RPC Bulletin #77, June 2024

Each month, we email a bulletin to everyone who has signed up on this site. Below is the edition that we sent in June 2024. If you like it, please sign up on our Get Involved section – you will be showing your support for our work and you will receive our free monthly bulletins a month before they appear here.

IN THIS ISSUE… +++ Nationwide reaction to fatality in Regent’s Park +++ What was the key issue in the death of 81-year-old pedestrian? +++ Why ride-logging apps aren’t the bad guys +++

Visit our sponsors: Bella Velo, Cycle Exchange, Kingston Wheelers, London Dynamo, Look Mum No Hands!, Pearson Cycles, Richmond Cycles, Evolve e-Bikes

HAZARDOUS THOUGHTS

The recent inquest into the death of an elderly woman after she stepped into the path of a cyclist in Regent’s Park has placed cycling speeds under national scrutiny, prompting an attempt by a Conservative MP to make cyclists face the same penalties as drivers who cause death or serious injury. With the incident attracting much negative media attention, The Royal Parks has felt pressure to review its largely supportive policies on active travel and cycling across its estate, including Richmond Park. 

TRP has already asked Strava, along with other ride-logging apps, to remove Regent’s Park Outer Circle as a segment (a route where cyclists’ times are ranked), while the perimeter road in Richmond Park has been flagged as “hazardous” – which, compared to roads outside the park, it is not. The inference is clear: when it comes to keeping pedestrians in Royal Parks safe, TRP wants to tackle what it considers to be the inappropriate speed of cyclists. 

But the exceptionally low accident rate involving pedestrians indicates that the overwhelming majority of cyclists in Royal Parks ride safely. Our concern is that restrictions may be ill-considered which would impact the enjoyment of riding in Richmond Park – pushing visitors to ride on less safe roads outside. We urge TRP to take a circumspect view by consulting with us and Regent’s Park Cyclists for our views and experiences on the most effective means of improving cyclist and pedestrian safety and enjoyment. In this bulletin, we set out why.

QUICK TO JUDGE

It is fair to say that, following the wide coverage of 81-year-old Hilda Griffiths’ very unfortunate death, many ordinary members of the public have become aware for the first time that there is no speed limit for cycling on British roads. And many may have assumed that cyclists can therefore ride as fast as they like, whenever they like, with impunity, which is not the case. There are already laws against dangerous and inconsiderate cycling, including inappropriately high speeds, which the police use if a cyclist is considered to have put pedestrians or themselves at risk. 

A concomitant conclusion by many incensed readers of national newspapers would have been that if investment banker Brian Fitzgerald cycled at the speed limit for motorists when he was out with his clubmates at 7am on a Saturday morning in summer 2022, he may not have struck the victim. But on the basis of the facts presented at the inquest, this seems unlikely.

Fitzgerald said he was only two metres away when he saw the woman – giving him less than a quarter of a second to try to avoid her, even if he had been traveling at 20mph (although if he had been moving slower, it could be argued he would have hit her with less impact). It would appear assistant coroner Jean Harkin’s verdict of “accidental cycling collision death” bears out this considered opinion and is, we believe, a fair one. She also rejected calls for a report into the prevention of future deaths caused by cyclists in Regent’s Park because “there has never [previously] been a death of a pedestrian as a result in these circumstances”. And nationally, the risk of a fatality in such situations is incredibly small: only 2.5 of the UK’s 400 annual pedestrian deaths involve a bicycle – the rest are all down to motor vehicles.

COMMUNICATION IS KEY

Rather than focus intently on the issue of speed, The Royal Parks should take up the offer from Richmond Park Cyclists and our friends at Regent’s Park Cyclists to engage in dialogue and to look at other aspects of road safety which contribute to collisions. Do riders in groups communicate as effectively as they can to each other when they see a pedestrian? Could there be improvements to signage, alerting cyclists and pedestrians to each other’s presence? Can visibility be improved by restricting parked cars in Regent’s Park, or encouraging cyclists to take the central position, thereby moving them further away from the kerb?  

All of these are thoughts and suggestions, not recommendations. We already have our Safer Riding Guide, which covers the most straightforward means for cyclists to aid road safety in Richmond Park, and it was put together with the help of the Royal Parks’ police unit. The latest version will soon appear on our noticeboard outside Colicci, and we will encourage TRP to promote it.

WE’RE STRAVA KEEN

Another aspect of cycling that the wider public may not have been aware of until they read about the Regent’s fatality is the use of Strava. With its segments and leaderboards seemingly encouraging fast speeds, the most popular ride-logging app probably looks like the bad guy. But lap times were recorded on cycling forums long before Strava arrived in 2009, and they could now migrate to closed WhatsApp groups – making the tiny minority of cyclists who do travel at problematically fast speeds harder for the authorities to see. And there is another aspect of Strava which would be useful for The Royal Parks to harness.

Strava Metro is an aggregated, anonymised, deep-dive information source which is only available to “groups directly involved in active transportation and infrastructure planning” – organisations, in other words, like TRP. Two years ago we put together a presentation which aimed to show TRP how the data available could measure how safe Richmond Park is for cycling and walking, as well as improve aspects of safety. Sadly, the process of getting the presentation to TRP’s board stalled – but recent events make this an opportune moment to restart that process.

SEE YOU NEXT MONTH...

As ever, thank you for allowing us to pop into your inbox, and let us know what you think about anything related to cycling in Richmond Park – we reply personally to every email you send us. If you enjoyed this bulletin, please share it with your cycling friends – and if they like what they read, encourage them to sign up to our mailing list too. The more subscribers we have, the bigger our voice.

All the best,

Richmond Park Cyclists

RPC Bulletin #76, May 2024

Each month, we email a bulletin to everyone who has signed up on this site. Below is the edition that we sent in May 2024. If you like it, please sign up on our Get Involved section – you will be showing your support for our work and you will receive our free monthly bulletins a month before they appear here.

IN THIS ISSUE… +++ Rundown of road offences and other incidents the police attended over the past three months  +++ Collecting data to discover how safe the roadway is +++ Help maintain the natural environment of the park – and meet us! +++ Take care around dog owners +++

Visit our sponsors: Bella Velo, Cycle Exchange, Kingston Wheelers, London Dynamo, Look Mum No Hands!, Pearson Cycles, Richmond Cycles, Evolve e-Bikes

MEETINGS POINTS

It’s been a busy few weeks for us at Richmond Park Cyclists. This coming Tuesday we will be representing your interests at the stakeholders’ breakfast, a biannual event hosted by some of the people who run The Royal Parks, and we are due to have our regular quarterly meeting with Sergeant Pete Sturgess, who is in charge of policing the outer Royal Parks, and park manager Paul Richards. 

We also sat with Paul on the Safer Parks Police panel two weeks ago where, as usual, the list of all incidents that officers attended over the past three months were presented to the stakeholders present. We are grateful to Sgt Sturgess and his team for collating the information and helping to keep the roadway safer for cycling. This quarter’s figures showed, once again, that while cycling accidents outnumber motor vehicle and pedestrian accidents, they are largely self-inflicted, and motor vehicle offences far outnumber everything else.

Before we share the data, we now have traffic counts from Paul detailing flows recorded last year over several days. We are extrapolating the number of cycling miles travelled with reported cycling accidents and will then seek comparable data for roads outside. Our aim is to demonstrate that the park’s roads are far safer for cycling than those cyclists might otherwise ride outside. Richmond Park certainly feels safer, but we would like to prove that it is the safest cycling destination in London and beyond.

Here are the incidents that occurred on the park’s roadway from January to March, as set out in the police’s report: 

• In January (as reported in a previous edition of this bulletin) a cyclist was left shocked and bruised after a motorist exceeding the 20mph speed limit close passed her on the Priory Lane stretch of the park’s road, snagging the woman’s jacket and dragging her for about 50 metres. 

