High Holborn, Drake Street & Procter Street Safe and Healthy Streets consultation

Overview

The Covid-19 pandemic has changed how people in Camden live, travel and work. We want our streets to have more safe space for everyone to walk and cycle, for children to get to and from school safely and healthily, for businesses to be able to flourish, to reduce carbon emissions from vehicles and for you to be breathing cleaner air.

We want to ensure that our streets support a strong recovery from the pandemic and provide a lasting legacy of greener, safer, healthier travel.

As 69% of households in Camden do not own a car and public transport use remains much lower than before the pandemic, we know that safe and easy walking, cycling and scooting routes are more important than ever. Supporting and encouraging those who are able to walk and cycle, by creating safer streets will ensure that there is more space available on public transport and on our roads for those who need it the most.

Why are we proposing changes? 

Camden Councils Transport Strategy 2019-2041 has an objective “to substantially reduce all road traffic casualties in Camden and progress towards zero Killed and Seriously Injured casualties.” Since 2008, eight cyclists have been killed in the Holborn area. With the latest tragic death of a cyclist in Holborn, in March 2022, it is imperative that we make more changes to reduce the risk of injury or death around High Holborn, Drake Street and Procter Street. This is also an opportunity to make other “Healthy Street” improvements in this area, including better pedestrian facilities, adding plants and trees, and giving bus journeys more priority.

Over the last 5 years we’ve made a number of improvements around the Holborn Gyratory at Bloomsbury Square, Vernon Place, outside Holborn tube station and more recently, changes to improve walking and cycling at the junction of Southampton Row and Theobalds Road.

We continue to work with Transport for London on wider improvements to the area (known as the Liveable Neighbourhood scheme), which will be subject to separate consultation, but we want to make some more urgent road safety changes now.

Why your views matter

To view the plans, a video guide and to find out more about what the proposal would achieve, click on the links in the Related Section at the bottom of this page.

In line with Department for Transport guidance, we are consulting on all new and amended Safe and Healthy Street schemes so that we can engage our local residents, businesses and stakeholders in changes happening on their streets.

We are proposing to make changes to High Holborn, Drake Street and Procter Street in order to help people to walk, wheel, cycle or scooter safely while also improving the attractiveness and biodiversity of the local area, help reduce and mitigate the impacts of climate change, reduce road danger and continue to protect bus journey times.

These proposed changes are shown on the plans and in our video and include:

• Increasing the size of the cycle boxes from 5m to 7.5m at the junction of Theobalds Road and Drake Street to create more space for cyclists waiting at the stop line.
   
• Transforming Drake Street and Procter Street by reducing the number of lanes from four currently (two general traffic lanes and two bus lanes) into a road with only one traffic lane and one 24/7 bus lane (permitting taxis and cycles), as shown in the image below. This would allow us to introduce a segregated cycle track to physically separate cyclists from motor traffic on this busy road.  At the bus stops, bus stop bypasses would be introduced to provide space for pedestrians to wait for buses and safely cross the cycle track. 
• New seating and planting would also be provided along the road. Bus stops and stands would be relocated and consolidated to simplify the road layout whilst maintaining access and convenience for bus passengers.

• Two-way cycling would be permitted in and out of Red Lion Square at the northern and southern junctions, in line with Borough wide policy to make, where possible, all one-way streets two-way for cycling to improve connectivity for people travelling by bike.  Continuous crossings would also be installed at the junction with Red Lion Square to improve safety (see photo guide for an example of a continuous crossing).
   
• At the junction of High Holborn and Procter Street a “cycle gate” is proposed on Procter Street (see photo guide for an example of a cycle gate and other types of cycle measure) with an image of the cycle gate on Procter Street shown below. 

• A separate signalised cycle lane is proposed on High Holborn, shown in the image below, allowing cyclists to progress before motor traffic.  This would allow people cycling to access the cycle box on High Holborn (by the station) ahead of, and separate from motor, vehicles

• On the High Holborn approach to Southampton Row, a cycle early release would be provided which would allow cyclists to have a 4 second start ahead of motor vehicles to prevent left turning motor vehicles cutting across people cycling.  The cycle box would also be increased to 7.5m.

• At the junction of High Holborn and Southampton Row, two-stage right turn facilities would also be provided enabling right turn movements to be made in two, separate, safe stages to reduce the risk of collisions for people cycling turning right.  More noticeable (buff coloured) pedestrian crossing surfacing would also be installed at crossing points.
   
• The ability to load and service for businesses would be maintained throughout the area by relocating the existing loading bay 50m west of its current location on High Holborn, to opposite 233-235 High Holborn, with loading permitted 24 hours a day.
   
• Loading would also be permitted on the north side of High Holborn between the hours of 7pm-7am, with parking prohibited throughout the day and a cycle lane provided on High Holborn, to the east of Procter Street, to protect people cycling outside of the loading hours. A section of loading would also be provided on the west side of Procter Street on the approach to High Holborn with loading permitted 7pm-7am.
   
• The existing southbound bus lane (permitting taxis and cycles) on Southampton Row would be extended from Catton Street through the junction to 20m south of High Holborn, to provide improved bus journey time reliability and increase safety for cycling. The bus lane would operate 24 hours a day as far as Remnant Street. 
   
• The ahead and right turn lane on Kingsway northbound, would be changed into a right turn only into Remnant Street, to improve road safety and reduce the risk of collisions.
   
  • In line with the Borough’s Climate Action Plan, we would provide additional planting through the area with rain gardens and plants to improve biodiversity and reduce the risk of flooding.

How would these changes be made?

The consultation finishes on 11^th November 2022.  After the consultation, we will carefully consider the responses, alongside other information including relevant data, safety audits and policy contexts, to help us in deciding on whether or not to progress the scheme.

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 officer observations, consultation responses, feedback received during the trial period, relevant policies, and other data/information.

Should a decision be made to proceed, we would implement the changes under a permanent Traffic Management Order (TMO). If approved for construction, we would then carefully l monitor the changes to make sure it operates effectively.

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

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.