Question submitted to Greater Cambridge Partnership Joint Assembly on 4th June 2020

Question regarding agenda item 10, ‘City Access Strategy, update and support for Covid-19 recovery’:

Arbury Road is a residential street with terraced homes close to narrow pavements in the easternmost section, and the 20mph speed limit is routinely flouted. It is an important link in the county cycle route network but the GCP installation of cycle lanes on the western part left a gap in cycle provision at the east end which remains dangerous for pedestrians and cyclists – especially acute when social distancing for Covid-19. The Histon Road project works are expected to flush additional cars down our street creating even more hazardous conditions and worsening air quality.

Agenda item 10 paras 3.5 and 3.6 says that the GCP is supporting work to identify measures to create more space for pedestrians and cyclists in response to Covid-19,  however Arbury Road does not appear on the list.

The Department for Transport expects councils to use pop-up and temporary interventions to create environments that are safe for walking and cycling. They expect measures like ‘point closures’ to be used to create low-traffic filtered neighbourhoods.

Our recent survey* shows that a large majority of those who live on the road are ready and willing to try experimental or temporary schemes that would stop rat-running, reduce air pollution and improve community health. A point closure between Leys Road and the Cambridge North Academy on Arbury Road would achieve that.

Will the Joint Assembly resolve to add Arbury Road, with description ‘prohibit through movements between Cambridge North Academy and Leys Road’, to the list of schemes prioritised for implementation to enable and encourage more walking and cycling between West and East Cambridge?

Here’s the video of the question being read out (the answer comes a bit later after all the questions are read out & the discussion occurs):

Could this measure be applied to Arbury Road? There’s little sign of it at present but why not?..

https://www.theguardian.com/education/2020/may/09/uk-councils-to-enforce-temporary-road-closures-for-safer-school-runs?utm_term=RWRpdG9yaWFsX0d1YXJkaWFuVG9kYXlVS19XZWVrZW5kLTIwMDUxMA==&utm_source=esp&utm_medium=Email&CMP=GTUK_email&utm_campaign=GuardianTodayUK

UK Councils to enforce temporary road closures:

https://www.theguardian.com/education/2020/may/09/uk-councils-to-enforce-temporary-road-closures-for-safer-school-runs?utm_term=RWRpdG9yaWFsX0d1YXJkaWFuVG9kYXlVS19XZWVrZW5kLTIwMDUxMA%3D%3D&utm_source=esp&utm_medium=Email&CMP=GTUK_email&utm_campaign=GuardianTodayUK

We haven’t seen or heard anything about this here in Cambridge, but Arbury Road is the perfect candidate with two schools on the road

Sign our petition for safer walking and cycling on Arbury Road East during the COVID-19 lockdown and into the future

https://www.change.org/arburyroadeast 

https://www.change.org/arburyroadeast

Our recent survey demonstrated how much our community was concerned with levels of traffic on Arbury Road East and particularly the consequent safety concerns due to traffic volume, speeding traffic, and pollution.

* 95% of you wanted action now due to serious safety concerns and pollution.

* 87% of you supported filtering the road to prevent through commuter traffic (whilst still allowing access for residents, taxis, deliveries, emergency vehicles and business users).

Now, since the current COVID-19 crisis began, the speeding problem has got much worse and made it even riskier for people walking and cycling here. We are trying to do our part to protect the NHS and keep a safe 2m physical distance from each other while walking to the shops or for daily exercise, but this is becoming increasingly difficult.

The pavements are too narrow and the road is often too dangerous because of the high-speed motor traffic passing through.

Our community needs more space to walk and cycle safely, while respecting physical distancing guidelines. Filtering is a solution that will open up more community space, stop the speeding through-traffic and protect key workers who are cycling on Arbury Road, all while ensuring that everyone’s essential services are accessible by any transport mode.

Many other parts of the country are working on ways to make their streets safer to help people who are making essential journeys on foot or bike. It makes a lot of sense and we need to get started before the problem gets any worse.

Let’s work together to ensure safe walking and cycling on Arbury Road East during the COVID-19 lock down and into the future.

Please support our proposal to filter Arbury Road by signing this petition

https://www.change.org/arburyroadeast 

Please share this with your neighbours

Thank you!

ARERA

Results from the Make Arbury Road better! ARERA Survey.

Overview

The Arbury Road East Residents Association (ARERA) was officially inaugurated on 9 December 2019. ARERA aims to provide a forum for discussion of issues affecting residents and business owners on Arbury road, and its side streets, from the North Cambridge Academy school to the junction at Milton Road.

Residents/business operators have come together to discuss options as it is felt that the use of Arbury Road as a through-route/cut through is not keeping with its designated status – e.g. 20mph designation, its narrow width, multiple schools, shops, popular cyclist route, and a pedestrian zone accessing homes/schools/shops/businesses etc.

Issues discussed at the meeting included:

• views on whether cars should be actively discouraged in an era of climate emergency
• views about lorries not being restricted by weight
• views about bus services
• views about safety and usage of pavements for cycling and parking
• views about whether Arbury road, as currently configured, actually splits the community in two
• views about the safety of Arbury Road junction with Milton Road specifically
• whether people (perhaps older) avoid cycling and walking because they consider it too dangerous
• views on pollution, vibration, and noise
• impact of the Histon Road one-way development and the Milton Road development plans

In this survey, we want to collect your views concerning traffic and road usage from both residents and businesses on/just off Arbury Road, with the aim of trying to develop and present ideas for improvements to the County Council and the Greater Cambridge Partnership.

Results

• Full survey results (pdf)
• Traffic survey results (pdf)
• How can congestion be reduced in Greater Cambridge? (website)