• Near Ham Gate in February, there was an attempted theft of bikes from two cyclists by two assailants, who chased them by bike. A few days earlier, as reported in our March bulletin, a cyclist clipped the kerb and wands at Beverley Brook Bridge causing her to fall and break her hip and pelvis.

• A cyclist hit two stationary riders on Sawyers Hill in March, causing their bike to snap in half. The rider cracked their teeth and injured their shoulder.  Later in the month, a cyclist slipped on gravel at the roundabout on Priory Lane and grazed their hip.

• As for offences this quarter, one motorist was reported for dangerously carrying too many passengers and a cyclist was reported for riding without due care and attention. A total of 19 motorists were reported under Park Regulations for driving a vehicle in a manner that could endanger any person. A total of 50 motorists were reported for speeding, and 251 trade vehicle drivers were reported. One motorist was found to not have a valid license, and four held no insurance. There were also 141 tickets issued for unauthorised parking or leaving a vehicle unattended and 17 for contravening signs, including no entry, on the roads closed to traffic.

• There were eight cyclists reported for riding off-track and 36 motorists for driving “not on a road”.

The police priorities for the next quarter, as agreed by the panel, include pedestrian safety, especially on the courtesy crossings, the shared-use middle road and on the Tamsin Trail. Please slow down and stop to give way if it is safe to do so. Another priority is focussing on cycling safety, especially around the priority flow system on the Beverley Brook Bridge, which applies to cyclists as well as motorists. 

Separate to the panel meeting, RPC’s proposal to introduce a slip lane on Beverley Brook Bridge for cyclists travelling towards Roehampton has been rejected by TRP but we intend to employ a traffic engineer to design a solution showing how this could be safely and considerately introduced. 

ROOT CAUSES

There’s more to the park than the roadway and the Tamsin Trail. Here’s your chance to experience parts of the park that cycling may never have taken you and help to care for the natural environment in the process. You will also get to meet us in person!

The Royal Parks is looking for volunteers to assist with just two hours work in some of the meadow areas. One of the jobs at this time of year is the removal of ragwort – the small, yellow weed-like flowers which can kill grassland species and, in their dried form, are poisonous to horses.

The volunteer morning will take place on Sunday, May 19, from 9am until 11.30am, meeting at either Sheen Gate or at Colicci by Roehampton Gate (meeting point to be confirmed). If you can find the time to spare and would like to take part in this worthwhile activity, please email Fiona Megarrell, TRP’s volunteer officer, at fmegarrell@royalparks.org.uk and copy us in.

MUTTS DO BETTER

On a final note, a brief word about looking out for our four-legged friends and their owners. We’ve had reports that cyclists have been behaving inconsiderately towards dog walkers on the crossing in front of the car park near Robin Hood Gate car park. Please reduce your speed on your approach, particularly from the Broomfield Hill direction to give you more time to react to the greater number of people and animals who may be moving around, and refrain from shouting at them.

SEE YOU NEXT MONTH...

As ever, thank you for allowing us to pop into your inbox, and let us know what you think about anything related to cycling in Richmond Park – we reply personally to every email you send us. If you enjoyed this bulletin, please share it with your cycling friends – and if they like what they read, encourage them to sign up to our mailing list too. The more subscribers we have, the bigger our voice.

All the best,

Richmond Park Cyclists

RPC Bulletin #75, April 2024

Each month, we email a bulletin to everyone who has signed up on this site. Below is the edition that we sent in April 2024. If you like it, please sign up on our Get Involved section – you will be showing your support for our work and you will receive our free monthly bulletins a month before they appear here.

IN THIS ISSUE… +++ Revamp of Roehampton Gate cafe +++ Entries for time trials open +++ Car-free day rejected +++ Rules for dog-owners, and what to do if they don’t follow them +++ British Cycling event to encourage women to ride +++

Visit our sponsors: Bella Velo, Cycle Exchange, Kingston Wheelers, London Dynamo, Look Mum No Hands!, Pearson Cycles, Richmond Cycles, Evolve e-Bikes

LATTE DEVELOPERS

Coffee-lovers rejoice! After a very long wait, The Royal Parks has announced that Colicci will finally be redeveloped alongside the area surrounding the cafe, which will greatly improve the facility for cyclists.

In January, we were privileged to meet Jane Pelly, Head of Landscape at TRP, and Principal Landscape Architect Madeleine Murphy in the park, where we made recommendations concerning cycling access, bike parking and road surfacing. The plans they showed us will now be available for you to see at three open days on Thursday, April 4 (1-4pm), Saturday, April 6 (10am-1pm) or Friday, April 12 (11am-2pm) at the Roehampton Gate cafe, where you can ask questions and provide feedback. 

The present cafe building, which was originally located in St James’s Park, was transplanted to Richmond Park after the original pavilion burned down in 2004, and was only meant to last a few months until a permanent replacement was built. In December 2019, TRP’s ten-year management plan for the park stated it was still unable to find “a funding source” for the project, so these improvements are long overdue and most welcome. But with the hoops of planning permission still to jump through, there is a wait to come before the grand opening takes place in late 2026. In the meantime, you can read more about the redevelopment and see an artists’ impression of it on TRP’s website here.

FUN TIME

Entries for the park’s annual time trials, organised by London Dynamo, open TODAY. The 10.4-mile events, which take place on Sunday, June 23 and Sunday, July 7, are perfect for anyone who has never raced before, particularly as you get to experience the roads with barely any traffic on them. All you need is a basic road bike and an alarm clock to get you up in time for the starting slots, which are scheduled at 30-second intervals between 6am and 7am. 

The categories are Men’s Road, Men’s TT, Junior Male, Women’s Road, Women’s TT, Junior Female, Para and – for the second event only  – Men’s 3-Up TT and Women’s 3-Up TT.

Sign up for the first event here and the second here. Entries cost £16 for adults and £8 for juniors. Places go quickly, so don’t hang about!

CAR-FREE DAY REJECTED

If you were cycling in the park over the long weekend, you may have seen the usual tabard-wearing attendants helping to deal with the now-traditional increased flow of cars around the car parks which occurs during almost every public holiday. Their presence was of particular interest to us this time, due to the response from park manager Paul Richards regarding one of our familiar projects.

Paul told us that The Royal Parks will not take up our proposal to prevent motor vehicles travelling through the park during World Car-Free Day on Sunday, September 22. He assured us that TRP had explored the idea “in detail”, but “due to operational reasons, including the need to provide operational access between Richmond and Kingston Gates, and to Pembroke Lodge, we do not have the resources to implement a restriction of access to all motor traffic on that day.” Obviously, this is a disappointing outcome, but particularly so when it is clear that TRP clearly has the money to spend on contractors to man the car parks every Bank Holiday weekend – and a car-free day could tempt some of those drivers queuing up on the park roads to visit by bike next time.

Paul also declined to explain why our plan for widening the controversial one-way lane to accommodate a cycle slip-lane on Beverley Brook Bridge and narrowing the pedestrian section wasn’t viable. He stated that our second option of a footbridge, “is on the future projects list but with no timeline”. Once again, he made no reference to the woman who came off her bike and broke her femur after misjudging the barrier on the bridge in February, nor the experienced cyclist whose bike was damaged in October when a motorist in front of him braked suddenly.

We’re treating these knockbacks on Car Free Day and Beverley Brook Bridge as a stalemate for the time being, and will press forward with our investigations into both while we consider how to respond.

PAW SHOW

A subscriber contacted us after a dog owner allowed their pet to run out of control across the road and did not seem to accept when challenged that they had an obligation to control the animal in the park. We thought we would share the correct information, should you find yourself in a similar situation or knocked off your bike by an errant hound.

