Jeremy Leach (Photo: Charlotte Gilhooly)

A presentation was given by Jeremy Leach of Southwark Living Streets, about what their group did and how they do it. Tips included starting summer meetings with a walkabout in an area of interest, invite local councillors to present on issues that they are working on, and to work at borough level (e.g. 20 mph speed limits), area level (e.g. particular project Windsor Castle), and local level (e.g. planting, greening, and splayed junctions). Getting to know how the council works, by starting with local councillors and working across political parties. It helps if a member of the group is also a member of the local party. Now is a good time to present ideas with an election due next year.

Jeremy (along with Josh Hart and Alastair Hanton) answered questions. Alastair gave the tip that when people attend meetings they should be given something to do, however small, in order to ensure they return could be to represent a geographical area just to give them a sense of doing something useful.  A delegate asked for more information on funding bids. Jeremy said that funding (for London boroughs) was through Local Implementation Plans, and Alastair added that a great way to get funding was to get those responsible for making the bid to walk around with the group.

Daniel Moylan (Photo: Charlotte Gilhooly)

Daniel Moylan, Conservative councillor and deputy leader Kensington and Chelsea, board member TfL

Daniel said there were three things he wanted to briefly talk about, (and apologised for them being London-centric): shared space, Boris and some suggestions for Living Streets

Daniel made it known that he is in favour of shared space. He began by saying that whoever you, whatever mode you use, there is a problem with excessive demand for the use of a limited resource (i.e. space and time). This can be rationalised by charging, but charging would not work for pedestrians and cyclists. Daniel argued that non-segregated, de-cluttered, shared space made a location more civilised and safer, because users would use it with caution, remain alert and travel more slowly. Daniel accepted that shared space is not currently popular with people who are partially sighted. One reason for this is that guide dogs are, under present arrangements, trained to stop at the kerbside. The changes made in Exhibition Road (Kensington and Chelsea) were carried out through working closely with the Guide Dogs for the Blind, but on completion there were still things not quite right and this proves that it is impossible to get 100% of all the requirements incorporated. The TaxPayers’ Alliance is a lobby group that doesn’t like the government spending tax payers’ money on anything and in particular they think spending money on streets is a waste. Daniel said that he would encourage Living Streets to think positively on shared space and to seek to engage with such lobbying groups and to ensure them that many of their anxieties can be dealt with.

As deputy chair of the TfL Board, Daniel now sees a lot of Boris. Boris is a lovely man, hard-working and committed and he knows he has been entrusted with a huge honour as Mayor of London. He’s a crazed cyclist and not a timid one, opting to cycle straight down the middle of the road! Meanwhile, Ben Webster is Transport Correspondent with The Times and a very good journalist. However, he likes to be first with a story and can jump the gun. It was his article, published in The Times on 11 March 2009, which suggested that TfL had plans to re-phase traffic lights that would result in pedestrians losing up to six seconds of the “green man” phase at traffic lights. Daniel made the assurance that all that TfL is trying to do is look at the “dead time” of the light sequence, i.e. that part of the sequence time that is not needed. This assessment is supported by a letter subsequently published in The Times on 14 March.

Finally Daniel went on to suggest what Living Streets should do next. Firstly, Living Streets should not get too overtly concerned about the initial safety issues associated with a new scheme, and question the reasoning behind safety standards and practice. Daniel suggested that local authorities are made up of timid people, who are scared of being sued. All that the safety experts tell you is how a particular proposal differs from the standard. But the standard may not be completely safe, for example cages at crossings. They are only safe if used properly, but not safe if, for example, cages are by-passed or jumped over. Secondly, the payments made from TfL to the boroughs from April 2010 will be in larger packages, and this should mean that it should be easier to complete big schemes with more flexibility for a whole scheme approach. The bids for the money are needed in the next couple of months, so now is the time to consider requirements.

