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New Oxford shopping centre builds just 3% of promised 1,000 cycle spaceschange.org Westgate.jpg

New Oxford shopping centre builds just 3% of promised 1,000 cycle spaces

Westgate centre criticised for seemingly backtracking on cycle parking promises
by Sarah Barth
Sun, Oct 29, 2017 17:26
13

A major new shopping centre has opened in Oxford with just 3 per cent of the promised 1,000 cycle spaces.

The Westgate development in Oxford houses a John Lewis and dozens of other stores and restaurants, but according to local campaigners Cyclox:

The developer has run rings around the planning authorities and has breached their planning conditions. It is the City Council’s obligation now to enforce provision of 972 extra cycle parking spaces.

There are no cycle parking spaces in convenient locations – none at all.

According to a petition started by the Green Party, “One of the planning conditions attached to the development of the Westgate Shopping Centre was the provision of 1022 bike parking spaces.

“These bike racks were intended to replace those removed from the City Centre during the construction works and provide additional spaces to encourage more sustainable travel.

“So far, Labour-run Oxford City Council (who voted through the development on their own land) have failed to enforce this condition, allowing the Westgate to open with only a small fraction of the promised cycle parking and without the promised cycle hub.

“Overall, Oxford now has far fewer cycle racks than before the Westgate development began.”

With over 1,300 signatures, the issue can now be forced to a debate by city councillors.

The Westgate development has removed from its website a page that last week offered a members only cycle hub open from 7am - 11pm.

The facilities advertised for £10-£20 a year included:

- Extra security and access control

- Cycle parking (secured by your own lock)

- Fob access – backed up by emergency Control Room contact

- Cycle parking – secured by cyclists own lock

It does however still promise: “If you come to Westgate by bike, you'll be able to park conveniently around the centre using our bicycle spaces in the vicinity of Westgate.”

Oxford
Cycle parking
Westgate shopping centre

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13 comments

Avatar
atgni | 7 years ago
2 likes

Oxford City Council have no real history of successful planning enforcement action.
I suggest taking bikes inside the Westgate if you go there.

Avatar
DaveE128 replied to atgni | 7 years ago
5 likes
atgni wrote:

Oxford City Council have no real history of successful planning enforcement action.
I suggest taking bikes inside the Westgate if you go there.

I wonder whether locking to furniture inside would get their attention? 3

Avatar
DaveE128 | 7 years ago
1 like

I wonder if it's worth local cycling groups picketing the shopping centre? That might improve the effectiveness of the boycott and get the attention of the company running it. Handing out simple leaflets stating the facts would help perhaps?

Avatar
brooksby replied to DaveE128 | 7 years ago
0 likes

DaveE128 wrote:

I wonder if it's worth local cycling groups picketing the shopping centre? That might improve the effectiveness of the boycott and get the attention of the company running it. Handing out simple leaflets stating the facts would help perhaps?

Many motorists don't see the problem: they think that not having bike stands anywhere near the shops is the same thing as them having to park in a multi storey.  They (and I include my wife in that group, sad to say) can't see that it's completely different...

Avatar
BehindTheBikesheds | 7 years ago
3 likes

If there's an S106 planning arrangement in place so that developer is under obligation to build x for permission to develop then developer has no choice. I'm guessing the council didn't get an s106 thus no intention to have the cycle parking because that's a simple planning matter.

More to this than meets the eye.

Avatar
Doctor Fegg | 7 years ago
3 likes

To be fair... those bike racks you have in the left-hand picture? I locked my Croix de Fer there once. I then went down to the Royal Blenheim (brilliant pub a few yards down the road) for the proverbial swift half.

As it happened, the half was swifter than I was planning, so I came out of the Royal Blenheim a few minutes early... only to find a guy with bolt-cutters wheeling my bike up the road.

"Excuse me, I think that's my bike." "Oh sorry, mate, I'm homeless yadda yadda."

I took it back off him. Didn't photo him for the police. I should have done.

What Westgate have done is utterly f-cking shocking and not to be excused. But I don't miss that bike parking. Not at all.

Avatar
Gkam84 | 7 years ago
2 likes

Google Cache can show you the Cycle Hub page. Has anyone from road.cc been in touch with Broken Spoke for their take on it?

 

http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:https://westgateoxf...

 

Cycle Hub

We're proud to share our Cycle Hub with you, in collaboation with Broken Spoke for cycle training and repairs.

Our members only hub will be open from 7am - 11pm. Being a member of our Cycle Hub entitles you to:

 

- Extra security and access control

- Cycle parking (secured by your own lock)

- Fob access – backed up by emergency Control Room contact

- Cycle parking – secured by cyclists own lock

The Initial registration fee will be £10 and £20 per annum to be a member, please contact Westgate Offices on: 01865 263600 for more information.

 

Please note, the although there is 24-hour CCTV in operation on the hub, it is unmanned.

The hub is for bicycle storage only, no other items are to be left. All property left at the owners risk 

Avatar
brooksby | 7 years ago
5 likes

What a surprise! (not) Remember: everyone knows that cyclists don't ever spend money, so there's no real point in making provision for them. (That's the thinking behind many of these privatised public space developments - I'm looking at you, Bristol Broadmead)

Avatar
bsknight replied to brooksby | 7 years ago
0 likes

brooksby wrote:

What a surprise! (not) Remember: everyone knows that cyclists don't ever spend money, so there's no real point in making provision for them. (That's the thinking behind many of these privatised public space developments - I'm looking at you, Bristol Broadmead)

 

Exactly. And every christmas when they erect the tacky "German" Market, a few more cycle stands dissappear.

Avatar
zero_trooper | 7 years ago
2 likes

Disgrace! 

Avatar
burtthebike | 7 years ago
13 likes

Why aren't the local authority enforcing this?  Surely even Oxford labour party realise that quite a few people ride bikes around there and they vote.

Not only enforcing it, but levying a substantial fine as well.  I'm sure the developers could afford a few million.

Avatar
kitsunegari replied to burtthebike | 7 years ago
4 likes

burtthebike wrote:

Why aren't the local authority enforcing this?  Surely even Oxford labour party realise that quite a few people ride bikes around there and they vote.

Not only enforcing it, but levying a substantial fine as well.  I'm sure the developers could afford a few million.

They can't afford to enforce it.

Look at the utterly disgraceful development of Cambridge Train Station by Brookgate. This is worth the read: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/architecture-design-blog/2017/j....

And more specifically the case of the historic Victorian terrace that the planning department refused permission to demolish, only for central government to overrule it and land the council with £300k court costs...

These companies promise everything to get planning permission, start building and then renege on all the promises, and councils cannot afford to go through the courts.

Avatar
Metaphor | 7 years ago
11 likes

The Westgate is currently the subject of a boycott by a large % of the city.

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