Author: londonlivingstreets

The deadline for a number of transport consultations is approaching and we urge you to respond. Some are fantastic and really need our support. Remember motoring groups will be responding in numbers to block improvements for pedestrians.

The most pressing deadlines are for:

Oxford Street District. Closes this Sunday, 16 December 2018

Access here: Oxford Street District Consultation for the Draft Place Strategy and Delivery Plan.

Continue reading “Deadlines approach for London borough transport consultations: respond now!”

The world’s first traffic light was installed 150 years ago this week. It went up outside the Houses of Parliament following a large number of deaths on London’s horse, cart and omnibus-filled streets. That gas-powered signal — both dangerous and mostly ignored — soon went out of action and wasn’t replaced by electric versions until the 1920s. 

Since then traffic lights have become ubiquitous and a vital feature of our car-dominated transport networks. Until now they have also been designed to keep motor traffic moving, not people walking. 

To mark this 150-year anniversary, London Living Streets is revealing its work with Transport for London (TfL) to improve how signalised crossings work for those on foot. Continue reading “150 years old and the traffic signal finally finds time for walkers”

The Islington Gazette reports that work to remove the intimidating 1960s roundabout and create wider pavements for pedestrians, a new public space and segregated cycle lanes will begin w/c 25 June.

by David Harrison, Islington Living Streets and vice-chair of London Living Streets

London’s pavements have long been an obstacle course. It is hard to walk more than a few feet without encountering a post or box or something larger.

Some street furniture is, of course, useful: lampposts and benches spring to mind. Some is useful but poorly sited: we need bus stops, but not where their footprint dominates the pavement.

Utilities take up a fair amount of space. Phone boxes have been increasingly installed as advertising sites under permitted development rights – which Ministers have failed to scrap despite pleas from councils. Things might get worse. The press has reported that the Secretary of State for Transport wants utilities to dig up pavements, not streets, so as not to slow down motorists.

Indeed, most of the clutter on streets is associated with the motor car. Long ago it was decided not only that cars would dominate the carriageway and own the kerbside for parking, but that pedestrians would have to suffer all the paraphernalia thought necessary for driving: giant road signs, the endless posts which record parking restrictions, and the machines for paying for parking.

Recently a new and even larger impediment has been appearing all over London. Electric vehicle (EV) charging points (point is definitely a misnomer) are making life even more difficult for pedestrians, especially wheelchair users and wheelers of buggies.

Continue reading “Call for EV charging stations off pavements”

The Department for Transport (DfT) has called for evidence on ways to make cycling and walking safer. London Living Streets welcomes the review and strongly supports the Government’s ambition to increase cycling and walking.

Our response, accessed here, provides a range of recommendations. We will cover some of these in a series of blogs, starting with a summary here.

Continue reading “Response to the Government Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy: Safety Review”