Permeability
restored
Maximising route choice,
minimising diversion
A selection of recent permeability
improvements suggested by the London Cycling Campaign in
Hackney and implemented by London Borough of Hackney as part of its 'PRIDE' programme
Albion Drive before The
closure was introduced for good environmental reasons, to eliminate rat
running motors, but cyclists were not considered at the time. Kerb
hopping or dismounting required. | Albion Drive after Now
we can go straight through on a smooth, wide connecting path. This is
what we call a 'modal filter', rather than a 'road closure', because
the street is now closed only to certain travel modes. | Farleigh Road before Blocked
off with ugly railings which reward careless driving. Dismounting,
walking round and rejoining the street was a waste effort and time, and
could be hazardous. To avoid this blockage, cyclists used busier
adjacent streets. | Farleigh Road after Barrier
removed, permeability restored. The junction has been
civilised, motors pass more slowly now that there is no guard
railing, and cyclists have more choice of routes. They've even patched
the ruts in the carriageway surface. Nice! | Navarino Road and Wayland Avenue before We successfully
campaigned for two-way cycling to be retained in these streets back in
the '90s, but the implementation was poor, with a narrow cycle 'slip'
which didn't assist legitimate turns into Wayland Avenue. | Navarino Road and Wayland Avenue after A much improved entrance to Wayland Avenue for people cycling north. | Clapton park entrance before This quiet park provides a useful and pleasant shortcut, but dismounting or kerb-hopping was required at this entrance. | Clapton park entrance after A
simple dropped kerb, a little discreet welcoming signage and a section
of double-yellow lining makes everything so much better. And it's well
used, as evidenced by the tyre tracks in the newly laid asphalt. | Casimir Road park entrance before Another unmodified park entrance. Good if you like bunny hopping, but that's about it. | Casimir Road
park entrance after The
same simple recipe demonstrates that cycling is welcome -- and makes
life easier for people with buggies and wheelchairs too. |
"The 'grain' of cyclists' desire lines
is somewhat between that of the car and the pedestrian, and being
forced to detour is far less acceptable to cyclists than to motorists.
The detours are unacceptable to pedestrians too, of course, but they
can walk through the planners' neatly planted flowerbeds. The road
network should be laid out for the convenience and pleasure of the
cyclists."
Jeremy Parker
|