Questions for Daniel then followed:

1. A delegate from the Campaign for Better Transport (Hackney) suggested that there was a need to limit cars and that re-phasing the traffic lights to improve the flow of traffic was contradictory to improving the lot of the pedestrian. Daniel replied that in the last 10 years the number of cars in London had reduced but there was the impression of increased congestion. His personal take is that motorists are reasonable people up to a point, but whenever any government is seen as anti-motorist that government will collapse. As a result, Kensington and Chelsea have never taken an anti-motorist stance but talk about the best use of space for everyone.
2. A delegate from Active Streets suggested that anything that sped up traffic was as the detriment of pedestrians. Daniel didn’t agree, saying that it depended on the type of road.
3. Someone asked Daniel to expand on what he had said regarding safety. Daniel said it was the fear of being sued that produced a “risk averse” culture. There is duty of care. K&C put a sum aside each year for such an eventuality as a form of self-insurance.
4. According to a social attitude survey, 75% of motorists are in favour of 20 mph speed limits. Compliance is higher when whole area is 20 mph (as in Portsmouth) as drivers more readily accept slower speeds elsewhere when they know their own street is 20 mph. What role should TfL have in relation to 20 mph speed limit? Daniel replied that TfL’s role is determined by transport strategy. A draft transport strategy is expected late April/early May, followed by public consultation in the autumn. TfL will not be telling the boroughs what they should do (like the last 8 years), but offer support and encouragement.

Tony Armstrong (Photo: Charlotte Gilhooly)

Tony Armstrong, Chief Executive Living Streets – new strategy and plans for years ahead

Tony began by saying that Living Streets existed to make walking safe and attractive, and then went on to give some reminders of what could detract from these ideals, including: subways; complicated and bewildering junctions (poor desire lines, often prioritised against people on foot); railings (as many are not there for safety but were installed before parking restrictions); pavement parking; lack of capacity (narrow pavement width with capacity traditionally provided for the motorist); the breakdown of communities (as highlighted by Professor Donald Appleyard in Liveable Streets, San Francisco (1981), and in a study by Joshua Hart, Bristol (2008)); and the obsession with street signs that can give too much information to the motorist.

Tony was generally supportive of the current policy climate including Manual for Streets, and sustainable transport initiatives.

Tony then highlighted some projects that have worked.

• In Walworth Road the pavements had been widened and de-cluttered. Not only did this make the road a more attractive place, but it had also resulted in better traffic flow and quicker, more reliable, bus journey times even though bus lanes had been taken out. So everyone was a winner!
• At Dagenham Heathway the central railing down the centre of the High Street, which had severely restricting permeability and made the street a shopping area of two halves, had been removed. The result: Heathway was now a destination place.

Tony gave an overview of Living Streets five-year strategy that would make walking the natural choice, put people first, and result in quality spaces for all. The strategy would be challenging, but positive (giving solutions and sharing best practice) and enabling (work with communities).

Firstly, the strategy should create the right policy environment by influencing national government on what happens to public spaces. Campaign packs would be put together to assist local groups, again highlighting best practice. Further research will be carried out, noting that it has been shown that ideas can work that at first would appear to be counter-intuitive (e.g. it has been shown that “naked streets” can produce safer roads). The organisation will communicate and listen to feedback and to develop a clear framework, noting that feedback had led to recent re-branding. There will be a new commitment to support local groups through the provision of campaign packs and contacts. Joshua Hart is a dedicated manager, and Alastair Hanton is chair of the new Policy and Campaigns group.

The second area was to demonstrate key impacts: Walk to School had been successful despite not much funding from the DfT, and Living Streets wants to expand this to secondary schools. Walking to Work would target 17-30 year olds and women, and it has been demonstrated (through working in 12 local authority areas in four years) that people were fitter for walking. The success of London projects, school projects and through community engagement would be highlighted.

The third area was enabling choice. One example was given whereby a bridge had been provided over a narrow canal in a residential area to link a key desire line and where previously people had only been able to cross through improvising with whatever was at hand! Another was working with local authorities to get the pavements widened (e.g. Long Acre in central London had also taken the pressure off the tube system). Training programmes would continue including course demonstrating that walking works for business.