All dogs should be on leads at all times during deer birthing season, which is from May 1 to July 31. And while the section of the Road Traffic Act which requires dogs to be on leads when crossing the road does not apply in the park, any failure to control a dog could be an offence under three sections of the park’s regulations which the police actively enforce. One – Section 3(5) – would apply if an officer asks the person with the animal to place it on a lead; the other two state that a visitor to the park should not “intentionally or recklessly interfere with the safety, comfort or convenience of any person” (Section 3 (1)) or “cause or permit any animal or bird of which he is in charge to chase, worry, or injure any other animal or bird” (Section 4 (21)). 

If a dog causes you to crash, make sure you ask for details of the owner and any witnesses, as both could be vital in court or in an insurance claim. Call 101 to report the incident, or 999 if the injury is serious. Similarly, dial 101 if you see a loose dog that appears to endanger cyclists.

BREEZY DOES IT

A brief word on two events you may want to participate in.

• The park management has invited British Cycling to run a ride for Breeze, the national body’s programme to get more women into riding bikes for fun. The inclusive, women-only event will take place in the park in May. We’ll let you know the exact date as soon as it’s announced.

• On Wednesday, our friends at the London Cycling Campaign are launching London Loves Cycling, their initiative targeted at the candidates running for London Mayor. The aim is to avoid the distraction of culture wars currently raging around cycling by celebrating the bike as a hugely popular mode of transport in the capital. LCC says there will be plenty of opportunities for you to spread the message, so keep an eye on the new campaign website.

SEE YOU NEXT MONTH...

As ever, thank you for allowing us to pop into your inbox, and let us know what you think about anything related to cycling in Richmond Park – we reply personally to every email you send us. If you enjoyed this bulletin, please share it with your cycling friends – and if they like what they read, encourage them to sign up to our mailing list too. The more subscribers we have, the bigger our voice.

All the best,

Richmond Park Cyclists

RPC Bulletin #74, March 2024

Each month, we email a bulletin to everyone who has signed up on this site. Below is the edition that we sent in March 2024. If you like it, please sign up on our Get Involved section – you will be showing your support for our work and you will receive our free monthly bulletins a month before they appear here.

IN THIS ISSUE… +++ Respond to park survey TODAY +++ Woman injured on Beverley Brook Bridge +++ Road rage verdict – five years later +++ Kingstonians! Tell council what you think about one-way trial next to park +++ Join LCC ride to make cycling more accessible +++ Help us update our noticeboard +++ Warning if you are taking a detour during deer cull +++ 

Visit our sponsors: Bella Velo, Cycle Exchange, Kingston Wheelers, London Dynamo, Look Mum No Hands!, Pearson Cycles, Richmond Cycles, Evolve e-Bikes

TIME’S RUNNING OUT

The Royal Parks’ annual survey closes tomorrow at 5pm. This is your chance to tell the people who run Richmond Park what you like and dislike about it – and the questions only take a few moments to answer.

The link to register is here. Once you’ve filled in your details, you will be signed up to the Royal Parks Panel and receive an email directing you to the survey. If you have already signed up to TRP’s research emails, check your inbox and junk folder.

Question ten in the survey asks: “Are there any improvements you would like to see?” If you feel strongly about the road-narrowing installations at Beverley Brook Bridge and the timber gates, or the presence of through traffic, or any other issue, this is your opportunity to express your views, politely and articulately.

The responses are likely to have some effect on TRP’s future plans for the park. We suspect that its previous annual surveys have not had enough feedback from cyclists, so please sign up and help correct the imbalance. 

CRASH BARRIER

At around 9am on Sunday, February 4, a woman was seriously injured while cycling in the single lane on Beverley Brook Bridge.

The cyclist, who we are told is an experienced triathlete, landed on her hip after misjudging the plastic barrier. She was taken to Kingston Hospital, where she was fitted with a steel plate and pins in her femur. No other party was involved and the police attended the scene. We wish the cyclist a speedy recovery.

We wrote to park manager Paul Richards after the crash. Responding later to correspondence we had sent prior to the incident, which outlined our existing objections to the installations on the bridge, he reiterated that a safety audit “confirmed that the plans for new safety measures were safely designed, and that the measures have been safely installed, and they allow the safe movement of cyclists”. He made no reference to the woman’s crash.

Ever since the installations arrived, we have maintained that they leave very little margin for error if a cyclist misjudges them, and as such they are a hazard. We will continue to press the park’s management for the data which, they claim, shows the installations are safe.

ROAD RAGE: VERDICT IS IN

There has been a frustrating outcome to the road rage case outlined in last month’s bulletin. As we reported, the incident involving a cyclist and a motorist on Queen’s Road took place almost five years ago, and Sgt Sturgess from the park’s police unit helped to speed up the scheduling of the long-awaited court hearing (although the date we gave for the trial was incorrect: it actually took place this month, not May as we reported).

The hearing at Kingston Crown Court, which lasted five days, ended with the defendant acquitted of dangerous driving and assault occasioning actual bodily harm. 

Contradictory evidence concerning the identification of the driver was one of the factors that led the jury to conclude guilt could not be proved beyond reasonable doubt.

The verdict must be disappointing for the victim. While road rage incidents in the park are relatively rare, this case once again shows how it can often take years for them to reach the courts – and, of course, removing through traffic would likely reduce the number of driver-related conflicts.

ONE WAY… OR ANOTHER?

How are you finding the one-way system currently being trialled around the Kingston Gate entrance to the park? Our initial impression is that King’s Road is now far less intimidating to cycle through – and if you live in the area, there is an online questionnaire for you to tell the council what you think. 

The link is here, and it only takes five minutes to complete. The trial is scheduled to last up to 18 months, and the responses will form part of the decision to make it permanent or not.

LADIES’ DAY

Our friends at the Kingston Cycling Campaign are inviting “women and allies” to join a group ride this Sunday which will take you to the start of the Women’s Freedom Ride in central London.

The event is calling on the Mayor of London to ensure cycling is an inclusive mode of transport after research by the London Cycling Campaign revealed that less than a third of trips made by bike in the capital are taken by women. Its report also revealed the alarming levels of abuse and intimidation directed at women when they cycle.

KCC is running two marshalled rides, suitable for cyclists of all abilities and regardless of gender, to the start of the LCC event, leaving from Kingston Market Place at 9.50am and New Malden Station at 10.15am. Both are approximately 17 miles and will use quiet roads. You can register for either of them here. Signing up for the feeder ride automatically includes your registration for the five-mile Freedom Ride, which leaves from Lincoln’s Inn Fields at 12.30pm.

TAKE NOTICE

Our noticeboard outside Colicci is getting a spruce-up – and we’re inviting you to provide up-to-date information to display on it. 

If you run a club or an organisation that rides in or around Richmond Park, please provide us with its name and a link for more information so that anyone who would like to ride with you can find out more. We’re particularly keen to appeal to general leisure riders or those who want to try riding in a group for the first time. The info will also go on our website. In the meantime, our updated Safer Riding Guide will appear on the noticeboard soon.

DON’T GET INTO THE GROOVE

Finally, a word of warning if you are cycling on the A3 in the evening as an alternative to the park while the deer cull is taking place. 

One of us at RPC was riding on the shared use pavement outside the Asda at Roehampton Vale late one night when our front wheel got into a narrow groove which was roughly the width of a road bike tyre. This affected the steering, and by trying to move right we were thrown off the bike, across the crash barrier and into the road. Thankfully, a few superficial cuts were the only injuries – but it could have been worse if a car had come along. 

We’ve reported the incident, and you can see the offending pavement and footage of the fall on our Instagram. The groove is easy to miss in the darkness, so please take care.

SEE YOU NEXT MONTH...

