The DCG monthly members meetings are held on the 1st Tuesday of every Month, at 7:30pm at The Tap Pub (upstairs), Derwent Street.
All DCG members welcome.
Minutes from Tuesday 5th February 2019 are attached
Keep the Friar Gate Cycle Lane
The safety of vulnerable road users must be paramount
This cycle/bus/taxi lane on Friar Gate is to be removed by Derby City Council and turned into a second, faster, lane for cars and lorries as part of their Air Quality Preferred Option.
These changes will increase the risk to cyclists using this route into Derby and that is not acceptable.
Derby Cycling Group objects to these proposals in the strongest possible terms.
Please help us to keep this cycle lane and the right-turn protected space in front of the traffic island,
and this right turn facility which is also to be removed,
E-mail or write to the local councillors to object to the removal of these cycle facilities:
Please write before 15th February, 2019.
The councillors below represent the two wards where the facilities are located. They do not necessarily support the removal of the cycling facilities.
Mackworth Ward:
Diane Froggatt: diane.froggatt@derby.gov.uk
Adrian Pegg: adrian.pegg@derby.gov.uk
Paul Pegg: paul.pegg@derby.gov.uk
Darley Ward:
Lisa Eldret lisa.eldret@derby.gov.uk
Martin Repton martin.repton@derby.gov.uk
Jack Stanton jack.stanton@derby.gov.uk
Please also contact the council cabinet members most involved with decisions regarding Derby’s clean air proposals
Council Leader Chris Poulter christopher.poulter@derby.gov.uk
Deputy Council Leader Matthew Holmes matthew.holmes@derby.gov.uk
Full contact details for all councillors are on the council website: Derby City Councillors
If you use either of these facilities, then please tell the councillors why it’s important for them to be retained or, even better, improved and tell them why NO highways scheme should make cycling (or walking) infrastructure worse and more dangerous.
If these facilities are not in your area, think that your local cycle path or lane could be next to go. Please inform your local councillors, or the councillors above, that you think they should be retained and why.
Some of Derby Cycling Group’s opinions:
- We believe facilities like these should either remain unchanged or be upgraded to something better, but not removed.
- The cycle/bus lane is a “safe haven” for getting access to the
cycle/bus “gate” onto lower Friar Gate, it enables many people to cycle
along here into the city centre.
- Removing the cycle lane will make the road more dangerous for cyclists. The changes will force cyclists to ride into the outside lane, into faster traffic, to get onto the lower Friar Gate cycle lane.
- We are concerned that a road safety audit would be critical of the revised road layout.
- At the very least it will make this manoeuvre feel dangerous and many people will simply stop cycling here.
- The facility opposite Brick Street is poorly designed, but it is used. This was witnessed by DCG on a site visit with council officers. A better alternative should be installed instead of removing it altogether.
- Derby’s clean air strategy must encourage more cycling and walking; the council’s proposal will reduce active travel by removing infrastructure which supports it.
- More cycling and walking are the best way to reduce pollution and congestion. This is recognised both by the council, Public Health England and DEfRA.
Derby Cycling Group has proposed improvements to the city council’s Air Quality Preferred Option to make it better for cyclists and pedestrians: Clean Air Preferred Option – DCG Response
We had a lengthy site visit with the air quality team to view and discuss our suggestions and to talk about other options. We have heard nothing about the proposal since the visit, so we assume nothing has changed.
We have asked that a road safety audit of the scheme be conducted and for the findings of the audit to be made public.
We have asked if any of the discussed changes will be adopted into the clean air proposals, but have not been told anything. We have not been told if a road safety audit of the scheme has been carried out or not.
Please help to keep these important features in our cycle network.
Please look out for further action and campaigning by Derby cycling Group on this issue.
Stripping away our Safety
Derby City Council are planning on degrading and removing cycling infrastructure on Friargate between Brick St and Bridge St.
The plans will see the removal of a bus/ cycle lane to create space for two lanes of cars.
