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cycle laneWest Ham Labour Party calls for cyclists to be made to use cycle lanes
West Ham Labour Party calls for cyclists to be made to use cycle lanes
Members of the Labour Party in an east London constituency are calling on the government to make it compulsory for cyclists to have to use cycle lanes.
The motion was passed at a meeting this week of the general council of the West Ham Constituency Labour Party.
It read:
Where cycle highways/Lanes exist primary legislation should be put in place so that, providing it is safe to do so, all cyclists should mandatorily use all available cycle lanes. Where ever they exist, these should be used for the safety of themselves and all other road users.
We call upon West Ham CLP to lobby parliament to this end to have it enshrined in law.
A post on the local party’s website added: “After lots of debate about whether this could be mandatory and noting the many inadequate cycle lanes and courtesy between all road users, GC passed this motion (although with quite a few abstentions).”
Under the Highway Code, there is no obligation for people on bikes to use cycle lanes, whether or not they are physically separated from motor traffic, as some of London’s Cycle Superhighways.
The two most common types of cycle lane on the carriageway are delineated by either a broken or a solid white line.
The latter are officially termed ‘mandatory’ – although that refers to the requirement for motorists to keep out of them, rather than being compulsory for cyclists to ride in them.
Indeed, with cycle lanes often in poorly maintained, littered with debris, containing hazards such as drain covers and in some locations encouraging drivers to pass riders too closely, many cyclists, especially faster, more confident ones, find it safer and easier to ride in primary position in the main traffic flow.
West Ham is one of the most solidly Labour constituencies in the UK, with member of parliament Lyn Brown enjoying a majority of almost 28,0000.
It lies within the Labour-controlled London Borough of Newham, which hosted most of the events at the London 2012 Olympic Games, but just two years later was named the local authority in England with the least active residents.
> How active are people where you live? Report ranks local authorities by residents' activity levels
Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
Latest Comments
- Clem Fandango 1 sec ago
Branching out on the comments (which are getting a bit thorny) I see. I'll just leaf this here.
- Haitchaitch 19 min 51 sec ago
I concur that rigid bollards can be a danger having broken a couple of ribs earlier this year in a shared cycle lane with central bollards telling...
- quiff 1 hour 17 min ago
Nope, it's really just F1. And to really get their attention, they're selling it in colours called Formula Red and Formula Blue...
- quiff 1 hour 32 min ago
Definitely recognise this! I'm 41 with a 5 year old and am now starting to see the possibility of riding more again, but Strava tells me I have...
- brooksby 2 hours 6 min ago
"No, it's OK, really", replies cycling.
- FionaJJ 3 hours 33 min ago
For the purposes of investment then cycling for transport, that also keeps/get you fit should be prioritised. However, there's an argument that if...
- KDee 3 hours 36 min ago
Yeah, that fits. Already seen the helmets, shoes etc. rebrand as Trek. Scott are pretty similar with their Scott and Syncros branding.
- eburtthebike 3 hours 54 min ago
Yes, where are the same figures for drivers, Telegraph?
- Pub bike 4 hours 42 min ago
It doesn't. Here are a few more helpful suggestions to make society just work better:...
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39 comments
Exactly what I thought as I read it - that caveat is so open to personal opinion and interpretation that it effectively renders the rest of it invalid.
The fact that these muppets spent a lot of time debating this is criminal. The place is an absolute toilet, they should have far more important things to do with their time.
I can live live with this provided the comments by jasecd on repairs etc. are complied with AND cars stick to roads & designated parking spaces so no pavement parking etc.
As someone that rides on CS3 on a regular basis, maybe if London Borough of Newham kept the cycle lane in a better condition it would be used more than it already is. One day last week at least 5 people came off because of the condition of the lane, at least one now has his arm in plaster.
In the sections aintained by Newham we have to deal weeds at the side so overgrown that 1 direction is inaccessible and you have to ride on the wrong side, when they are eventually cut the rubbish is left all over the path making it impossible to see what hazards lie beneath, at least 3 burnt out cars, the melted plastic from one is still all over the cycle path, sections dug up multiple times with the lane out of commission and gravel all over making it a slip hazard because it is never cleaned.
They should be careful what they wish for, one of the poorest boroughs in the country insisting cyclists use the cycle path will mean they will need to step up and maintain them better to avoid a lawsuit from an injured cyclist.
We should also force motorists to use motorways. We would have the A roads that run alonside them.
West Ham is an utter shithole of an area, good job they've got their priorities straight.
So we can assume that, to make this work, all cycle lanes will therefore be overhauled to meet the mandatory 1.5m width requirements and be kept in perfect condition. Alongside this there will be increased enforcement stopping drivers from parking in them and motorcyclist from riding in them. Oh, and not to mention the re-routing of those that are badly planned or shoot you out into traffic or make you ride in the door zone etc. etc.
Great - in that case I will have no problem using them. It's almost like we don't use (many of) them now because they are so woefully sub standard.
Perhaps Labour MP's should stick to fighting important issues such as inequality or declining public services, not trying to win votes from the lazy, petrol centric part of the population.
Clearly trying to fend off a challenge from UKIP.
Duncan ... not quite sure why you think UKIP are going to mount a challenge in a district where the White British population is lower than 10% ... the Muslim population is one of the highest in the country ... and the local Labour MP enjoys a majority of some 28,000 people.
Oh - your post was a joke, I get it.
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