Our letter on cycle safety and traffic speeds in Camden is published in this week’s Camden New Journal (Thurs November 10 2011):
Over the last 10 years London has made real advances in getting people out of their cars and into cycling.
Despite many more cyclists on the road there are clearly concerns about whether Transport for London is taking the increasing cycle safety needs seriously.
We were really pleased to see that Councillor Paul Braithwaite had brought a motion to Camden Council on tackling known dangerous hotspots and junctions. This is essential to reassure cyclists, in particular women, they are welcome on the roads.
We’d also like to see more initiatives that encourage cycling, including extending London’s cycle hire scheme into new areas.
The Twenty’s Plenty campaign to roll out more 20mph zones would do a great deal to make neighbourhoods nicer to live in as well as making a significant reduction in road deaths.
If we want more parents to feel confident to send their kids off to school by foot or bike, for example, we need to cut the speed of the traffic they are expected to negotiate.
Susan Poupard
Camden Friends of the Earth
The council’s Cabinet Member for Sustainability and Transport, Cllr Sean Birch, has assured us that “Camden has been lobbying and working with TfL and the Camden Cycling Campaign to identify the key areas in Camden that are of a danger to cyclists and pedestrians. Our whole transport strategy is geared towards road safety and the encouragement of sustainable forms of transport.” And that the council “will continue to work with TfL and lobby when necessary to make our streets as safe and welcoming as they can be for cyclists and pedestrians.”
We look forward to seeing appropriate action being taken by Camden Council and TfL to address known dangerous junctions and roads. We also support Camden’s current proposal to change its contractual conditions to include Freight Operator Recognition Scheme (FORS) accredited operators.
See the London Cycling Campaign Camden for more on action needed to make our streets safer.