Plumstead High Street to Abbey Wood station cycle route approved

Greenwich Council have given the green light to proceed with a cycle route between Plumstead and Abbey Wood station following consultation earlier this year.

That proposal was covered back in August on this site.

It’s not the biggest project given much of what is proposed – such as modal filters – has existed for decades in places along the route.

A couple more were added after 2020.

A council report states that following concerns from the Met Police and Ambulance Service physical barriers will be removed with camera enforcement installed permitting emergency services to pass.

Modest

The route sees little in the way of segregated lanes with cyclists continuing to share roads with other vehicles most of the way.

Changes include “Relocation and upgrade of existing zebra crossing on Basildon Road making it faster and easier to cross”.

There’s also “A new one way in an eastbound direction on Abbey Wood Road between Conference Road and Abbey Road, which will complement a range of improvements on Abbey Wood Road such as footway widening, continuous crossing points, a loading bay and SUDs.”

That’s the area beside Abbey Wood’s former Post Office which is now in the process of redevelopment.

Wilton Road will see a new contraflow cycle lane towards the station.

Though it’s just a bit of paint on a road which is often gridlocked and chaotic with vehicles trying to reach Abbey Wood station, with drivers ducking into and out of any parking spots available. Buses also head down.

Who is cycling through all that against the flow? Safe it ain’t. Apologies for the poor pic below taken from a bus but cycling here isn’t going to be something many will do.

It’s not a plan that anyone who has spent five minutes looking at the street during rush hour (and most quieter times) would ever contemplate.

Once again it appears to show how poor Greenwich Council are at knowing much about Abbey Wood.

Many who would consider cycling along Wilton Road won’t be dicing it in the road but head along the pavement seen above.

Cycle parking

Compounding poor planning is the key issue of cycle parking and cycle bays for hiring bikes around Abbey Wood station. The area around the station is excluded – on both sides – from Greenwich Council’s current consultation on new cycle bays.

There appears enough space on the Greenwich side of the borough boundary on public land in the vicinity of the station.

One ideal place would be where they’re planning to narrow the street outside the former Post Office. But no mention.

In terms of secure cycle parking there’s only stands that are hardly enticing (put it this way, I wouldn’t encourage anyone to use them) with Bexley Council also having never opening secure racks installed on Felixstowe Road.

Joined-up thinking doesn’t seem very much in evidence currently with this proposed cycle route plan not linking to hire bike locations nor safe cycle parking.

Even if Bexley Council are being difficult what’s stopping Greenwich talking to TfL or locating bays on their own land?

Funding

The total cost of the Plumstead to abbey Wood route is put at £650,000. The council report states “The scheme will predominantly be funded through TfL Cycle Network Development funding.

“Council Officers are also in the process of identifying and drawing down S106 funding for the scheme.”

Worth it?

Whilst the scheme isn’t completely devoid of merit not a great deal is actually new or transformative. It’s featuring modal filters that must be 40 years old along much of it.

Aside from that it’s mostly paint on the road for cyclists and some really quite silly ideas like the Wilton Road contraflow.

Add in a failure considering where cyclists would safely park (either side of the station) or obtain a hire bike around Abbey Wood station and it’s all a bit weak.