...and Here's How Our Urban Streets Should Look...

[Cambo]

This is just a thought & probably a totally mad one not to mention that,it will more than likely be unpopular too?…how about a congestion charge…there I've said it!!!

[greenknight]

Talk of "jobs 'n growth" and affordable housing is all very well but unless we pay some attention to the things that draw in the affluent, there is going to be a continuing serious shortage of professional capital in the county, along with an absence of the kind of spending power that can support local economies and culture which, in turn, provide choice, opportunity and quality of life for everyone. When Fired Earth closes down, you know your city is in trouble.

 

You see Amanda this statement suggests to me that you are quite keen for Herefordshire to become the new Cotswolds a rich and famous playground with Range Rovers ta boot!

 

The reason why the Cotswolds is so popular is because it's quaint and very easy to get into London not just because of rail links nope because the Bentley Continental can hammer it down the M40/A40/M4 et al.

 

The reason why you can't get your circa £100,000 consultant surgeon to live here is because the road and rail links are so flipping poor to the southeast.

 

So my question again is what alternative transport can you provide me with that can substitute my current reliance of the four wheeled monster and allow me to carry out my clinical duties?

[Amanda Martin]

greenknight,   firstly I would hate Hereford to become the new Cotswolds or any other kind of chocolate box pastiche full of pleated skirts, labradors and retired brigadiers who have nothing better to do than pursue boundary disputes.   Actually York , Oxford or even Cardiff were more what I had in mind but on a smaller scale, or again any Dutch city you can name.   

 

There's nothing mutually exclusive about reducing car dependence and having a thriving, mixed economy and socio economic profile.  My point was that   if you make your urban spaces unappealing, the only people who will stay around are those who have no choice and that is a recipe for poverty and decline as Newport illustrates on a daily basis.  High quality architecture and street design,  green civil spaces and transport choices benefit everyone and attract visitors as well - that surely is common sense.  

 

To answer your question directly : you seem almost to be saying that because you would find it infeasible to use alternatives to your vehicle, then it somehow isn't worth doing.  What I'm saying is that there will always be some journeys that most of us can make by other modes and that people should have a choice.  One thing is for sure:  if there is no alternative but to use a car, then people will use a car and the 30% who still don't have access  to one will continue to be disadvantaged.  

 

To make it less abstract,  I would like to see: 

 

1.  Every residential street turned into a Home Zone, with cyclist/pedestrian priority measures and speeds limited to 10mph with good street design;

2.  Every school with a Safe Routes to School scheme in place, identifying the principal routes the children take and re-engineering the streets to give them priority - this would encourage children to make the school independently and reduce the impact of the school run.  This has been immensely successful in Denmark and other places on the Continent;

3.  De -pedestrianisation of the city centre, opening it up to bikes and public transport with limited car access;

4.  De-regularisation of parking, to provide more on-street parking for specific purposes, perhaps with a meter scheme.  Cleverly configured parking bays actually make parked vehicles part of the traffic calming;  

5.  Network wide re-engineering of the roads, re-allocating road space away from motorised vehicles in favour of bikes and public transport to give these modes a time and convenience advantage. In particular I would like to see 50% of the road space in Edgar Street and Victoria Street re-allocated to cyclists and public transport.    In Holland you often see streets with two way access for bikes but one way for vehicles; at the moment it's impossible to travel east to west on a bike without having to venture onto the ring road or get off and walk;

6. Removal of street clutter and traffic lights and replacement of the Highways Agency's terrible pinch point schemes with Poynton style roundels to maximise traffic flow;

7.  Reduction of car park capacity overall (parking is the main determinant of whether people choose to use the car)  but an increase in parking provision for people with disabilities and those who need a permit for access to the city;

8. Park and ride at the main gateways to the city:  Ross Road, Ledbury Road, Holmer Road etc with a regular, cheap, efficient shuttle bus of light rapid transit vehicle;  

9. Much improved public transport including Colin's tram idea, possibly using hybrid vehicles that will run on road and rail;

10. Bike hire stops around the city, including electric bikes for those not fit enough to attempt the hills;

11.  Car clubs like the St James Car Club to liberate families from the need to buy and run second vehicles.

 

There's a huge amount that could be done very quickly and at much less cost than roadbuilding.  I appreciate that your cycling days might be over but we really do want to inculcate this habit in children instead of consigning them to a life of viewing the world through the rear window.  