As ever, thank you for allowing us to pop into your inbox, and let us know what you think about anything related to cycling in Richmond Park – we reply personally to every email you send us. If you enjoyed this bulletin, please share it with your cycling friends – and if they like what they read, encourage them to sign up to our mailing list too. The more subscribers we have, the bigger our voice.

All the best,

Richmond Park Cyclists

RPC Bulletin #73, February 2024

Each month, we email a bulletin to everyone who has signed up on this site. Below is the edition that we sent in February 2024. If you like it, please sign up on our Get Involved section – you will be showing your support for our work and you will receive our free monthly bulletins a month before they appear here.

IN THIS ISSUE… +++ Park closed tonight as deer cull starts +++ One-way system on King’s Road finally begins +++ Cyclist dragged by motorist after close pass fails +++ Five-year delay for justice +++ Rundown of incidents in the park over the past three months

Visit our sponsors: Bella Velo, Cycle Exchange, Kingston Wheelers, London Dynamo, Look Mum No Hands!, Pearson Cycles, Richmond Cycles, Evolve e-Bikes

FIRST THINGS FIRST

It’s February 1 – which means the park will be completely closed from 8pm tonight as the biannual deer cull begins. The usual rules apply: if you arrive at any of the gates shortly before locking time, you should not enter unless you are absolutely certain you can easily reach your exit before 8pm – or you may end up waiting a long time for The Royal Parks’ team to arrive in their truck and let you out.

For public safety, the gates will be shut daily between 8pm and 7.30am for approximately seven weeks. If we learn that the cull has ended early, we will post updates on our social media. Links to our social media channels are at the foot of this email, and full details of the cull are on our website.

ONE WAY OR ANOTHER

If you entered or left the park via Kingston Gate in the past few days, you may have noticed a few changes in the form of planters and no-entry signs. A trial of a one-way system for motor traffic on King’s Road began this week in an attempt to manage the exceptionally high volumes of vehicles which have frequently caused huge frustration, angry confrontations and additional pollution on this residential street.

Motorists on King’s Road can now only drive from west to east – the direction that takes them towards Kingston Gate – but cyclists can go in both directions as normal. New Road, which is south of King’s Road and runs parallel to it, is one-way in the other direction for motor vehicles AND cyclists. A map of the changes is on our Instagram, and you can read full details of the scheme here.

Long-time subscribers might recall that this scheme was outlined in one of our past bulletins (way back in March 2019, to be precise) but it was thwarted by some local residents before it could begin. Now it is finally up and running, you can have your say – so email tmo@kingston.gov.uk, quoting reference MapKing0090 Park Road, King’s Road and New Road, if you feel that the Healthy Streets initiative is a benefit to your safety and experience of King’s Road or New Road. We have already written to the council expressing the generally positive reaction to our social media posts on the proposal, but responses from individual people, in their own words, will carry more weight. The trial will last up to 18 months, although the council’s Kingston and North Kingston Committee could modify or make it permanent within this period based on feedback and data.

Our congratulations to The Friends Of Kingston Gate for their persistence in pursuing this goal for more than five years. If you would like to support their efforts or keep track of further developments, please follow them on Twitter.

STICKY MOMENT

One of our subscribers contacted us to help put her in touch with the park’s police following a distressing incident which left her with injuries to her shoulder and wrist while cycling from Roehampton Gate towards Robin Hood Gate last week. 

She says that a motorist was exceeding the 20mph speed limit when he made contact with her while attempting a close pass. Her jacket and the car somehow stuck together and she was dragged while cycling for about 50 metres. She and another cyclist who witnessed the incident pursued the man to a car park, but he appeared to be unaware of what had happened and, our subscriber says, “wasn’t even remotely sorry about the injury they had caused”.

Understandably, the cyclist wanted to get away as quickly as possible as she was injured and had to get home. But it is worth pointing out that if you find yourself in a similar situation, you do not need to hang around the park looking for the police. If it is an emergency, call 999; if not, dial 101. You can also file a report quickly and easily through the Met Police’s online portal (which we also include in the bio attached to our Instagram, Twitter and Facebook pages – see links to our social media at the foot of this email).

We hope that Sgt Pete Sturgess and his team are able to take action against this driver.

HEARING AID

Our thanks to Sgt Sturgess for writing to the Crown Prosecution Service in an attempt to expedite a court hearing relating to an incident involving a motorist and a cyclist which, incredibly, has been delayed for five years. The CPS provided a very long explanation, which the head of the park’s police unit didn’t divulge, and the driver is now pencilled in to appear at Kingston Crown Court in May.

Sgt Pete writes: “The incident took place on the 13th May 2019 on Queen’s Road, near the junction with Thatched House Lodge. It is believed the driver knocked the cyclist off on purpose following a road rage incident. He was charged with dangerous driving, ABH and failing to give their name and address after an accident.”

Court officials can still decide to postpone the hearing on the day. Whatever the outcome, though, we will keep you updated.

INCIDENTS AND ACCIDENTS

Time now for our quarterly look at the incidents in the park that the police attended over the past three months, as detailed in their report to the Safer Parks Police Panel. As ever, we are grateful to Sgt Sturgess and his team for collating the figures and helping to keep the roadway safer for cycling. As usual, while cycling accidents outnumber motor vehicle and pedestrian accidents, they are largely self-inflicted, and motor vehicle offences far outnumber everything else.

We are still gathering data on reported cycling accidents in Richmond Park per estimated number of miles ridden, compared with those outside. The London Cycling Campaign has produced a helpful report on dangerous road junctions across all London boroughs, and we hope to tap into the LCC’s resources for our research. 

• In October, a cyclist who braked too hard on Queen’s Road went over their handlebars and lost four teeth and cut their lip. On the same day, a child cycling down Sawyer’s Hill went to change gear, wobbled and fell, splitting their lip and losing a tooth.  A week later, a motorist misjudged entry to Roehampton Gate and collided with the iron gate causing damage to their vehicle, but no injuries.

• In November, a cyclist indicated to turn right at Ham Cross and upon starting their manoeuvre was hit from behind by a driver who was either overtaking or driving straight ahead. The cyclist was cut on their left hand and experienced pain in their right hand, on the right side of their body which was hit by the car, and on their left hip and side from hitting the road. The driver didn’t stop, and no registration was taken, so there will be no prosecution. A day later at Beverley Brook Bridge, a dog off a lead collided with a cyclist, causing them to break their hip and arm after hitting the road. The owner is likely to face a civil court action. And at Ham Gate, a motorist scraped their car, causing damage to both their vehicle and the gate’s paintwork, after one of their tyres burst.

• There were no reported road traffic collisions in December.

• As for offences, four motorists were reported for dangerous driving or driving in a manner to endanger others or themselves, as was one cyclist, and one motorist was reported for driving without due care. A total of 42 motorists were reported for speeding and 136 trade vehicle drivers were reported. Two motorists were found to not have a valid license, one had no MOT and three held no insurance. There were also 92 tickets issued for unauthorised parking or leaving a vehicle unattended and 20 for contravening signs, including no entry, on the roads closed to traffic.

• There were no cyclists reported for riding off-track this quarter but 43 motorists were reported for driving “not on a road”.

• Finally, as highlighted in earlier dispatches, a cyclist verbally abused an authorised motorist on the road closed to through traffic. This kind of mistaken intervention has largely disappeared, so thank you for spreading the word.

The police no longer provide data on the number of verbal warnings they give due to changing the system for collecting data.

Police priorities for the next quarter, as agreed by the Panel, include pedestrian safety, especially on the courtesy crossings and on the shared-use middle road. Please slow down and stop to give way if it is safe to do so. Another priority is focussing on road users contravening the priority flow system on the Beverley Brook Bridge, which applies to cyclists as well as motorists. RPC has submitted a proposal to introduce a slip lane for cyclists travelling towards Roehampton and we wait to hear from The Royal Parks, but in the meantime please wait until there is a safe gap to proceed, or switch to the adjacent shared use path. 

