Regent Street and cycling

The Crown Estate and Westminster City Council have been asking the public how Regent Street can be improved. We think that as well as making the public realm better for everyone, especially pedestrians, any improvements must also make cycling safe and attractive – it’s an important north-south corridor that connects to Westminster’s growing cycle network. These are our recommendations.

There are two ways the street could be safe, and importantly feel safe, for all-ability cycling:

• Restrict motor traffic with a bus gate so that only buses and cycles can travel past a certain point, enforced with cameras, for most of the day. Taxis and other vehicles can still access the street but not drive through during restricted hours. This approach on Tottenham Court Road has seen a significant rise in cycling numbers as more and different kinds of people feel able to cycle there.

• Protected cycle tracks on each side of the street, for instance with a concrete kerb or bollards. Bus stops would however not be straightforward. Bus stop bypasses - where waiting or disembarking bus passengers would be on an island separate from the cycle track - would not be possible, given the width of the street and the huge footfall (according to NRP engineers). In this case, cycle tracks would still be possible without any treatment at bus stops. It would be a compromise on quality for cycling – the bus would pull in towards the kerb, blocking the cycle track, and cycles would have to wait or leave the track to overtake – but it would be a much safer arrangement than the one in place currently, with a narrow cycle lane defined by paint only. People cycling would be protected by a physical barrier for the vast majority of the street, and the only vehicle cycles would have to contend with would be buses (not vans, taxis, and so on). For this reason it’s the strategy used by Transport for London in various cycle schemes across London. We would far rather see protected cycle tracks on Regent Street that are interrupted by bus stops than no protection for people cycling at all, which puts off all but the brave (i.e. mostly men!)

We have sent these recommendations to Westminster City Council and the Crown Estate, and we look forward to seeing how the plans develop. We are continuing our discussions on these plans and welcome your comments. Please email your comments to westminster@lcc.org.uk