 

If you travel out of Hereford frequently, you will be only too aware of how bleak and choked our road network is now, and that is after forty years of trying to tarmac our way out of the problem. It's a kind of madness.  

[greenknight]

To be honest you should be proud of Herefordshire,s record after all in the last ten years the only significant road building project was that out of Rotherwas!

Once again you are raising points specific to urban environments and not advising how best to improve the County diaphragm.

[Amanda Martin]

Yes and that went well didn't it? 

Do I detect a little goalpost movement? :-)    I believe  the conversation started in the context of the eastern crossing and southern relief road.  The eastern crossing is promoted as congestion relief for the south and north western exits from the city on the basis that anyone on the east has to cross the city.    My point is that it wouldn't solve the problem because most of the movements are within the city itself. If you reduce local car journeys, capacity is liberated for those entering and leaving the city and the new crossing would not be necessary.    

[greenknight]

Well we will have to disagree Amanda because I don't accept that it is solely due to local journeys and I would fully support a dual carriageway around the east of the city in fact I would go for an orbital ring road if the money was there. The southern relief road on its own is a waste of money without a bridge.

Anyone that has to use a car to travel outside the County knows the problems and again you still have not answered my question regarding road infrastructure outside the city walls. If I want to go to Gloucester/Cheltenham it will take me 50 minutes in a car well have you ever tried it in a coach or train..your having a laugh it's a day trip.

 

Good Luck with your quest however if the IOC grasps the anti roads thread then it's time in local government will be short. I'm not saying concrete the planet and I love the concept of car free zones within cities but just at the moment all roads in Herefordshire lead to the city so personally I want common sense realistic options of how to deal with traffic that travels through and can avoid the city centre!

[Amanda Martin]

That's a great shame, greenknight.   I would have been proud to have had you as an ally.   

 

I accept your point about the difficulties of inter urban travel but supporting road building only kneecaps public transport even further.  The appointment of Beeching was a dark day but this is where the money should be going.  

Can you name me a single ring road that has alleviated traffic congestion?  

[greenknight]

Yep the M40 for many many years running up from Oxford to Warwick for me it slashed my journey time by almost an hour.

Fantastic but busier now..more people more cars more industry and that's life.

[Maggie May]

I think Amanda has a fair point about improving and providing safe routes to school. The roads have very little congestion in the school holidays. When you see the lack of capacity in our hospitals and GPs if we can make young people healthier by walking or cycling safely every day surely that makes more sense than road building. Greenknight can stay in his vehicle but those who want to cycle or walk can do and do it safely. If people walk or cycle or have good public transport rather than use cars, it means that local people save considerable money on the cost of running a car and this is then spent locally. 

[Cloudberry]

A vision for more sustainable transport options in Hereford is excellent, but don't forget there are many folk who for various valid reasons won't be getting on a bike anytime soon. And for those, - without convenient buses/trams, most will continue to rely on cars. Also many people have such busy lives that they will always choose the quickest transport option, even if part of that is in a traffic jam.

 

I would like to see most of Amanda's excellent list of suggestions for within-city movement given a try, but I also agree with GreenKnight that the connections from Hereford to everywhere else have to be improved too. For those of us not leaving Herefordshire often it is OK, but it is currently difficult for Hereford to attract high quality professionals, (e.g. doctors) who do need to travel as part of their work.

 

Amanda, when you are out canvassing, listen to what people say they want, and see how their needs can be addressed.

[Amanda Martin]

This is just a thought & probably a totally mad one not to mention that,it will more than likely be unpopular too?…how about a congestion charge…there I've said it!!!

 

Brave

[Amanda Martin]

Yep the M40 for many many years running up from Oxford to Warwick for me it slashed my journey time by almost an hour.

