Victory for Lib Dem cycling campaigners as A1 designated 'Cycle Highway' (Islington Liberal Democrats)

Islington Liberal Democrats <Islington_ld@cix.co.uk>

Victory for Lib Dem cycling campaigners as A1 designated 'Cycle Highway'

May 28, 2009 4:27 PM

Cycling councillors Greg Foxsmith and Terry Stacy

Islington's Liberal Democrats were celebrating this week as TfL revealed that the A1 through Islington will be turned into one of London's 'Cycle Superhighways' by 2012, after lobbying by Islington's Liberal Democrat councillors.

The new 'Cycle Highways' are intended to make London's main roads safer for cyclists, allowing bikes to travel quickly and directly through the city. The A1 has several accident blackspots for cyclists, including the Holloway Road junction with Fieldway Crescent, Highbury Corner, and the Angel, where cyclists have recently been hurt and even killed.

Now Islington's Lib Dems are continuing the campaign to make sure that the Mayor and Transport for London implement this properly - so that they are not just extra paint on the tarmac. The council leader has called for the A1 to be upgraded with improved traffic signals with advanced green signals for cyclists.

The Lib Dems have also called for stricter enforcement of speeding, dangerous driving, and dangerous cycling on the new Superhighway, calling this the best chance to create a more civilised and patient road culture along the A1.

Council leader Terry Stacy said:

"As one of London's main arteries, the A1 through Islington needs to be better for cyclists. There are still junctions where it is still dangerous for bikes. The A1 wasn't in the Mayor's original plans for the Cycle Highways, so we're delighted that all our lobbying has paid off and the route is coming through Islington.

"At the council we are already encouraging more cycling, with secure bike parking on estates, more on-street bike parking going in here than almost anywhere else, and new work to make continuous cycle routes through Islington. We're working hard with the Mayor to be one of the first boroughs to have the new bike hire scheme, but now Boris needs to get moving by making the main TfL roads cycle-friendly too."

"It's my hope that travelling along the A1 will become more civilised and less fractious. Speeding, bad driving, and cyclists skipping traffic lights all add up to make the A1 bad-tempered at times. This is one of our best chances of solving that."