Tony concluded by saying there were exciting times ahead. Living Streets time had come. There is clear strategy and more solutions. The organisation is well placed having doubled the number of staff in the last two years and achieved security of funding. They were committed to provide local groups with direct advice, with the key message from Tony being that we are all in it together. Tony mentioned that in future he would like to see conferences such as this every year.

Questions for Tony then followed:

1. A delegate from Chesterfield asked whether the presentation Tony had just given would be made available, as he would like to use it locally. Tony said yes certainly. Also campaign packs and leaflets were being produced. A whole new web site would be available in a few weeks with easy access to the campaign packs.
2. A representative from Hackney Living Streets said that many people, especially those less able-bodied, were concerned about cyclists on pavements and that this was a problem that was increasing. He added that many people were unhappy with the naked streets idea for this reason and that although cyclists tend to be quite vocal, someone needs to speak up for people with disabilities. What are Living Streets going to do about it? Tony replied that cycling on pavements is a conflict that needs to be tackled. He believed that the general principles of shared space are good but there is an issue with segregated paths, and mentioned that Living Streets had been opposed to segregation of pedestrians and cyclists along a path in Regents Park. If more space is required for cycling it should be at the expense of (vehicular) traffic and not pedestrians. Living Streets speaks for pedestrians, but if we can help cyclists at the same time that’s a good thing.
3. A representative from Lewis Living Streets asked whether Living Streets talked with the Ramblers Association. They asked because rural walkers often had difficulties such as crossing dual carriageways. Tony said that LS have contacts in rural villages, and mentioned that Tom Franklin, who had been CE at Living Streets, was now CE at the Ramblers and they kept in touch.
4. A delegate from Loughborough said she was interested in what Tony been said in relation to bus improvements following the de-cluttering of Walworth Road in London because in Loughborough there were proposals to pedestrianise the town centre and send buses around a ring road. This would increase the distance to the town centre and the time it took to reach the town centre. The findings from Walworth Road would be useful to help with the campaign in Loughborough.

It is also worth noting that the presentations given by Mike Loveday and Tony Armstrong are to be made available on the Living Streets site in due course.

Mike Loveday (Photo: Charlotte Gilhooly)

Mike Loveday, chair of Living Streets – putting Living Streets 80th year in context

Mike gave a history of the organisation, highlighting decade by decade advances. In 1928, when the Pedestrians Association was formed, there was no Highway Code, no driving test (a driving license could be purchased for 5 shillings), and no speed limits. There were around 100,000 vehicles on the road and 6,127 road deaths were recorded during the year. By 2008 the number of vehicles has risen to 21 million while the number of deaths had fallen to 2,947.

The Pedestrians Association had been instrumental in getting the Highway Code adopted in 1931 and a compulsory driving test in 1935. Safety continued to predominate through the 40s and 50s, with the first green shoots of what became the walkability type of scheme developing in the 60s. In the 1970s Leicester became the first traffic-free town centre, with the road safety agenda and the EEC being important in the 80s. The walking challenge developed in 1990s, and in 2001 the Pedestrians Association was renamed Living Streets. Mike summed up by saying that although the agenda had widened over the last 80 years, the core ideas have remained the same.

Stonecot Hill in Sutton can look forward to a brighter and more colourful summer after volunteers from Sutton Living Streets gave the street planters a seasonal makeover.

Bright purple lavender plants and pink geraniums now shine alongside the more muted trees and shrubs, which themselves have had a timely trim.

The planting is part of Sutton Council’s Take Part Take Pride week, which encourages residents to organise events in their neighbourhoods to bring people together socially and to improve the places where they live.

Campaigner and keen gardener Charlotte Gilhooly said,

The planters have been dull for a long time and we wanted to do something about it now that summer’s here. We were really pleased when we heard about Take Part Take Pride and asked if we could use the opportunity to brighten up our neighbourhood. We’re delighted with the results and looking forward to keeping the planters in shape.