Parking controls and 20mph for Partick but no contraflow cycling on one-way streets.

Glasgow City Council are currently consulting on a Traffic Regulation Order to introduce a mandatory 20mph speed limit in a significant number of streets in Partick, see https://www.glasgow.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=18127  This follows earlier proposals to “manage” parking, which introduced some new one-way streets.  Unfortunately parking is still being allowed to a significant extent on many streets, to such an extent in fact that the Council refuse to allow contraflow cycling on these streets.  This is despite contraflow cycling on one-way streets being the default position in the design guide the Council uses, Cycling by Design!  Further details on our Consultations page and our Design Guides page.  Our letter of support for the 20mph proposal includes our concerns: GoBike Partick 20mph support with concern 100717

We have also responded to on-line consultations for Glasgow City Council’s proposed Mini-Holland scheme (details were on view on 23 June), the Green Party’s ambitious proposals to update their active travel policy and the future of the Walk, Cycle, Vote campaign.  We have supported a minor proposal from Glasgow City Council to control parking on Havannah Street/Duke Street.  See our Consultations page for details.

Glasgow to install more “Speed Cushions”. Please object – and here’s why.

Speed bumps (Marine Road East, Prestatyn)
Photo © Jaggery (cc-by-sa/2.0)

We have heard from Glasgow City Council that they propose to install 2 sets of speed cushions outside St Fillan’s Primary School in Cathcart, with the aim of ensuring that drivers reduce their speed to the 20mph zone limit.  The text of the e-mail received from the Council is given on our Consultations page.  We have objected on 3 grounds:

  1. GoBike member, Bob Downie, presented a petition to the City Council 2 years ago, proposing a default city-wide 20mph speed limit (allowing for exceptions for some roads to be 30mph or even more).  This was well received by Councillors at the Petitions Committee, but now the Council has reverted to its original piecemeal approach.
  2. Mark Ruskell, Green MSP currently has a bill out for consultation, see: http://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/20mphSpeedLimits/  and, if successful, this would bring about default speed limits in all our urban centres of 20mph.
  3. Speed Cushions and tables are very expensive to install and maintain.

Our letter of objection is here: GoBike Crompton Avenue traffic calming Objection 070617 and while we point out that we do not wish to endanger any child, we consider that a better solution for all will be a city-wide 20mph default speed limit.  We will also be voicing our concern to the Glasgow Councillors who attended our Hustings in April.

Further information on traffic calming is given in this excellent blog by one of our GoBike members, “Glasgow Cycleman”.

Please do object to this proposal and, if you live in Glasgow, do let your ward Councillors know about this expensive move.  At the time of the 2015 petition it was estimated that it would take 40 years to achieve what the petition and now Mark Ruskell’s bill will give us.

If you haven’t responded to the survey on Mark Ruskell’s bill yet, please follow the link in point 2 above.

Responses to Glasgow City Council and Scottish Government Proposals

Recently GoBike has responded positively to proposals from Glasgow City Council for stopping waiting and loading/unloading on the roads in Riverview, see photo, to Mark Ruskell’s proposals for a 20mph urban default speed limit in Scotland, to public realm improvements at Govan Cross and to parking controls in Cranstonhill.  Details may be seen on our Consultations page.

If you wish to comment on the most recent of these, ie the waiting restrictions in Riverview, the consultation is open until Tuesday 13 June and all the details may be found here on the Glasgow City Council website.

The Mark Ruskell 20mph consultation is open until 07 August and it is important that people respond – favourably – to this!  Please support this measure!

Proposed Restricted Roads (20mph Limit) (Scotland) Bill – please give your views

This is the survey we have been waiting for – Mark Ruskell’s bill on reducing the default speed limit for restricted roads in Scotland to 20mph.  Mark is the Green MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife and the Scottish Parliament’s survey is here: http://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/20mphSpeedLimits/

You can read more about Mark Ruskell here: Mark Ruskell MSP

Mark’s proposed bill is an important one in that it covers all of Scotland and will, if implemented, lead to a consistent approach across the country.  When GoBike met the Transport Minister, Humza Yousaf, in February this year, we were told that the Government would not put any obstacles in the way of the bill.  So we are very hopeful that it will go through – but it needs as much support as it can get.  PLEASE DO COMPLETE THE SURVEY! There are 11 questions but there is the option to save and return to it.