Fantastic but busier now..more people more cars more industry and that's life.

 

....although not progress.

[Amanda Martin]

A vision for more sustainable transport options in Hereford is excellent, but don't forget there are many folk who for various valid reasons won't be getting on a bike anytime soon. And for those, - without convenient buses/trams, most will continue to rely on cars. Also many people have such busy lives that they will always choose the quickest transport option, even if part of that is in a traffic jam.

 

I would like to see most of Amanda's excellent list of suggestions for within-city movement given a try, but I also agree with GreenKnight that the connections from Hereford to everywhere else have to be improved too. For those of us not leaving Herefordshire often it is OK, but it is currently difficult for Hereford to attract high quality professionals, (e.g. doctors) who do need to travel as part of their work.

 

Amanda, when you are out canvassing, listen to what people say they want, and see how their needs can be addressed.

 

 

Yes indeed - noted and also Maggie May's comment about Safe Routes to School. The school journey is the obvious one to focus on; making the streets safe for children has a knock on benefit for everyone.

 

As I think I said elsewhere, there is nothing like walking and cycling the ward to get a feel for the issues.  Moorfields has a terrible parking problem and a couple of elderly people have told me they don't get out much because they're afraid to cross the roads.  Someone else mentioned the appalling underpass on Victoria Street  - not in my patch but still relevant overall.  Housing and litter are issues too, along with concerns about the integrity and efficiency of the Authority itself.    

 

It strikes me that it's often the subtle detail - green spaces, community facilities, good housing design - that tends to be ignored and neglected because those in power have been too focused on big "prestige" projects yet it's often the small things -the things that are difficult to quantify in pounds and pence - that add most quality and richness to people's lives.   We need to start recognising the shades of grey and using them to inform policy: remember the local when planning strategically.   

[dippyhippy]

Little things do indeed make a difference. And usually, don't have a great cost associated with them.

 

Schools are tricky in some respects, because these days many parents both work, and children end up accessing breakfast clubs at the start of the school day, and after school clubs at the end.

 

However, and forgive me if I've posted this before somewhere, walking buses CAN work! A safe, set route with pick up points along the way. It takes both schools and parents to get on board with this for it to work..... but it absolutely CAN! There are always going to be families for whom this may not be practical, but many Primary aged pupils who live reasonably close to their school could participate, and may even enjoy this method of getting to school.

 

Thinking about the road situation....I don't have a car, and am lucky enough to be able to enjoy a brisk thirty minute walk to work each day. In the winter.....I would much prefer to cycle, as I used to, but don't as the roads around Hereford frighten the life out of me!

 

I am just one person.... but there must be others like me! Perhaps who are currently driving everywhere because the option of cycling isn't really a safe one.

 

Let's give folks options for moving around the city..... it might make a significant difference!

 

But I still think we desperately need a second river crossing...... and for me, it would have to be East.

[Cambo]

Brave

Either brave or suicidal?

 

But the revenue raise could be spent on making Hereford a cycle friendly place & help pay for other public transport schemes?!

 

I also think that like GK we need a orbital road around Hereford with two new river crossings one east & one west eventually?…otherwise with all these new house planned things will only get worse in the centre?

[greenknight]

Very interesting letter in Hereford Times this week about Mordiford village suffering because of traffic trying to avoid the city centre..schools,children,safety that sort of thing!

I'm pretty sure that similar letters will come from Burley Gate,Bodenham and Sutton St Nicholas not to mention Withington in fact all other rural peripheral areas where schools are next to minor roads.

 

An Eastern Bypass has to be the first priority then you can put down as many cycleways,pedestrian precincts or bus lanes as you like.

 

It took me thirty minutes this evening to get from the Ambulance Station to Tupsley a route that demands that I drive around the city to go back on myself. Thirty minutes was the same time it took to make the rest of my journey to Newport.

 

Please let's have some common sense....Forgive me but our local party is called Its Our County and not Its Our City!

