A TEMPORARY cycle lane is to be made permanent following a decision by Reading Borough Council, despite hundreds of objections.
In the summer of 2020, the southbound lane of Sidmouth Street was closed and turned into a two-way cycle lane.
The decision was made during the first stages of the pandemic, with lockdowns and restrictions in place. As people were working from home, councils received funding from the government to create active travel measures to boost fitness levels and make it easier for social distancing.
The council held a consultation on whether to axe the lane, or make it permanent.
In all, 648 people objected. Of these, 266 came from petitions, with the majority, 382, written in.
According to the consultation responses, the scheme proved unpopular with both drivers and cyclists.
One cyclist said: “This scheme appears to be ill-conceived and badly thought out, and results in great inconvenience for large numbers of residents and motorists.
“I am a regular cyclist in the area and have never once used these lanes or felt that they are useful.”
Other respondents said cyclists can already use Watlington Street.
Another resident said: “As a cyclist travelling to and from London Road and Reading town centre, I would want to cross at the existing cycle crossing at The Lyndhurst and travel along Watlington Street safely.
“This leads directly onto the hospital and university in one direction and the town centre, train station and Caversham in the other.
“It makes no sense to travel along Queens Road and London Road to Sidmouth Street in order to come back again on the parallel street.
“Sidmouth Street itself is regularly backed up with traffic impacting London Road.”
They added the street should be made into a two-lane northbound route, rather than “funnelling cycle traffic alongside a line of idling traffic pumping out fumes.”
Drivers complained about the inconvenience of losing the southbound lane for good.
A driver said: “Residents of Kendrick, Morgan and Allcroft roads have been deprived of the most efficient route home from Reading town centre.
“For two years, it has been necessary instead to traverse instead the length of London Street, up Whitley Street and on to Christchurch Road before turning into Kendrick Road.
“This route is longer and regularly congested, wasting valuable time, using more fuel and producing increased pollution.
“Cyclists already have the option of using Watlington Street, so the unneccesary alterations to Sidmouth Street was just pure folly.”
Fewer than 100 people wrote in support of the scheme, with the council receiving 89 positive responses.
One supporter said: “I strongly support measures to provide active and carbon free transport routes in central Reading.
“It needs to be done to prevent gridlock and support the development of key sites in a sustainable way.”
Another wrote: “We need to accelerate the building of a segregated cycle network in Reading, removing this lane would be a step back.
“The council also needs to be clearer about how it will fit into the future network – this scheme provides the perfect excuse for anti-cycling activists because no one uses it.
“No one uses it because it is a cycle lane, not a cycle route, so please be clearer about how it will link up.”
The scheme was made permanent by the council’s traffic management sub-committee at a meeting held on Wednesday, September 14.
