Healthy School Streets Consultation - Argyle Primary Permanent Proposals

Overview

Healthy School Streets Consultation – Arygle Primary School (Bidborough Street, Hastings Street and Tonbridge Street) Permanent Proposals

Overview

Proposals to make the trial Healthy School Street changes to Bidborough Street, Hastings Street and Tonbridge Street permanent and to install two cycle hangars on Tonbridge Street

The Covid-19 pandemic changed how people in Camden live, travel and work. Many people have spent more time closer to home, making our neighbourhoods more important than ever. We want our streets to be safe spaces for you to walk and cycle, for children to get to and from school safely and healthily, for businesses to be able to flourish and for you to be breathing cleaner air. We want to ensure that our streets support in both continuing recovery from the pandemic and by providing a lasting legacy of greener, safer, healthier travel, helping us to deliver our wider Transport Strategy objectives.

69% of households in Camden do not own a car, and around 85% of all trips by Camden residents are made on foot, by bike or on public transport. Supporting and encouraging those who can walk and cycle, by creating safer, healthier streets, will also help ensure that there is more space available on public transport and on our roads for those who need it the most.

In line with our Camden Transport Strategy and Climate Action Plan, and to continue supporting safe, active travel following the pandemic, we have been making changes across Camden as part of our Safe and Healthy Streets Programme.

Healthy School Streets create a safer and healthier environment by temporarily closing roads to motor traffic outside schools during drop-off and pick-up times. This enables more children to walk, cycle or scoot to school, with less air pollution, road danger, congestion, and more space for people to interact. The schemes help to discourage car trips, particularly amongst parents and carers, by providing a safe and inviting space for more walking, cycling, and scooting.

Seventeen Healthy School Street schemes have been rolled out across Camden since March 2020. This brings the total number of Healthy School Street schemes in the borough to 20, with 27 schools having timed or permanent road closures.

The information below sets out our proposals to make the current, trial scheme on Bidborough Street, Hastings Street and Tonbridge Street permanent. We are not proposing any changes to the current, trial scheme.

About the Argyle Primary School Healthy School Street scheme

The Argyle Primary School Healthy School Street scheme consists of a timed road closure on Bidborough Street, Hastings Street and Tonbridge Street outside Arygle Primary School. The closure for motor vehicles is in place for an hour in the morning and an hour in the afternoon to coincide with the opening and closing times of the school, from 8.15am - 9.15am and 3pm to 4pm Monday to Friday during school term time only. The scheme also introduced two way cycling on the one way sections of the above streets, improving cycling links and making it easier to travel by bike around the local area.

We implemented the scheme as a trial in September 2021, under an Experimental Traffic Order which came into force on 17^th June 2021, as part of Phase 4 of our Healthy School Streets programme. The decision report related to this Experimental Traffic Order (and others) was approved on 22^nd April 2021.

This decision report noted that a further consultation, after approximately 12 months of the trial scheme, would take place. During the trial period, the scheme has been monitored and comments from local residents and stakeholders have been received and can be viewed in the Monitoring Factsheet at the bottom of this page.

This consultation now asks local residents and stakeholders to give their views on whether the scheme should be made permanent after the end of the 18-month trial period. The proposed permanent scheme would remain unchanged from its trial version.

Monitoring information

During the trial period of the scheme, we have been collecting monitoring data which can be viewed in detail in the monitoring factsheet provided in the Related section at the bottom of this page. Headlines include:

• Tonbridge Street and Hastings Street showed decreases in average traffic levels of 30% and 47% respectively during the morning Healthy School Street restrictions and 54% and 63% respectively during the afternoon restrictions.
• Analysis of average traffic speed data on streets within the Healthy School Street restricted area and outside showed that speeds were under 20mph, however, average traffic speeds on Tonbridge Speed did increase by 4 mph following the installation of the scheme. We would continue to monitor this if the scheme is made permanent to see if further measures would be needed to address this.
• Levels of cycling increased on Tonbridge Street and Hastings Street, with significant increases of between 80% - 86% also seen on Judd Street.
• Air quality monitoring data showed that there was a 15.4% decrease in levels of harmful NO₂ levels recorded outside Argyle Primary School when comparing data for February/March 2021 (pre-trial) with data for the same months in 2022 (during trial).
• All comments received on the Council’s Commonplace survey page regarding the trial scheme were positive.

What are we now consulting on?

Based on the monitoring data and the feedback received from residents and stakeholders during the trial period, and in line with policies and objectives set out in our Camden Transport Strategy, Climate Action Plan and Clean Air Action Plan, we are now consulting on making the trial changes permanent.

You can view the drawing of the proposed permanent scheme in the Related section at the bottom of this page.

The Argyle Primary School Healthy School Street scheme consists of a timed road closure for motor vehicles on Bidborough Street, Hastings Street and Tonbridge Street during school drop off and pick up times. This is enforced using relevant signage at the junctions of Bidborough Street and Judd Street, and Tonbridge Street and Cromer Street. The traffic restrictions are in place between 8.15am – 9.15am and 3pm - 4pm Monday to Friday during school term time only. These features are proposed to be retained in the permanent scheme, if approved following consultation.