[Chris Chappell]

I have pledged on my election address that I will continue to campaign for an Eastern route by-pass as I have for years. Most of my constituents want a by-pass, most to the east but some to the west. It is the most common discussion on the door step. Other modes of transport can be considered of course, but the by-pass continues to be the most popular priority and the people are always right!

[Cloudberry]

If all our city rubbish will soon be going to a new incinerator at Hartlebury in Worcestershire, has anybody thought about the impact of all the dustcarts having to travel east?

[Victor Wright]

If all our city rubbish will soon be going to a new incinerator at Hartlebury in Worcestershire, has anybody thought about the impact of all the dustcarts having to travel east?

 

I believe Hereford has a total of about 8 dustcarts, so this will make very little difference, besides with an eastern bypass they would go straight from Rotherwas no doubt, so there would be no impact on the city traffic.

[Amanda Martin]

But guys -  it won't solve the problem.    This is the point.  An eastern crossing will cost a fortune and  won't solve the problem.   It's the M25 effect.  It wil not solve the problem!  Not now. Not tomorrow.  Not ever. 
 

[Dave99]

I note Amanda you oppose an eastern crossing  bypass - all fair enough. As you are  a It's our County candidate though, and if that's  the view of the IOC generally, they will not be getting my vote. 

[Amanda Martin]

It's not IOC policy.  IOC's official stand on this is not to rule it out but to evaluate it in due  course. 

 

Where you put your X is a matter for you but I believe in not fudging these things.  I can tell you that I know for a fact that this road would be massively destructive, a shameful waste of money and would not solve the problem.  My party is not whipped and I will be making my case as when the opportunity arises.  I anticipate that unless I can demonstrate by reference to the traffic data and cost/benefit analysis, that the net benefits (mostly an inaccurate assessment of prjected time savings) will not outweigh the social, environmental and costs, I will lose the argument and the road will be built.  That is democracy. 

[edhatton]

Amanda; I am a Widemarsh area voter. I notice you are against an eastern bypass, whilst the city is often gridlocked.

What specifically are the facts you refer to that demonstrate that this bypass will be destructive and not solve the problems?

[Amanda Martin]

edhatton, 

 

New roads are built on the basis that there will be a reassignment of traffic from existing routes but road planning rarely takes account of the traffic generation effect of the new road itself - it should do, and Government guidance says that it should - but it doesn't because politicians want a quick popular fix and highway engineers are used to doing things this way.      In the case of the proposed eastern bypass, the logic is that, by providing a new river crossing on the east side of the city, traffic needing to enter and leaving the east side would no longer have to cross the city and use the A49. It's superficially appealing but it won't  work in practice because we know for sure - and have known officially since 1994 - that the more roads you build in already congested networks, the more traffic you generate.  This is why road widening schemes in the south east have proved completely fruitless - you could widen the M25 to ten lanes in each direction and the congestion relief would be minimal and temporary.

 

The main reason for this is a phenomenon called "induced traffic".   In congested networks, the congestion itself suppresses demand.    When a new road is built, all that suppressed demand is liberated: people make more journeys and travel further to do the same things.  In a very short space of time, the new road reaches capacity and vehicle movements then start to increase on the old routes too as people re-assign back so all you end up with is one more traffic clogged road.     I guarantee that this is what will happen with the new city link road:  for a few weeks or maybe months, there could be a slight fall in the amount of traffic on Newmarket Street and BLueschool Street but the congestion will return very quickly and this is without taking into account the additional traffic generated by the housing development.  

 

Ironically, the only way we could make an eastern river crossing stack up is by reducing local journeys to the point where the city network is no longer congested but then, of course, we wouldn't need the crossing at all.  In my view, this is where we should be concentrating the scarce funds we have available.  Road building is hugely expensive, doesn't solve the problem and you can't spend that money twice.   I say let's look at the city's problems first with a package of measures for providing alternatives to the car and then re-assess the need for a new road.    There are occasions where a bypass can be justified but only where traffic data show that most traffic movements are through traffic; this is not the case on the A49 and within the city.  

