consultation

Add you voice to the call for space for cycling by responding to consultations. Ask for new infrastructure to be made suitable for cyclists of all ages and abilities. Use our response as a template if you are not sure what to write.

Hatchford Brook Cycleway consultation

There is a consultation for a new cycle route in Sheldon Country Park, alongside the Hatchford Brook, next to the golf course. The route will have 2.5m tar-and-chip paths installed, and links across Coventry Road to Elmdon Park in Solihull. In Push Bikes' response to this consultation we have noted that a 3m minimum for shared use paths is preferable, and that any chicanes and vehicular barriers installed must be able to accommodate all cycles, such as recumbents and cycles with trailers.

Bristol Road Cycle Track Consultation

Artists impression of the cycle track along the central reservation.

Following last year's change of direction by BCR (see our previous article), the formal consultation on the segregated cycle track along Bristol Road from the city centre to Selly Oak has been launched. This 4km stretch of high-quality segregated track is one of two that will be built this year and if they are completed successfully, they will demonstrate that Birmingham is able to deliver high quality space for cycling.

Hurst Street Public Square Consultation

Birmingham City Council is consulting on changes to the highways on Hurst Street next to the Hippodrome, following a temporary arrangement that blocked motor traffic access from Hurst Street onto Smallbrook Queensway. Prior to the current temporary arrangement, Hurst Street carried a large volume of motor traffic through the city centre. That motor traffic flow has been mainly diverted away without making Birmingham city centre motor traffic seize up any more than it did before.

Consultation: Implementation of Clean Air Zones

Image from Greenpeace of baby in pushchair next to exhaust fumes.

DefRA (The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) is consulting on plans to implement clean air zones in 5 cities across the UK, including Birmingham. Birmingham City Council is generally welcoming the proposals, and has stated that following the national consultation, there will be a local consultation in Birmingham on what a clean air zone will be like in Birmingham.

Consultation: Urban Congestion Inquiry

The Transport Committee of the United Kingdom parliament is holding an Urban Congestion Inquiry. This article forms the basis of Push Bikes' submission to that inquiry.

Colmore Row cross-city cycle route

I started off writing this blog post as a discussion of the Snow Hill Public Realm Consultation - which I have left below - but I feel that branding this 'Colmore Row cross-city cycle route' is more apt. Birmingham city centre has long been criticised as impenetrable by cycle, with the routes that exist being convoluted and broken up by dismount signs.

Consultation: Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy (CWIS)

The national government is holding a consultation on their draft Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy (CWIS). The intention of CWIS is that it will provide a framework for local councils to plan their cycling and walking networks and then apply for funding for delivering those networks. The only problem is that national government does not seem willing to provide the money to fund these networks.

The consultation closes on Monday 23rd May.

Consultation: Eastside tram route

Centro is consulting on a new tram route, to run from Bull Street to the Custard Factory in Digbeth. This route will connect the new HS2 Curzon Street Station and the coach station in Digbeth with Snow Hill and New Street stations. This will provide a useful link for public transport users between these stations, enabling people who can not walk the distance to make their connections without using taxis. This will benefit people with large or heavy luggage as well as people with disabilities or mobility impairments.

Push Bikes