Each month, we email a bulletin to everyone who has signed up on this site. Below is the edition that we sent in September 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… +++ The reason why the London Duathlon was cancelled +++ Tell us about your group rides for newcomers +++ Speed humps removed near Kingston Gate… then replaced +++ Become a pilot rider for partially sighted cyclists +++ E-bike batteries fire hazard +++
Visit our sponsors: BellaVelo, Cycle Exchange, Kingston Wheelers, London Dynamo, Pearson Cycles, Richmond Cycles, Sigma Sports
RUN, BIKE, DONE
What scuppered the London Duathlon, which was due to take place in Richmond Park this month? As viewers of RPC’s TV debut on BBC London News on Sunday will have discovered, the cancellation of the popular annual event was directly due to the much-publicised pedestrian fatality two years ago – and ten miles away – in Regent’s Park, along with the more recent inquest into the elderly woman’s sad death.
The organisers of the run-bike-run event blamed “an increased focus on the security and logistics of cycling events in public spaces which creates significant operational challenges.” The Royal Parks, meanwhile, told BBC London that it “wanted to review cycling events in its parks following a minority of people cycling at excessive speeds”.
Both of these statements are couched in general terms. But TRP had previously issued an assurance that it had decided not to approve cycle sport events while it reviewed its cycling policy specifically as a result of the Regent’s fatality. It had already cancelled London Dynamo’s two time trials, which are each capped at 120 competitors; by its own logic, the world’s largest duathlon, with a maxiumum of 4,000 participants, had to suffer the same fate.
You can see the full BBC London report here.
SHARE THE EVIDENCE
The cancellation of the Duathlon, which has been held annually for a number of years, is a great shame. London needs events like this, and environments such as Richmond Park, to inspire the next generation to cycle – an activity which is proven to reduce stress, improve physical health and ease traffic congestion.
Moreover, The Royal Parks has stated in its latest annual report that “there is no evidence to suggest that [our] parks are becoming unsafe”, attributing a rise in recorded incidents, including non-cycling accidents, to “improved reporting processes” (see p68). And as we have mentioned in this bulletin before, ONS statistics show that pedestrian deaths involving cyclists are incredibly rare, with only nine occurring nationally in five years.
Facts such as these will inform our ongoing dialogue with Darren Share, TRP’s Director of Parks, when RPC and Sean Epstein, our counterpart at Regent’s Park Cyclists, have our second meeting with him on Tuesday. All parties, including TRP, agree that an evidence-based approach is the way forward, and we aim to ensure that TRP’s future cycling policy fulfills the charity’s aim, stated on page six of its annual report, to “welcome everyone” – which should include those who cycle responsibly in sporting events.
ALL SYSTEMS ROE
The Royal Parks has now applied to Richmond Council for planning permission to build a new cafe at Roehampton Gate and redevelop the existing facilities in the vicinity.
The council published the application on its website on Friday. The application document shows that spaces for cycle parking are intended to rise from 20 to 98. Construction is scheduled to take place from November next year until August 2026, and the estimated cost of the proposal is documented as “up to £2m”. A public consultation will now follow.
As revealed in April’s RPC bulletin, we were consulted on the ideas for the redevelopment and made recommendations concerning cycling access, bike parking and road surfacing. We were pleased with the plans TRP’s representatives showed us at the time, and we look forward to examining them further as they develop.
GROUP EFFORT
A quick thank-you to all the clubs who have taken up our offer to publicise their group rides which take place in Richmond Park. We aim to compile a list of as many as possible for inclusion on our website, so if you have a ride which welcomes newcomers regardless of their skill level or experience, please get in touch so we can include you.
GETTING THE HUMP
Those of you who cycled into the park via Kingston Gate on Tuesday might have seen roadworks taking place on King’s Road. This was a consequence of what could be described as a concerned local, armed with a tape measure, discovering that the speed humps installed as part of the temporary one-way trial were slightly higher than the legal maximum and arguing that they could damage the undercarriage of cars (although they don’t appear to be a problem for the vast majority of motorists who pass over them at an appropriately sedate speed).
A letter from Kingston Council to residents, reproduced on the NextDoor forum, stated that its contractor had agreed at their own cost to bulldoze the humps and install new ones that are within the correct dimensions, which they apparently did on Tuesday. The three bumps on King’s Road were all of differing heights, the largest being 2.8cm higher than what the council set out as the standard maximum of 8cm.
This episode illustrates that none of us should take the continuation of the one-way system in its present form for granted. Officially, it is only a temporary trial which could be amended or even scrapped by next year. So if, like us, you don’t want a return to the bad old days of encountering huge frustration, angry confrontations – including the occasional fist fight – and additional pollution on King’s Road as you cycle to and from the park, please take a few moments to fill in this petition, which was brought to our attention by the Friends of Kingston Gate.
The council’s Kingston and North Kingston Neighbourhood Committee is meeting on Thursday to decide if the traffic trial should “remain unchanged for the current time to allow further monitoring to be undertaken”, and there is an opportunity to submit petitions, which we assume is a chance for the organisers of the King’s Road petition to present theirs. You can read the agenda here, and have a look at the road data here, which seems to show there is little change to traffic levels overall compared to the period before the scheme began, and vehicles are now moving slower.
SEE THE DIFFERENCE
Our friends at Merton Sports and Social Club for Visually Impaired People tell us that they “reaped valuable benefits” and generally had a great response to an appeal for volunteers which appeared in the January edition of this bulletin.
The organisation, which is the only one of its kind in London, takes enthusiastic visually impaired local people on tandem rides, ranging from around Richmond Park to a 40-mile club run. They ride from the club’s base in Morden on the first Sunday and third Saturday of the month, although there is no minimum commitment for volunteers.
If you would like to be a tandem pilot, please email MSSC chair Terry Jones at tandemmanagement@mssc.org.uk so she can give you more details. Like some of your fellow RPC subscribers who are already involved, you are likely to find the rides exceptionally rewarding.
BLAZING SADDLES
On a final note, a word on the safety of electric bikes from Richmond Fire Station, who got in touch with us last month. They say that self-combusting lithium batteries are the fastest-gowing risk in the capital, and fire officers attended one e-bike or e-scooter fire every two days on average last year. The majority of incidents occur within homes, and many are caused by incompatible chargers, bike modifications or faulty or counterfeit products purchased online.
Blazes of this kind can start in seconds. If you have an electric-powered bicycle, the brigade advises:
Don’t charge your batteries by your front door or any escape route
Never charge your batteries overnight
Only buy your batteries from a reputable seller
You can find out more, including the warning signs that your e-bike or battery is a potential hazard, by looking at the fire brigade’s information guide.
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