 

I was canvassing in Edgar Street a couple of Saturdays ago at around lunchtime.   The traffic was nose to tail from one end to the other to the point where I could not physically place my bike on the road never mind cycle it anywhere.    As a result, Edgar Street and the Moorfields area have become degraded, traffic dominated thoroughfares with consequent impact on quality of life, parking  and property values.   There is absolutely nothing wrong with these streets: they should be pleasant, attractive and desirable urban spaces and I believe that is achievable but not by throwing scarce resources away on miles of pointless, destructive, expensive tarmac.   I firmly believe that by tackling the problems within the city, the need for a second crossing will disappear.

 

I know I am fighting an uphill battle with this:   adding extra capacity to the network has a superficial appeal.  Politicians will always look for a short term, easy fix - most of them don't understand anything about transport planning anyway - and highway engineers will do what they're used to doing.    It doesn't seem to occur to people that we've been trying to resolve this problem with expensive road programmes for decades and the problem is worse than ever.   At some point we need to stop and take a fresh approach. 

 

I know I may not have convinced you, and you may not trust me with your vote, but I have studied this for many years and have also seen how successful alternatives to road building have been in Europe and I genuinely believe what I am telling you. 

[dippyhippy]

It's going to take a real leap of faith, isn't it, to do things differently?

 

What about if we trialled the Lights Out scheme to begin with.... see if that helps to improve traffic flow???   And perhaps some of the smaller and cheaper options, such as walking buses, and some sort of incentive scheme for car sharing?

 

Maybe if just these three ideas could be implemented for six months, and folks could see that it was making a difference, then more people would be on board with spending money on improved cycle routes etc.

 

I think folks need to feel that Hereford is on the right track with improving it's traffic situation.... if it can be shown, that it does indeed make a difference to local travel, they may be more open minded.

 

Whatever plans end up being agreed..... The Southern Link Road must be stopped.

[edhatton]

Amanda; I still see no facts which demonstrate a bypass would be destructive or fail to solve the issues. Surely, Edgar Street would be relieved of the nose to tail traffic which you complain about.

 

Also, I fail to believe we can convince the population to abandon cars and cycle or walk everywhere.

 

Although traditionally an IOC supporter, I feel unable to vote for a Green candidate (whatever the label)

[Amanda Martin]

edhatton,  the Council's and the Highways Agency's own traffic data have confirmed that most traffic in the city is local and not trunk road traffic but I understand your scepticism.   Dippy is right:   doing things differently requires a leap of faith and whatever is done MUST command public support ; you cannot drag people along by the hair.  They need to believe it and embrace it or it won't work. Whether or not I'm elected, I would like to organise some meetings with some influential and knowledgeable speakers:  transport planners and experts who know far more about this than I do and can really paint that picture of how much better things could be if we can loosen our grip on the steering wheel.  I do hope you will come along and engage.  

In the meantime, I'm sorry you feel I have not earned your vote but I fully respect your decision.  We all have to follow our hearts in these matters and work things out for ourselves.   We're not always going to agree but the worst thing is apathy - while there is debate there is the prospect of progress. 

[Aylestone Voice]

Being cynical I wonder about the IOC policy on this

The technical evidence against a by pass may be there but I guess the vast majority of residents believe that a by pass is necessary. My recollection is that IOC were previously, based on the evidence, firmly against any by pass.
Amanda correctly points out that the eastern route option is now in the IOC manifesto but also adds that there will an evaluation.

Have they included the possible promise of a by pass to the east as a political manoeuvre just to win votes but if they win control will evaluate it out?

[Amanda Martin]

No.  There is no consensus on this at the moment but I am in a minority of those against it I believe. 

[Aylestone Voice]

Apologies - The IOC manifesto refers only to an eastern river crossing - not a by pass at all. Presumably if deemed viable this would go from the end of the Rotherwas relief road to where..? Certainly not to the A49 north of the city I guess.

Actually I use a car maybe once a week on average but my walking and cycling trips would be easier and safer if all those cars that did not have to go through the city centre went elsewhere.