Adam Reynolds, chair of CycleBath in a letter sent to but not yet published by the Bath Chronicle outlines a plan for reducing Bath’s congestion and air pollution problem and at the same time making us all healthier by reducing the obesity epidemic.
The ‘context’ for the letter are some basic facts:
- Daily Commuters: 28,000 ‘Day Commuters’ drive by car in Bath each day, making use of low cost and free residential parking, however the Park and Rides (P&Rs) are under-utilised; residential parking zones need extending across the whole of the town to deter both residential and non-residential commuters from driving to work in Bath, make better use of P&Rs, and switch to less polluting modes of transport
- School Run: could be the cause of up to 50% of rush hour traffic, but B&NES council doesn’t know the real figures (Transport for London say 50%, Transition Larkhall’s survey says 50%)
- Health: Solving the obesity crises which kills 84,000 is more important that air pollution which ‘only’ kills 40,000; commuting to work or school by car isn’t good for your health! Safer routes for children travelling to school via walking, cycling or public need to be provided.
In his letter he calls for:
- An A36/A46 Link Road: The creation of a A36/A363 Warleigh Lane Link Road, so Bathampton can become a quiet village again, and Cleveland Bridge and the Paragon can be legally closed to HGVs
- New railway stations: The opening of Corsham and Saltford railway stations, and electrification of the local railways
- Removal of on-street parking in favour of off road
- New soft residents parking zones: The creation of soft residential parking zones covering the whole of Bath. Deterring local commuting by charging residents to park in other zones if they commute across town and to charge all non-residents for parking – the info-graphic to the right explains the proposal
- Safer streets: Make Bath streets safer for children to reduce the 5,000 being driven to school each day
- The council not to focus on the Link Road and the train stations as solutions because of the timescales involved
Adam’s full article appears on the CycleBath website.