SEE YOU NEXT MONTH...

As ever, thank you for allowing us to pop into your inbox, and let us know what you think about anything related to cycling in Richmond Park – we reply personally to every email you send us. If you enjoyed this bulletin, please share it with your cycling friends – and if they like what they read, encourage them to sign up to our mailing list too. The more subscribers we have, the bigger our voice.

All the best,

Richmond Park Cyclists

RPC Bulletin #72, January 2024

Each month, we email a bulletin to everyone who has signed up on this site. Below is the edition that we sent in January 2024. If you like it, please sign up on our Get Involved section – you will be showing your support for our work and you will receive our free monthly bulletins a month before they appear here.

Hello, new subscriber! Your request to subscribe arrived shortly after the bulletin was sent out. So here it is, a few days late, personally mailed to you. Enjoy!

Visit our sponsors: Bella Velo, Cycle Exchange, Kingston Wheelers, London Dynamo, Look Mum No Hands!, Pearson Cycles, Richmond Cycles, Evolve e-Bikes

PLENTY MORE IN ’24

Happy New Year! We’ve taken the liberty of a break over the festive period, which means this is a much shorter newsletter than usual. Normal service will resume next month, when we will continue to pursue our goal of removing through traffic and other measures which would make the park an even better place to ride your bike. For a reminder of our vision, see this page on our website.

We believe people working within The Royal Parks and stakeholders share our goals - and the more subscribers we have, the greater chance we have of achieving our aims. So if you know of others who might be interested in our work, ask them to sign up here.

And if Santa has brought you a new bicycle, or if you want to do your existing one a favour, then get yourself down to Sheen Cross roundabout this Saturday between 11am and 2pm, where the park’s police will be running another of their popular bike marking events. Another one is scheduled on Saturday, January 27 from 11am to 2pm, which will probably be at Roehampton Gate (check our social media closer to the event for confirmation of the location). Remember: getting your bike on the national database is a disincentive for thieves, and greatly increases the chance of your pride and joy being returned to you in the event of it being recovered following its theft.

Thanks for continuing to subscribe to these bulletins, and thank you to TRP and the park’s police for maintaining our ongoing dialogue. We couldn’t do anything without help from you all!

All the best,

Richmond Park Cyclists

RPC Bulletin #71, December 2023

Each month, we email a bulletin to everyone who has signed up on this site. Below is the edition that we sent in December 2023. If you like it, please sign up on our Get Involved section – you will be showing your support for our work and you will receive our free monthly bulletins a month before they appear here.

IN THIS ISSUE… +++ Our proposal to improve narrow single lane +++ Data on safety of park’s roads +++ Disabled concerns raised in accessibility audit +++ Can you help out an athlete heading to Paralympics? +++ Planning application to be submitted for cafe site +++

Visit our sponsors: Bella Velo, Cycle Exchange, Kingston Wheelers, London Dynamo, Look Mum No Hands!, Pearson Cycles, Richmond Cycles, Evolve e-Bikes

CHANGING LANES

Last week a transport professional kindly spoke to us pro bono about ways to improve the safety and flow of cyclists over the contentious narrow single lane on Beverley Brook Bridge, which continues to be a source of conflict between road users. The discussion produced the idea of creating a new cycle lane going over the bridge towards Roehampton Gate. The roadway would shift to the right (facing Roehampton Gate), as would the existing wand-protected footpath, reducing it to a more conventional width that would still provide a safe space for pedestrians.

We have now written to park manager Paul Richards outlining the proposal and asked whether TRP’s consultants could sketch it out. We believe it would be to The Royal Parks’ credit to now take the lead on an adjustment having listened to extensive visitor feedback.   We know TRP wants to encourage, not discourage, active travel right across its estate. 

In a separate development, we have also written to Paul confirming that we are, as he requested, working on a proposal for a car-free day in September, and will be seeking the involvement of other community groups. As mentioned in last month’s bulletin, the concept is a family-friendly event enabling all types of cyclists and pedestrians to share the use of the park’s roadways.

DANGEROUS ASSUMPTIONS

We generally feel safer cycling inside the park compared to outside it, and we suspect you do too. As regular subscribers know, we believe there is a misreading of cycling accident statistics in the park which fails to take into account that it has far higher volumes of cyclists than those on typical roads.

We are in the early stages of investigating how much safer it is, and our early dive into data provided by the London Cycling Campaign, highlighting London’s most dangerous junctions measured by reported accidents, appears to confirm our experience. There are no junctions in Richmond Park that feature in London’s top 100 most dangerous for pedestrians or cyclists.   The park is especially safe for pedestrians as no junctions in the park feature in Richmond Borough’s 100 most dangerous junctions.

More on this when we have carried out our further research.

SHARING CONCERNS

The accessibility audit, which was announced by The Royal Parks a year ago, is now complete. While we have not yet seen the report itself, a summary of what was done and what was found has been posted on the website of the consultants, Proudlock Associates. You can read it here. 

According to the consultants, they were asked to identify negative consequences for disabled people arising from the traffic restrictions imposed as part of the wider Movement Strategy, and how those negative consequences might be eliminated. They looked at pedestrian gates around the perimeter of, and inside the park, car parks, toilets, road crossings, surfaces and the bus service.

Proudlock found that the Movement Strategy could “exacerbate existing issues” though it  only mentions two examples, first expressing concern where surfaces are shared by pedestrians and cyclists and, second, suggesting that public toilets could be improved.

There’s little further detail on the website which is disappointing, particularly as the perimeter gates are known to be problematic for disabled people and the issue of shared surfaces was rather left hanging as to what exactly the concerns are and how they might be resolved. So we will reserve judgement and ask for a copy of the full report to understand better the work that has been done.

ROE PROGRESS

A quick note on the gradual progression of plans to reconfigure the Roehampton Gate cafe site which was first mentioned way back in our December 2019 bulletin. Park manager Paul Richards told the park’s stakeholders meeting, which we attended, that The Royal Parks is aiming to seek planning permission in Spring next year to bring the cafe, cycle hire shop and toilets together. We will ask to be consulted once again before the application is submitted.

ROAD TO PARIS

A Team GB wheelchair racer who is training to compete in the 100 metre and 800 metre events in next year’s Paralympics in Paris is looking for cycling chaperones to protect her from traffic. Would you be able to help out?

Fabienne André trains in the park midweek and some Saturdays. The idea is to have a pool of helpers who she would email to seek a single volunteer for a session, which typically lasts one hour. You could be a regular or infrequent escort.

To find out more about Fab’s training schedule and ambitions, please email her at fabmail96@yahoo.co.uk.

PRESENT SENSE

Think of this as a useful little Christmas present for your bike which won’t cost you a penny. After dozens of cyclists turned up to get their bicycles registered on the national security database last month, the police will be returning to Pembroke Lodge on Saturday, December 16 between 11am and 1pm offering the same free service (check our social media channels closer to the event in case the time changes). 

Getting your bike marked is a disincentive for thieves and, in the event of theft, greatly increases the chance of your pride and joy being returned to you if it is recovered. So get yourself down there!

NEW YEAR’S RESTITUTION

Want to give back to the park next year? The Royal Parks is looking for volunteers to remove brambles encroaching into the grassland where woodpeckers feed. Volunteers would work from 10am until 1pm, with a possible extension until 3pm, on the following provisional dates: January 18, January 24, February 8 and February 9. Email volunteering@theroyalparks.org.uk, and please copy us in (richmondparkcyclists@gmail.com), if you can help out.

SEE YOU NEXT MONTH...

As ever, thank you for allowing us to pop into your inbox, and let us know what you think about anything related to cycling in Richmond Park – we reply personally to every email you send us. If you enjoyed this bulletin, please share it with your cycling friends – and if they like what they read, encourage them to sign up to our mailing list too. The more subscribers we have, the bigger our voice.