The plans will increase the number of cars, increase pollution and increase the danger to road cyclists.
We want you to join us at this protest. Bring a bike, a placard, an instrument or just yourself.
We are going to organise bike rides around the infrastructure and have invited local councillors to join us.
We want to inform the public of these dangerous changes that will strip away our safety. Protest starts at 11am and at 11:30 members of the group’s committee and anyone else who wants to join us will strip down to their underwear in protest. Protest likely to end around 12 noon.
Surprisingly the media will also be invited. Meet before 11am on Saturday 16th Feb at junction of Friar Gate and Vernon Street.
The council’s plans are unacceptable and dangerous.
DCG Members Meeting Minutes – Tues 8th january 2019
The DCG monthly members meetings are held on the 1st Tuesday of every Month, at 7:30pm at The Tap Pub (upstairs), Derwent Street.
All DCG members welcome.
Minutes from Tuesday 8th January 2019 are attached
Submit video footage to the Police
Derbyshire Police are now encouraging people to submit dash cam or other video footage of road traffic offences for them to review and process as appropriate (warning, prosecution, etc.).
More details here
It’s good see in the police information that “It’s vital to remember that the vulnerable road users such as pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists and horse riders are at much greater risk of serious injury and death than those in cars. Our priority should always be to protect those most vulnerable.”
DCG Members Meeting Minutes – Tues 4th December 2018
The DCG monthly members meetings are held on the 1st Tuesday of every Month, at 7:30pm at The Tap Pub (upstairs), Derwent Street.
All DCG members welcome.
Minutes from Tuesday 4th December 2018 are attached
Derby Clean Air Proposals – Where is the Cycling and Walking?
Derby’s Clean Air Preferred Option was out for consultation until today. The proposal failed entirely to provide any new infrastructure for cycling which, by enabling more people to cycle, would have helped reduce car travel and improved air quality.
But it went further than that.
It proposes that two pieces of cycle-specific infrastructure be removed: a permissive right turn from Friar Gate into Brick Street and a dedicated bus/cycle lane leading to the bus/cycle gate on Friar Gate at the junction of Bridge Street. Furthermore, wherever motor vehicles are to be prevented from making certain manoeuvres on Stafford Street and the Mercian Way roundabout, cyclists will be prohibited from making the same manoeuvres.
All in all, a very short sighted approach, in our view.
Derby Cycling Group has submitted proposals for enhancements to the council scheme to make it much more cycle and pedestrian friendly. Read our response here:
Clean Air Preferred Option – DCG Response
We hope the Air Quality team will take these enhancements on board; we don’t see any reason why they should not because with only one exception, they do not take any road space away from motor traffic, and yet deliver fantastic benefits for those who travel by bike and some for pedestrians as well.
Previously we made a press release expressing our general issues with the initial proposal: Press Release
DCG Members Meeting Minutes – Tues 6th November 2018
The DCG monthly members meetings are held on the 1st Tuesday of every Month, at 7:30pm at the Golden Eagle Pub, Agard Street.
All DCG members welcome.
Minutes from Tuesday 6th November 2018 are attached
New cycling offences: Government plans and consultation
New cycling offences: causing death or serious injury when cycling
In August 2018 the Government announced the consultation Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy safety review: proposal for new cycling offences. To address the few high profile incidents of cyclist causing the death of pedestrian, the Government propose to introduce new offences for causing death or serious injury by dangerous or careless cycling. This consultation seeks views on the new offences and the associated penalties, the consultation closes 11.45pm on 5 November 2018.
The Government instigated a review of the laws relating to cycling offences which was undertaken by Laura Thomas, a Barrister at Birketts LLP. The review considers the existing law applicable to cycling and driving, together with the respective penalties that may be applied; specific attention being paid to the offences of causing death or serious injury. The author concluded that disparities exist between the offences relating to cycling and driving, also in the penalties applicable to the respective offences.
