bike friday

Love Your Bike’s response to the Chorlton Cycling and Walking route consultation

Manchester City Council are recently held a consultation on a 5km, £13.4 million proposed cycling and walking route from Chorlton to Manchester.  The proposed 5km route will run along Barlow Moor Road, through Chorlton and then Manchester Road, Upper Chorlton Road and Chorlton Road, linking with existing routes and continuing towards the Deansgate roundabout at St George’s.

Chorlton Cycle Way Plans (Manchester City Council)

Chorlton Cycle Way Plans (Manchester City Council)

If it goes ahead this is will be one of the first major schemes designed as part of Chris Boardman, Greater Manchester’s Cycling and Walking Commissioner’s, Made to Move programme.

The proposed scheme will cost approximately £13.4 million and is funded through the Government’s Cycle City Ambition Grant and the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Cycling and Walking Challenge Fund. It will create a route that will provide a high-quality, segregated link between Chorlton and Manchester city centre, making it safer, more comfortable and easier to get around on foot or by bike. Such improvements can make the area more pleasant, accessible, and also help businesses.

The full response from Love Your Bike to the Chorlton Cycling and Walking route consultation.

Love Your Bike strongly supports the proposed Chorlton to Manchester  cycling  and  walking scheme and believes it has the potential to deliver a high-quality, protected route between Chorlton and Manchester city centre and make it safer, more comfortable and easier to get around on foot or by bicycle.

We specifically welcome the proposed plans to improve the junctions at:

  • Royce Road
  • Brooks Bar
  • Kings Road/Upper Chorlton Road
  • Seymour Grove
  • Four Banks and
  • Zetland Road.

Attention to junctions is essential given the Transport for Greater Manchester research which indicates that over 88% of crashes relating to people cycling occur at, or near to junctions and also helps meet the requirement in the TfGM Cycle Design Guidance which states that it is “not acceptable to leave gaps in cycle route provision.”

However, we do have a number of concerns related to specific areas in the proposed scheme. Our suggestions for how the proposed scheme can be improved are outlined in the following sections, namely:

  1. Delivery timeframe
  2. Side road / access entrance treatments and public realm improvements
  3. Bus stop bypasses
  4. Curtilage access, pavement parking and enforcement measures to prevent vehicles parking in cycling space..
  5. Consultation sections
  6. a) ChorltonRoad – from Chester Road to Upper Chorlton Road
  7. b) UpperChorltonRoad – from Chorlton Road to Seymour Grove
  8. c) Manchester Road – from Seymour Grove to Wilbraham Road
  9. d) Barlow Moor Road – from Wilbraham Road to Hardy Lane

Love Your Bike looks forward to the implementation of this ambitious plan and will continue to advocate for and support the design and delivery of high-quality walking and cycling schemes across Greater Manchester.