All the best,

Richmond Park Cyclists

RPC Bulletin #70, November 2023

Each month, we email a bulletin to everyone who has signed up on this site. Below is the edition that we sent in November 2023. If you like it, please sign up on our Get Involved section – you will be showing your support for our work and you will receive our free monthly bulletins a month before they appear here.

IN THIS ISSUE… +++ Deer cull starts TONIGHT +++ Car-free day proposal +++ Safer Riding Guide launch +++ Rundown of road incidents from police stats +++ New bike racks +++ Roads swept ahead of winter +++ Concerns over anger directed at motorists on restricted roads +++ 

Visit our sponsors: Bella Velo, Cycle Exchange, Kingston Wheelers, London Dynamo, Look Mum No Hands!, Pearson Cycles, Richmond Cycles, Sigma Sports Electric

REMEMBER, REMEMBER…

…it’s the first of November, which means that the park will be completely closed from 8pm tonight as the biannual deer cull begins. As usual, the gates will be shut daily for the public’s safety between 8pm and 7.30am for approximately six weeks. If you arrive at any of the gates shortly before locking time, you should not enter unless you are absolutely certain you can easily reach your exit before 8pm – or you may end up waiting a long time to be let out. See our website for full details.

A DECENT PROPOSAL

You can’t keep a good idea down. We first floated the idea of a car-free day in Richmond Park at the end of 2019, and in August 2021 we signed up to the initiative drawn up by a number of local cycling and environmental groups (which, sadly, did not get off the ground, mainly because The Royal Parks was in the middle of the traffic restriction trials at the time). Now, to our delight, the park’s manager Paul Richards has asked us to put together a proposal for a car-free day after we outlined the concept at our last quarterly meeting, which took place a couple of weeks ago.

The concept is a family-friendly event enabling all types of cyclists and pedestrians to share use of the park’s roadways, regardless of their levels of confidence or experience. We hope the day, which requires TRP’s approval, will inspire visitors to come to the park more regularly on foot and on two wheels.

We have started to approach local stakeholder groups to gather support. In the meantime, mark the proposed date in your diary – Sunday, September 22, which is World Car-Free Day.

GUIDING FORCE

The Safer Riding Guide is another project which has been a long time in the making. The updated version of our recommendations for safe, courteous riding was scheduled to be finalised at the beginning of this year, until various issues, including the installation of the much-criticised traffic infrastructure, took our eye off the ball. But the park’s police have now agreed the final wording, which means we can now present the new and improved version on our website. 

Here is a rundown of the main changes.

• Most obviously, the name is now the Safer Riding Guide. The original version was called the Code of Conduct, which led some to wrongly assume that it was a set of enforced or policed rules when it is actually just basic recommendations for safe, courteous riding. The word “safer” now correctly implies that most cyclists already ride reasonably safely.

• In line with changes to the Highway Code enacted in January last year which help make cycling safer, the advice on riding in the centre of the lane and riding two abreast has been updated.

• The guidance on speed now clarifies that speed limits in the park do not apply to cyclists, while emphasising that you should slow down or possibly stop if safe to do so for potential hazards, otherwise you risk falling foul of the park’s regulations.

• Among the new items under Care and Courtesy, three are notable. One is: “Be a gentleman. Guys, if a cyclist ahead of you appears to be a woman, avoid the temptation to draft. Being in close proximity to a male stranger could be disconcerting for that person.” This reflects conversations we have had with women who ride in the park, and a debate on social media last year.

• The second significant addition to the Care and Courtesy section advises: “Never try to intimidate or confront a motorist, verbally or physically, even if you think they may be in the wrong.” This is particularly timely, given the concern over incidents of anger directed at drivers who are permitted to drive in the restricted areas of the roadway. More on this later in the bulletin.

• The third main addition to Care and Courtesy stipulates that you should not ride in the right-hand lane on parts of the roadway that are closed to cars. Some people have cycled on the wrong side of the road on Broomfield Hill, thinking it would not be an issue as it is closed to traffic, only to find that they were in the path of oncoming emergency vehicles trying to get to incidents.

Thank you to the park’s police and our subscribers who made suggestions, many of which we incorporated into the Guide. Like the first iteration, a condensed credit-card-sized version will be distributed through various cycling-related local businesses, including some of our co-sponsors, and the full text will be displayed on the noticeboard on the decking outside Colicci. In the meantime, please feel free to share the link to the Guide on our website, which is here.

INCIDENTS AND ACCIDENTS

Time now for our quarterly look at the incidents in the park that the police attended over the past three months, as detailed in their report to the Safer Parks Police Panel. As ever, we are grateful to Sgt Sturgess and his team for collating the figures and helping to keep the roadway safer for cycling. Please note that while cycling accidents outnumber motor vehicle and pedestrian accidents, they are largely self-inflicted, and motor vehicle offences far outnumber everything else.  

Over the next quarter we hope to gather data, if available, on reported cycling accidents in Richmond Park per estimated number of miles ridden, compared with those outside. We ride many more miles outside the park than inside it and feel safer in there than out. We have also had fewer falls on the park’s roadway per mile travelled than those outside. Let’s see if the data reflects that experience.

• In July, a cyclist who had been cut up by a driver on Richmond Hill followed them into the park and spat at the vehicle, which hit the motorist, resulting in the rider being charged with common assault. On Queen’s Road, a cyclist ran into the back of another who had stopped, and in another incident on Priory Lane, a U-turning cyclist was hit by two following riders. Both incidents resulted in broken bones. A cyclist lost control on Broomfield Hill and broke their collarbone, while two cyclists in separate incidents in slow-moving traffic went into the back of a car, and swerved to avoid a slow-moving car, colliding with a wooden bollard on Sawyer’s Hill. The incidents resulted in facial cuts and a broken collarbone respectively.

• In August, a cyclist lost control on the shared use path on Sawyer’s Hill, suffering lost teeth and a fractured eye socket. In two separate incidents, cyclists lost control on Broomfield Hill and had suspected broken collarbones, and at Ham Cross a stationary cyclist was hit by another cyclist, causing bruising. The cyclist who went into the stationary cyclist did not provide contact details.

• In September, there were two falls on Broomfield Hill: one cyclist lost control and broke their collarbone, while the other suffered grazes after a fox ran out in front of them. On Dark Hill, a motorist pulled into the car park, and a descending cyclist collided with the car, cutting their lip and grazing their face. A cyclist descending Sawyer’s Hill rode into the back of a Royal Parks vehicle, with resultant dental injuries, and a vehicle failed to give way to a cyclist at Sheen Cross resulting in the rider crashing and hurting their back. 

As for offences, five motorists were reported for dangerous driving or driving in a manner to endanger others or themselves. A total of 52 motorists were reported for speeding and 119 trade vehicle drivers were reported. Three motorists were found to not have a valid license, and 11 had no insurance. There were also 82 tickets issued for unauthorised parking and seven for contravening signs, including No Entry, on the roads closed to traffic.

There were ten cyclists reported for riding off-track and 53 motorists for driving “not on a road”.

Finally, a cyclist on the Tamsin Trail ran into a dog walker and afterwards grabbed their arm, resulting in a charge of Aggravated Bodily Harm.

The police no longer provide data on the number of verbal warnings they give due to changing the system for collecting data.

Police priorities for the next quarter, as agreed by the Panel, include pedestrian safety, especially on the courtesy crossings and on the shared-use middle road. Please slow down and if necessary stop to give way if it is safe to do so. Another priority is focussing on road users contravening the priority flow system on the Beverley Brook Bridge, which applies to cyclists as well as motorists. RPC is working on a proposal to introduce a slip lane for cyclists travelling to Roehampton, but in the meantime please wait until there is a safe gap to proceed, or switch to the adjacent shared use path. 