The report puts a compelling case for the review of cycling offences and alignment of the penalties. However, the final clause states; ‘Considering the wider impact of legislative change, this review is focused specifically on cycling. However, some of the issues outlined above would apply in respect of all non-mechanically propelled vehicles such as horses, horse and carriages etc. This is particularly so if, rather than setting out new legislation specifically for cyclists; there was an amendment to existing legislation to remove the “mechanically propelled” stipulation.’ This suggestion would apply a consistent set of offences to all road users, not just focusing on cyclist. Continue reading New cycling offences: Government plans and consultation
A38 Derby Junctions – Consultation: Ask for Better Cycle Routes
Highways England have a project to create “grade separated” junctions at the Kingsway, Markeaton and Little Eaton Islands on the A38. That means the local roads will be at ground level, but the A38 carriageway will be either above or below the local roads, on a bridge or in an underpass. DCG have been campaigning to make the scheme deliver good quality cycling and walking routes alongside and crossing the A38 as well as the “improvements” for motorised traffic. It is important that the A38 becomes less of a barrier for cycling and walking than it is today, and that this project enables more local journeys to be made without a car.
The project is out for consultation now, please submit a response supporting the cycling schemes already being proposed but also asking for even more and better improvements than these.
Deadline: end of Thursday 18th October, 2018
There is an online form where you can answer pre-set questions : A38 Online Response Form
and you can also e-mail the project team with your own ideas at. A38DerbyJunctions@highwaysengland.co.uk
We recommend you fill in the form, AND send an e-mail if you have other points which you wish to make that are not covered by their questionnaire.
DCG is submitting a formal response to the cycling elements of the scheme, here is the draft of that response: A38 Derby Junctions Consultation – DCG Response Oct 2018
A38 Consultation Page and Documents
In April 2018, DCG met with Highways England’s agents, AECom. We presented a list of requirements and after the meeting, marked up how well the project was planning the deliver them; see the results in the. DCG A38 Derby Junctions Checklist .
The A38 junctions project always has had some intent of delivering better cycling and walking routes than exist today; they made some significant improvements by the time of our meeting in April and have made other improvements prior to this latest consultation.
However, there are still issues to address:
- The project is not committed to segregated cycling and walking routes (ie where the cycling and walking paths are separated from each other).
- Some routes are not direct, others are not continuous and at least one is ridiculously narrow.
- There is great potential for better cycling routes leading to/from the new facilities proposed alongside/across the A38, but many have not been realised in the designs so far. There must be a plan to maximise the cycling and walking benefits from the A38 Junctions project by building these “nearby” feeder routes.
Completing the Consultation: When you make your response, please ask the project to fulfil the following general criteria when they submit their final plans and the planning application:
- The scheme must enable more people to travel locally without a car, specifically enabling more cycling and walking journeys
- The scheme must provide continuous, direct, segregated cycling and walking routes, separated from the main A38 carriageway and its slip roads.
- Where cycling and walking routes cross the A38 or its slip roads, signal controlled crossings must be provided.
- All cycling and walking routes must be off-road, must be safe enough and feel safe enough, for parents to allow their children to use them to get to school or to visit friends.
In addition, the following specific requirements are important:
- Retain the “curly bridge” over Queensway into Markeaton Park – this is planned to be replaced, make sure they know it’s important.
- Build a good quality cycle path from Little Eaton to Pektron Islands alongside the A61 to replace the horrendously narrow path which is there now; buy land to enable a segregated path to be built.
- Create a signal controlled crossing over the A61 onto the existing cycle path so you can cycle out of Breadsall without taking your life in your hands
- Build the section of the Derwent Valley Cycleway from Haslams Lane to the A38, alongside the River Derwent.
- Ensure existing cycle paths remain open AT ALL TIMES during the construction of the A38 junctions, including the provision of diversion which are ACCESSIBLE TO ALL riders and walkers.
- All construction traffic must be required to have all the current cyclist detection technology fitted and operational, and work site entrances should employ Trixie mirrors to ensure drivers entering/leaving the site can see cyclists crossing on the cycle paths or on the road.