvaro Perez Guardiola, a student at the university commented “The poor excuse of a cycle lane on University Avenue is simply unacceptable –  painted on, narrow, used as parking spots in some places… you’d think the Council would want to follow their Climate Emergency Declaration with real action to prioritise active commute!”

Initiatives to get more people on their bikes have long focused on the considerable health benefits. Recently the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel On Climate Change (IPCC) report made specific reference to walking and cycling as a pathway to help ensure the planet remains habitable (3). Yet Glasgow retains one of lowest rates of cycling amongst European cities (4).

John Donnelly Co-Convenor of GoBike,the Strathclyde Cycle Campaign stated “After years spent struggling to secure space for people of all ages and abilities to cycle on Byres Road, we genuinely believed that Glasgow had turned a corner in terms of sustainable transport.”  

“However, you literally turn the corner at Byres Road and we are having to make the same arguments all over again. Research consistently shows that the greatest barrier to cycling in this country is safety. The fact that the University of Glasgow is choosing to ignore this makes a mockery of their climate commitments (5).“

“GoBike is calling for University Avenue to be made safe for cycling so anyone of age and ability who wants to cycle has the opportunity to do so safely.”

[1] https://www.gla.ac.uk/news/headline_646140_en.html

[2] https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/make-university-avenue-safe-for-cycling#signature-form

[3] https://www.ipcc.ch/site/assets/uploads/sites/2/2019/02/SR15_Chapter4_Low_Res.pdf

[4] https://www.understandingglasgow.com/indicators/transport/cycling/scottish_vs_european_cities

[5] https://www.glasgow.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=24266&hootPostID=1ba689924443c97e20e491eec1cf6399