SCHOOL RULES

There was widespread concern at last month’s Safer Parks Police Panel over the poor conduct of a small minority of cyclists who have directed abuse at drivers heading to and from the ballet school, as well as thumping their cars. It should go without saying that these types of actions are illegal.

As mentioned in previous bulletins, motorists such as these have permission to drive on the restricted parts of the roadway, so if you see anyone acting aggressively towards them, please ask them politely to desist, as their behaviour causes significant distress to their targets in addition to affecting the reputation of all cyclists who use the park. It is also worth bearing in mind that the police regularly check that drivers in restricted areas have permission to be there. Over the coming weeks and months we will publicise this issue on social media and seek the input of the ballet school to maximise the effectiveness of the message. 

Adding to the issue of rider behaviour, there were a number of cyclists who berated volunteers manning the gates at the London Duathlon in September after being told that, unlike previous years, only event participants were allowed access to the park that day. Some gate staff relented and let them in, which resulted in a few cyclists riding unauthorised on the course, causing safety concerns by going in the opposite direction to the race. Clearly, there is more work to be done on messaging around the event – for both the organisers and ourselves.

A final note on safety. One of the drivers of the free RP1 bus, which helps visitors access the park, reports that some cyclists are slipstreaming the vehicle – and he can’t see them in his rear-view mirrors. Obviously, in this situation, the driver suddenly braking or slowing down could have fatal consequences, so please do not ride close behind the bus.

RACK ’EM UP

If you go down to the refreshment kiosks in Richmond Park, you’re in for a nice surprise. The Royal Parks has installed new racks at Pen Ponds, Ham Gate, Kingston Gate and Broomfield Hill, totalling 40 parking spaces for bikes. There will soon be 20 more spaces each at Richmond Gate and Sheen Gate. Our thanks to park manager Paul Richards for this initiative, which encourages more people to visit the park by bike.

CLEAN SWEEP

On a final note, please keep an eye out for changing road conditions now that autumn has arrived. The Royal Parks’ team has begun salting the roads as the temperature drops, as well as carrying out sweeps to clear slippery wet leaves, and we thank them for doing so. Last year many cyclists fell on the roundabouts which had become greasy, and similar conditions may occur this year. So as we head into winter, please take extra care.

SEE YOU NEXT MONTH...

As ever, thank you for allowing us to pop into your inbox, and let us know what you think about anything related to cycling in Richmond Park – we reply personally to every email you send us. If you enjoyed this bulletin, please share it with your cycling friends – and if they like what they read, encourage them to sign up to our mailing list too. The more subscribers we have, the bigger our voice.

All the best,

Richmond Park Cyclists

RPC Bulletin #69, October 2023

Each month, we email a bulletin to everyone who has signed up on this site. Below is the edition that we sent in October 2023. If you like it, please sign up on our Get Involved section – you will be showing your support for our work and you will receive our free monthly bulletins a month before they appear here.

IN THIS ISSUE… +++ Call to reopen Sheen Gate to cars turned down +++ New moped gang robbery +++ Who smashed into the Rohampton Gate posts? +++ Another opportunity to get free security marking for your bike +++ 

Visit our sponsors: Bella Velo, Cycle Exchange, Kingston Wheelers, London Dynamo, Look Mum No Hands!, Pearson Cycles, Richmond Cycles, Sigma Sports Electric

BAD MANORS

There have been calls to reopen Sheen Gate to through traffic – and The Royal Parks has taken an admirably unequivocal stance against them.

It comes after the commencement last month of major roadworks on the A316 at Manor Circus (near the Sainsbury’s superstore in Richmond) which has led to heavy traffic in the surrounding areas. The work to remove the central island of the roundabout, repair the bridge deck and improve some of the footways is due to finish in December; the second phase, which aims, among other things, to improve the cycle lane on Lower Richmond Road, is scheduled to take place from January next year until spring. (You can read Transport for London’s full plans here.)

Some in the local community wanted motor traffic to funnel in and out of Sheen Gate until TfL’s contractors complete its works. But in a statement posted on Twitter by East Sheen Lib Dem councillor Julia Cambridge (who, coincidentally, sits with us on the Safer Parks Police Panel), TRP made it clear that the gate would not be used as a conduit for through traffic.

Here is the statement in full:

"Richmond Park is a unique natural oasis and designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a National Nature Reserve. Our duty is to care for the park for the benefit of visitors. Park roads exist to serve visitors to the park and are not part of the national road network. We have sought to reduce the impact of cut through traffic and over recent years have taken measures to achieve this. We have no plans to encourage more motor traffic into the park".

We are grateful to TRP for continuing to recognise, under some pressure, that its roads are primarily for cycling and walking, not for shortcut journeys made in motor vehicles. 

ROBBERY ALERT

Some concerning news from our counterparts at Regent’s Park Cyclists – thieves on mopeds have, once again, robbed a cyclist of their bike. 

Two robbers wearing balaclavas pushed the rider off his Specialized Venge on Archway Road in north London at around 5am last Friday, leaving him with scrapes and bruises. He fears the duo were lying in wait for a victim, and as a precaution has changed the locks at his home, fearing publicly available ride data from his Garmin could give away his address.

There is no indication that moped robbers are making another return to Richmond Park. Nevertheless, this concerning incident serves as a reminder to keep your data private on ride-sharing services such as Strava, as well as on whatever brand of bike computer you use, and to set the start point of your journeys away from your home. Thieves could be watching your movements.

TIMBER SLAM

Who smashed into the wooden posts near Roehampton Gate? The damage, which we showed on our Instagram last week, was thought to have been caused by a driver of one the vehicles involved in setting up the London Duathlon – but park manager Paul Richards has discounted that theory, telling Sgt Pete Sturgess from the park’s police unit that blue paint was found on the timber, and the event organisers didn’t have any trucks of that colour. Paul has ordered replacement wooden gates which should be fitted soon; in the meantime, plastic barriers are in place at weekends to enforce the usual restrictions on motor vehicles.

It is surprising, to say the least, that the driver of a very large vehicle can crash in the park, causing significant and costly damage, without any apparent witnesses to the incident. Nevertheless, we are relieved that on this occasion, it was not a cyclist who hit the cumbersome posts. We still maintain that the posts are too close to the edge of the road and this incident would seem to support this view.

LANE PAIN

Staying briefly on the subject of the installations near Roehampton Gate, one of our followers on Instagram messaged us to say she has been routinely “driven at and overtaken” on the single lane across Beverley Brook Bridge, branding it “utterly useless and dangerous”, while a subscriber riding at around 8am on a weekday morning the week before last witnessed two drivers out of their cars confronting each other, flanked by traffic that was backed up both ways. 

As many predicted, the new road furniture clearly continues to have a baneful impact, even though the second safety audit – carried out by the same company that conducted the first prior to installation – unsurprisingly concluded that it is safe for cyclists. This ongoing issue will undoubtedly come up during our next quarterly meeting with park manager Paul Richards later this month, so please tell us if you have had any recent negative experiences relating to the installations and we will feed them back to him.

MARKING TIME

Thank you to everyone who stopped by to say hello, have a chat or show their appreciation for our work during the Richmond Park Open Day last month. The RPC stall was next to the police bike markers who were kept busy by cyclists turning up throughout the day to get their pride and joy registered on the national database – and the officers will be offering this FREE service again at Kingston Gate car park on Saturday, October 14. The time has yet to be confirmed, so keep an eye on our social media for updates (links at the foot of this email).

With more than 100 bikes marked during the last opportunity at Sheen Gate a few weeks ago, this is bound to be a popular event. And remember: getting your bike on the database increases the chances of it being reunited with you if it is recovered following a theft.

