Chichester cycle lanes ‘should be improved not removed’

The route, which runs from St Richard’s Hospital in Spitalfield Lane through to the railway station, has been subject of much debate across the city since it first appeared in August.

Last month, Roger Elkins, West Sussex County Council’s cabinet member for highways and infrastructure, agreed to remove the temporary cycle lanes.

However this decision has been called in, with the request led by the Lib Dems.

A WSCC spokesman said: “A request to call-in the decision has been received and will be debated by the scrutiny committee at a date to be decided. The cabinet member will then take a final decision on the scheme.”

The call-in request quotes the original aim of the scheme as specified by the Secretary of State as a ‘once in a generation opportunity to deliver a lasting transformative change in how we make short journeys in our towns and cities’.

It argues that the decision to remove the scheme ‘has not considered this aim’.

The call-in adds: “We are concerned about bias and prejudice as most of the reasons against scheme are not fully evidence based. The technical report provides no significant evidence of reduced air quality, safety concerns and drive through times which are satisfactory.

“The aim of the call-in is to scrutinise the whole process leading up to the application for the grant to the decision to remove the scheme. It is vital for future schemes that we learn lessons and reflect on our processes.

“In addition, to ask the cabinet member to reconsider, in light of fast moving events in the pandemic which buys us more time, to keep the scheme in place whilst officers, with the cycling forums advising, work up a plan of improvements to the scheme.”

Kate O’Kelly, a Lib Dem county councillor who led the call-in request, described how the schemes were implemented ‘in haste’ and the Chichester one is ‘far from perfect’ as it does not join up with existing cycling routes, duplicates others and residents were not able to collaborate and be consulted.

But she added: “However I want the council to fully explore the option of improving the scheme rather than just removing it – otherwise all the taxpayers money, many thousands (the original government grant for all seven schemes was £784,000), will be completely wasted. The idea of the schemes was to be able to make more safe space for cycling, which is in keeping with our climate change goals. The idea was not flawed, just its delivery.”

Today the Mr Elkins agreed to remove the other pop-up cycle lanes in Worthing, Shoreham, Crawley, Horsham and East Grinstead, subject to call-in.