A look at planned Greenwich Park, Blackheath and Shooter’s Hill cycle lane
In recent months Greenwich Council bid for funding from TfL to install a number of street projects. One which proved successful was £600,000 for a cycle lane in Shooter’s Hill running past Old Dover Road in Blackheath.
Details from the bid have been revealed via a Freedom of Information request as the council’s didn’t feel it needed to inform the public at any stage – and still havn’t.
So let’s take a look at details. Firstly, £650,000 is below sums asked for so not all ideas will translate into action. £1,164,570 was the original sum requested. Submitted documents originally showed a route from Greenwich Park to Constitution Rise near Memorial Hospital. It now seems to be curtailed at Baker Road near QE Hospital and will not head east past that point.
The lane would start at Greenwich Park and use light segregation in Maze Hill. It would pass through the Standard in Blackheath past Marks & Spencer and Blackheath library before reaching Shooter’s Hill.
A bus gate could also be installed on Old Dover Road in Blackheath. They state this could displace traffic onto the A2 at Sun in the Sands roundabout. Another idea was removing a bus lane on Shooter’s Hill. A controlled crossing along the route could also become a zebra crossing while another crossing altered to a toucan crossing.
Revised plans have seen bus stop bypasses removed:
Shooter’s Hill has centre hatching in places which would be removed for cycle lanes with no loss of lanes for other traffic.
It’s good to see some detail but again it shouldn’t have come down to a Freedom of Information request for the public to see this.
In keeping with other projects the authority has not involved the public and nor has it shared details in Cabinet or council meetings as seen in other boroughs.
The project should start imminently and will be monitored throughout coming months.
Do you mean Marks and Sparks rather than Sainsburys?
So Old Dover Road will be closed to traffic going east or both ways?
Yep dammit. Once again I put up the first draft on another tab rather than the right one!
Will have to look again at plans after losing some info from later draft. It’d help of course if the council told people instead of residents having to put in freedom of info requests which don’t seem very clear.
No worries! You can remove the Marks bit from my post if you want a little tidy up!
Wonderful!!!! That for certain will be the demise of the shops at the Standard and Old Dover Road .
An obvious concern here is the potential impact on Banchory Road and Craigerne Road. If the bus gate is placed as indicated on the map, traffic will simply divert along here instead of the western part of Old Dover Road. It will need to be further east – near the top of Sunfields Place perhaps – or the traffic impact would be intolerable.
I can’t say I’m comfortable with this sort of measure being undertaken without any consultation.
Quite agree Ned. There’s also another route via St John’s Park. Your solution would nix that as well.
What worries me is that Murky has discovered these lovely drawings of the plans for the bus gate and the planners have completely overlooked two ways around it! It is similar to the doomed closure of South Row by Lewisham which meant Morden College was cut off from deliveries — despite myself and others flagging this.
This is why some form of consultation has to be made!
Oh, I forgot Langton Way, the unmade road. That’s another way past the gate.
The removal of the parking bays on Shooters Hill Road will please the shops no end. The large paved area could be used as an alternative.
Old Dover Road is not suitable for a cycle lane full stop, It is a narrow road anyway and also part of the 386 bus route.
Also why do the Labour Administration in charge of Greenwich Council think it is acceptable not to tell us residents how they spend our money. I think they forget this is mainly public money paid for by the Government Treasury from our taxes and money paid for through Council Tax from us residents.
That said even when there is a consultation they never listen to residents views anyway.
If ever there was a time for change of the administration in charge of Greenwich Council it is now !!
I can’t quite picture in my head what the council are exactly planning to do, but this sounds like it will be a disaster in practice!
I don’t think the council know the impact these schemes has on a day to day basis and in the long run to local residence and businesses.
I have no doubt that the coucil will spend £’s on implementing this plan, then more £’s to change it when they realise they’ve created other problem!
Not exactly in the right place here, but still thought to ask.
Does anyone know what is being constructed at the peninsula between Old Dover Road and Shooters Hill Road?
There used to be some car dealers over there, but I noticed some building going up when I passed there this week by bus.
Houses
Cyclists are most unlikely to use the Maze Hill/Vanbrugh Terrace dog’s leg route even with a de-trafficked Maze Hill. They will either go straight on to Vanbrugh Park at the park gate or south to the lights and on to the footpath toward St Johns Pk. Removing Maze Hill southern section from regular use will be a complete waste of money as it will not be used by cyclists. If RBG determined to close it to traffic let’s have it grassed over and returned to heath.
Having shopped in Old Dover Road today and driven home along Shooters Hill Road I think Greenwich Council need to get a tape measure out. Removing the pedestrian refuges (there to slow traffic) on the latter will not leave enough space for 2 lanes of traffic and 2 cycle lanes. On Old Dover Road 2 hour car parking is needed for the shops and cafes.
Agreed Chris!
Removing the car parking bays would destroy the businesses on Old Dover Road!
Could not agree with you more HK.
For Greenwich Council to do this without a public consultation is not fair on the business owners on Old Dover Road or local residents who have not been allowed the opportunity to have their say on these proposals.
Totally agree with you Chris L it would destroy the independently owned businesses on Old Dover Road if the parking bays are removed. I hope this scheme does not go ahead,
If you go back over the years before the Rochester Way Relief Road was built there used to be thriving businesses in Delacourt Road until the road layout was changed. There still are some businesses but without passing traffic they soon change hands. Certainly blocking of part of Old Dover Road to cars would have a big impact on many businesses and there needs to be a full consultation if this is the plan.
I use Old Dover Road regularly for the shops there and it is one of the few parking spots available for visiting other shops around the Standard.
Absolutely David. There used to be some great little shops on Delacourt Road prior to changes to the road lay out. This scheme will have a major affect on business along Old Dover Road are part from Marks & Spencers Simply Food and Blackheath Library the rest of shops are independently owned.
There does need to be a full consultatuon in to this scheme and business owners must be allowed to give their views.
Not that the Councillors and Local MP’s listen to what the business owners and residents have to say and do what they want anyway regardless of peoples views.
Looking at the route how many cyclists are going to turn down Vanbrugh Terrace and then back up Maze Hill. Won’t they just cycle across the pathway at the end of St Johns Park to the junction with Charlton Way It would also save re-modelling Maze Hill..
I totally agree with not removing the parking or access to it along Old Dover Road, that would be a death knell to all the businesses there. Also I am not clear about the proposals for the Maze Hill section, does this mean that this southern part of Maze hill would be closed to traffic?? If so that is madness!
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