RUT RUN

A group of cyclists, which one of us at RPC was riding with, had to stop for deer to cross the road last weekend. This is a fairly common occurrence at this time of year as it is rutting season until next month, making the animals agitated. So please take additional care with regard to your speed and general road awareness, especially as they can bolt or trot unpredictably into your path.

You should also watch out for motorists who stop abruptly to avoid hitting fast-moving deer suddenly coming across their path – and, regrettably, some will break park rules to stop at the side of the road to take photographs. If you decide to take photos yourself, keep your distance and please come off the road or pathway so that you do not impede the movement of others or create a hazard.

SEE YOU NEXT MONTH...

As ever, thank you for allowing us to pop into your inbox, and let us know what you think about anything related to cycling in Richmond Park – we reply personally to every email you send us. If you enjoyed this bulletin, please share it with your cycling friends – and if they like what they read, encourage them to sign up to our mailing list too. The more subscribers we have, the bigger our voice.

All the best,

Richmond Park Cyclists

RPC Bulletin #68, September 2023

Each month, we email a bulletin to everyone who has signed up on this site. Below is the edition that we sent in September 2023. If you like it, please sign up on our Get Involved section – you will be showing your support for our work and you will receive our free monthly bulletins a month before they appear here.

IN THIS ISSUE… +++ Royal Parks responds to our open letter on road installations +++ More on driver who destroyed Ham Gate +++ Why CCTV cameras disappeared then reappeared +++ Park closed for duathlon +++ Another free bike marking event +++ Come and meet us at open day +++

Visit our sponsors: Bella Velo, Cycle Exchange, Kingston Wheelers, London Dynamo, Look Mum No Hands!, Pearson Cycles, Richmond Cycles, Sigma Sports Electric

APPY DAYS

We couldn’t begin this edition without giving a warm welcome to all our new subscribers. A few kind people shared last month’s bulletin on WhatsApp groups and on a cycling club’s app, giving us four times as many sign-ups in 24 hours than we usually get in a whole month. A huge thank-you to everyone who clicked on that link or posted it to their cycling friends and acquaintances. 

Our bulletins reach around 2,000 people every month. We say it at the end of every newsletter, and it’s true: the more subscribers we have, the bigger our voice. And right now, when the speed and behaviour of cyclists is coming under greater scrutiny, expanding RPC’s subscriber base is more important than ever. So if you want to spread the word via WhatsApp or any other means, you can post this sign-up link here.

ANY SIGNS OF CHANGE?

Paul Richards, the manager of Richmond Park, has responded to our open letter which we wrote in May setting out our concerns about the road installations. He writes that The Royal Parks is “expanding the scope of our investigations to address your concerns and experiences”. He seems to indicate that, dependent on the findings of an assessment of road user behaviour, TRP could remove or alter the signage on the wooden gates, which we pointed out hinders visibility. The gates themselves, along with the new 10mph signs and the priority lanes will all likely remain, but they may be modified according to what is gleaned by TRP’s “comprehensive investigations” into cyclists’ and other road users’ interactions with them. 

The post-installation safety audit – carried out by the same company that conducted the safety audit prior to installation – has, unsurprisingly,  concluded that the designs and specifications “allow for the safe movement of cyclists”, which we strongly disagree with. If TRP’s traffic engineers were to have their time over, we believe they would have included in their original drawings many of the adjustments we have since suggested. The single carriageway at Beverley Brook Bridge in particular remains a bone of contention which, in our view, could easily be adjusted to accommodate two-way cycle slip lanes without compromising the safety and convenience of pedestrians, cyclists or motorists. Paul points out that the long-standing single lane at Ham Gate “presents no problems”, but this is an unhelpful comparison as far more motorists and cyclists use the outer road, thereby providing a much greater chance of conflict. You can read Paul’s response in full and our letter here.

Thank you to everyone who wrote to the park management, echoing our concerns and those of many other cyclists. We will continue to have a dialogue with Paul, and await the outcome of TRP’s further investigations.

NOW YOU SEE THEM…

A side note on the traffic cameras which appeared, briefly disappeared then reappeared by Beverley Brook Bridge and near Pembroke Lodge. TRP installed them to monitor road users’ behaviour, but a couple of Saturdays were not representative of a normal weekend due to wet weather, so the cameras were brought back to repeat the process. And for those of you who  wondered why part of the new pedestrian walkway on Beverley Brook Bridge is now missing, it’s only a temporary removal for the London Duathlon this weekend. Mystery solved!

HAM SLAM

Here’s a new piece of information on the case of the driver who crashed into Ham Gate while travelling at an estimated 50 to 80mph, destroying most of the 102-year-old wrought iron structure in the process. 

We’ve learned that the motorist, who was in a Mercedes GLA compact SUV with two passengers, had a blood sample taken to establish if he was over the limit. Sgt Peter Sturgess from the park’s police reckons the results could take three to four months to come back from the lab. In the meantime, the suspect is still being investigated for dangerous driving and drink driving by Richmond Police, who attended the scene.

We posted photos of the wreckage caused by the smash, which took place at 1.45am on Saturday, August 5. One was given to us by a member of the emergency services crew who attended the scene which showed the SUV’s engine, having been ripped out by the sheer force of the impact, lying on the road between the car and an uprooted pillar. Another shows the CCTV camera on the building outside the gate that is believed to have captured the crash. You can see the full set of pictures on our Instagram.

Amazingly, none of the people in the car had life-changing or life-threatening injuries. Nevertheless, the incident showed, at a time when the behaviour of cyclists is coming under greater scrutiny, how much damage can be wreaked by just one bad driver.

Immediately after the crash, the area was fenced off, and there was talk that the main entrance would not be open for months during the long process of reconstruction. This prompted concerns that those on cargo bikes, disabled visitors and others who could not negotiate the narrow pedestrian entrances would be unable to enter or leave the park via Ham Gate. Thankfully, the park management is now removing the mobile fencing each day and putting it back at night when the park closes. We are grateful to Paul Richards and his team for doing this. Looking ahead, could the rebuilding of Ham Gate provide a golden opportunity for TRP to bring forward improved access for cargo bikes and disabled visitors?  More news next month. 

MARK THEM IN YOUR DIARIES

There’s a few dates coming up that you might want to make a note of.

• Want to get your pride and joy listed on the National Cycle Database? Then get yourself down to Sheen Gate on Saturday, September 23, where the park’s police unit is running another of their popular bike marking events. If your bicycle is stolen, the chances of getting it returned to you are greatly improved if it’s marked up, so it is well worth popping down to the park to get the job done. We should have more details about the event later this month, so look out for more info on our social media. Our thanks to Sgt Pete Sturgess for organising these useful events.

• Best of luck to everyone taking part in the London Duathlon on Sunday. In previous years, the tarmac paths running alongside the roadway were available to cycle on for anyone wishing to travel through the park – but this year all the roads and trails, including the Tamsin Trail, will be closed to all non-event cyclists and vehicles. Limelight Sports Group, which organises the event, says the closures are “for health and safety reasons, and to ensure participants have the best possible experience”. Please use alternative routes on the day. Some traffic may be occasionally paused on Saturday to facilitate deliveries ahead of the event.

• On Sunday, September 17th, alongside Richmond Cycling Campaign and classic cycle club Cicli Artigianali, we will be hosting a display at the Richmond Park Open Day at Holly Lodge (the HQ of The Royal Parks and the park’s police unit located at the foot of Sawyer’s Hill). Entry is free, with plenty of bike parking and limited car parking for £5. To learn more about the wonderful park we ride around, see exhibits, demonstrations and enjoy refreshments, please come along and say hello between 11am and 4pm. You can also meet TRP staff and the police team who will also have a stand.

SEE YOU NEXT MONTH...

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All the best,

Richmond Park Cyclists