Opposition To Uxbridge Road Cycleway Ignored Due To 'Bigger Picture'

Consultation report shows most respondents against scheme

Existing cycling infrastructure on the Uxbridge Road to be upgraded

The report into Ealing Council’s consultation on the planned cycleway between Hanwell and Southall has been released following a Freedom of Information request by a local resident.

It shows that there was significant opposition to the plan from residents within the consultation area although relatively few responded to the survey and overall opposition when all responses were taken into account. The council has not officially published the document.

Despite this, the report into the consultation recommended that the ‘bigger picture’ be considered and the project be proceeded with at an estimated cost of £2.4 million for the changes that will cover two miles. Earlier this year the council said it was hoping to complete the scheme by this summer although originally completion was expected in late autumn.

The council is aiming to improve safety for cyclists and pedestrians along the A4020 Uxbridge Road from Hanwell to Southall by separating cyclists from all other traffic, including buses and pedestrians with ‘wands’ – flexible posts fixed to the road. The existing bus stops will be repositioned in the carriageway, with some being converted to a bus island configuration requiring bus users to cross the cycleway.

The public consultation document for the scheme was posted out to residents in July last year and people were invited to complete the consultation online. A total of 2453 questionnaires were posted out, and 970 responses were received. Only 75 of these responses were from within the consultation area, giving a 3% response rate.

The consultation included the question, “To what extent do you agree or disagree with the overall scheme to improve cycling safety and comfort on this stretch of the Uxbridge Road corridor?”. Within the consultation area 73% were either opposed or strongly opposed to the scheme but this fell to 56% when people outside the area account were included. 39% were in favour of the scheme on this basis.

When the respondents were asked if they were in favour of cycleways on the carriageway protected with wands, 56.3% were against and 40.7% were in favour. On the question about bus islands 57.6% were against with 37.5% in favour.

Comments on the scheme included those suggesting that the narrowing of carriageways would cause delays for emergency services and cause risk to cyclists because vehicles would enter the cycleway seeking to let emergency services pass. Many were concerned that reducing the busy Uxbridge Road to a single lane at key pinchpoints including the Iron Bridge, could lead to increased traffic and delays to buses. An estimated 80% of journeys along this road are made by people travelling on buses and the scheme requires the removal of bus lanes at certain points to accommodate the cycleway.

The council says that, although the measures may result in parts of this road being reduced from two lanes each way to one it is not anticipated that the flow of traffic will be significantly impacted. This is because it is already constricted in the centres of Hanwell and Southall so the two lanes each way on this stretch represent unused capacity.

Other respondents welcomed the proposal saying that there is not enough cycling infrastructure in the borough for beginners to feel safe enough to take up cycling as an alternative form of transport and that most the on-carriageway facilities are for more confident and experienced cyclists

When asked about the mode of transport most often used for short journeys 37% said they walked with 26.5% cycling and 26.3% using a car either as driver or a passenger. 58.2% of respondents said that someone in their household cycled at least once a week and 60.9% said they were walking more since the start of the pandemic with 36.9% saying they cycled more.

The majority of people asked believed that cycling had health benefits and tended to reduce pollution and strongly disagreed that cycling was only for the poor and the young but there was no consensus on whether it was safe or reduced traffic congestion.

The document concedes that "residents of the consultation area were opposed to every aspect of the scheme". Opponents of the proposal says the council is being inconsistent by retaining Low Traffic Neighbourhoods in Deans Road and Montague Road because the residents of those streets wanted them to continue but not applying this principle when deciding on the cycleway.

The council’s report into the consultation concludes, “Although residents are slightly opposed to these proposals, there is a need to consider the bigger picture when making a decision to proceed. We are proposing these measures in line with the Mayor of London’s Transport Strategy, which is focused on encouraging walking, cycling and using public transport. These proposals also help deliver Ealing’s contribution to the Mayor’s Walking and Cycling Action Plans.”

The proposals include:
• Upgrading and bringing back into general use the cycle track on the north side between Park View Road and Longford Avenue
• Wand-protected cycle lanes (eastbound) between Longford Avenue and Hanwell Bridge
• Wand-protected cycle lanes (westbound) between Hanwell Bus Gate and Southall Park
• Floating bus stops to be installed, with cyclists passing on the footway side of the bus
• Relocated westbound to eastbound U-turn for general traffic near Lyndhurst Avenue, with short extension to eastbound bus lane
• Two lanes each way for general traffic between the U-turn points (except under Iron Bridge)
• Wand spacing generally 6 metres. Longer gaps between wands where required for access to off-street parking.

Monitoring of the scheme will be undertaken jointly by Ealing and TfL and, depending on the outcomes, a decision will then be made on making the scheme permanent or removing it. The monitoring will be paying particular attention to bus travel times and, if these are found to have increased, changes will be made.

Councillor Deirdre Costigan, cabinet member for climate action said earlier this year, “Uxbridge Road is vital for local cyclists and commuters as it is a main route linking the east and west of the borough. Similar measures are already in place along other sections, including Ealing Common and Acton.

"A significant chunk of the pollution and harmful emissions we produce as a borough comes from cars making these sorts of journeys and collectively, we must make bold changes to our lives now or face a deepening climate crisis in future years.”

The council is looking at implementing similar cycle scheme including around Boston Road.

March 3, 2022