The following vehicles are exempt from the restrictions:

• Vehicles registered to properties and businesses on the sections of the roads with restrictions where exemptions have been agreed with the Council.
• Any vehicle being used for ambulance, fire brigade or policing purposes.
• Refuse collection vehicles.
• Blue Disabled Badge holders that require access, where exemptions have been agreed with the Council.
• Services such as Dial-A-Ride and PlusBus Door to Door.
• Vehicles belonging to parents or carers of pupils of the school that have a disability that prevents them from walking, cycling, or scooting to school, where exemptions have been agreed with the Council.
• Other exemptions agreed with the Council on a case-by-case basis.

Taxis and deliveries will continue to not be exempt, and these should be scheduled outside of the restricted times. However, exemptions can be applied for in exceptional circumstances, such as when people with mobility issues may need essential taxis during the restricted hours. 

The scheme also introduced two way cycling on the one-way sections of the following streets using relevant signage and road markings:

• Bidborough Street between its junctions with Judd Street and Tonbridge Street.
• Tonbridge Street between its junctions with Bidborough Street and Hastings Street.
• Hastings Street between its junctions with Judd Street and Tonbridge Street.

These changes allow people cycling to travel in both directions on these streets creating links for them to travel around the local area more easily and aligns with our Cycling Action Plan commitment to convert all feasible one-way roads in the Borough to two-way for cycling.

Photo of Healthy School Street and contraflow cycle signage and road markings on Bidborough Street

Based on the monitoring data collected during the times of the restrictions and feedback received from residents and stakeholders during the trial period, we are now consulting on making the scheme permanent. The proposed permanent scheme will remain unchanged from its trial version.

About the proposed cycle hangar installations on Tonbridge Street

Residents in Camden have told us that they would like to have more lockable cycle parking, for hire, close to where they live. We know that a lack of somewhere to keep a bike safely can put people off taking up cycling. As a result, we are rolling out a programme of installing cycle hangars across the borough.

Cycle hangars also help to deliver our own Transport Strategy priorities, which were strongly supported when we consulted on them, including increasing cycling, improving air quality, and making our streets and transport networks safe, accessible, and inclusive for all.

Therefore, we are also consulting on introducing the following proposal on a permanent basis:

• To install two cycle hangars on Tonbridge Street opposite Argyle Primary School to provide secure cycle parking for up to 12 standard bikes for local residents. This would require the removal of 5.2 metres of permit holder parking space.

The above proposal would help us to provide new secure cycle parking space for local residents. There are currently 20 residents on the waiting list for the existing cycle hangar on Tonbridge Street.

Cycle hangars are installed and maintained by Cyclehoop, the Council’s approved supplier. Further details are available on their website: https://www.cyclehoop.com/product/shelters-canopies/bikehangar/

Each hangar is 1.33m high with a curved profile roof (see image below). Maintenance is covered by the annual membership fee which is currently £36 per year.

Are you eligible?

The criteria for being able to hire a space in a cycle hangar prioritises residents who:

• Live on the street (or an adjacent one) where hangars are proposed; and,

• Do not have suitable outside space for keeping a cycle.

Photo of cycle hangars, which are proposed to be installed on Tonbridge Street

Why your views matter

Why your views matter

The previous changes were implemented as a trial under an Experimental Traffic Order for 18 months. We committed to undertaking a public consultation after around 12 months of the trial scheme to seek the views of local residents and stakeholders on making the trial scheme permanent after the 18-month trial period. We are also seeking your views on whether to install two cycle hangars on a permanent basis.

Your views are important in providing feedback both on the proposed scheme as a whole and elements of it, and we would therefore welcome your responses on the pages that follow. To view the plans and find out more about the proposals, click on the links in the Related section at the bottom of this page.

We will be pleased to hear your views on the proposals as well as any alternative suggestions or objections you may have to any aspect of what we are proposing.

What happens next?

After the consultation, a decision report will be produced and published online via our website. Local residents and stakeholders will be notified of the outcome. The report will consider a broad range of information including consultation responses, feedback received during the trial period, relevant policies and other data/information including monitoring information collected during the trial period.

All of this information will be considered in making a recommendation in the report about whether, at the end of the trial period, the experimental scheme should be made permanent, modified, or allowed to lapse, and whether the cycle hangars should be installed.

What happens next

 As the consultation is now closed,your views, and those of everyone who contributes to this consultation, will be analysed and considered, alongside relevant data available on the scheme and in light of how the scheme aligns with our current policy objectives, in order to put forward recommendations on whether to proceed with the proposals.  A summary of this analysis will be provided in the decision report, and will be made available on the Camden Council website in due course.

If you have any other ideas for improvements to make travel safer and healthier in this area, please go to Safe Travel Camden Map  to make some suggestions.