The 2 Wheeled Wolf: Why are Chelmsford Authorities/Media so anti-cycling with regards to the High Street? (Updated September 2020)

Note: Before you start to read this slightly lengthy blog, I am not an expert in legal practice or highway practices. I go with what I see & what I have found in my search for information to create this blog. If you know of any relevant information that would go with this bog, I be more than happy to include it. I apologise it is a tad lengthy, I just wanted to make sure I have included everything I have found when gathering information for this blog.

Updates to the blog are at the bottom of the blog, scroll to this if you just want to read the update.

In the past Chelmsford High Street was like any other High Street of most towns & cities & in the 20th century it became filled with motor vehicles.

Then in the 90's long before the Town became a City, the Council decided to rebuild the town centre & pedestrianised the High St & adjoining roads.

In doing so they created shared paths around the town centre itself with very few places to cross through it & thus a ban on cycling on the High Street.

But the High Street is still classed as a public highway, drivers are still allowed to drive on it with certain 'conditions' for deliveries which if you ever spent time on the High Street it is never enforced.

With the usual result of damage to the street furniture, especially the trees.

And thus the Authorities with the local media help choose to target 'lawbreaking', 'anti-social' cycling & publicly announce this.

Now one thing they all fail to mention & not even mentioned if fines were issued within the guidelines of the Home Office Guidance (Support for police discretion when responding to people cycling on the pavement), just blanket fining anyone cycling in the pedestrianised area. If the person was cycling in a dangerous manner & thus meets the requirements of the Home Office Guidance, then I see no problem of that. But having seen them stop those cycling with care & likely fine them, then those issuing the fines are in the wrong & discriminating those who cycle & possibly have mobility issues. And when I challenge the local media, it falls on deaf ears when I try get them to see the real dangers which is not those who cycle but in fact those who drive!

But if you look closely at how the cycle routes go, there are sections of shared paths that go through the pedestrianised areas.

So they expect those cycling to get off & walk the short distance, irrelevant whether you can walk or not, can manage to push the cycle & likely get a fine if you choose to cycle across these areas carefully.

So you can't cycle across these areas but you can drive in the pedestrianised area at a greater speed than you would cycling & this is allowed! Does that sound so wrong to you?

And the signs are so contradictory too, here you can't cycle across if heading away from The Meadows but you can if you cycle across heading towards the Meadows.

And this bridge you have to walk across...

But you can cycle across on this bridge which from experience has a higher footfall...

Quite honestly there is no logic or thought gone into the cycling infrastructure going through the town centre when the pedestrianised area & cycle infrastructure was created.

So the hysteria on dangerous cycling has been growing over the years, claims those who cycle are more of a danger than those who drive through the pedestrianised zones. So lets look at the facts than the anecdotal evidence of gossip.

I looked on 2 different sites for the data & in fact the only pedestrian casualties were with motorised vehicles not cycles & looks like you are more likely to be hit by a deer on the High St than someone cycling.

So should we ban motor vehicles & Deer from the High Street too?

Even TRL research back when the High St was pedestrianised shows that cycling in the pedestrianised areas is not as dangerous as made out to be. (Cycling in Pedestrianised Areas research 1993)

So who are these people flouting the law & causing a danger to others by cycling in the High St?

I have observed the High St as I walk through & never seen any mayhem caused by anyone cycling at all. And those I have seen I have taken photos of them.

Here's a couple touring & stopping in Chelmsford for a break I guess, cycles & trailer heavily ladened & going through the High St barely any faster than people walking & no one battered an eye to them doing so.

People running businesses from their cycles

Families with their children...

Or just friends going to the shops together.

Older generation getting about as it is easier to cycle than walk.

Or just people using the the Cycle Infrastructure that goes across the High St.

And even the Disabled, those who find walking difficult or possibly impossible...

You can see the crutch strapped to the back & clearly he uses the cycle as the mobility aid & yet if caught he can be fined!

Even the Emergency Services use it to get about & why not?

Now those in Chelmsford City Council/Essex County Council (Chelmsford Local Highways Panel) realised this poorly setup cycle infrastructure is creating a barrier to cycling for many, along with much of the lack of cycling infrastructure in Chelmsford or poor quality ones that do exist. In regards to the poor connectivity of cycle infrastructure in the City Centre, well they 'looked' into this.

And the Chelmsford Local Highways Panel decided to stay in the past & spend another £25,000 to add even more signs to tell you to get off your cycles & care lil about your needs or requirements.

Sorry to those with disabilities, with families or run a business from your cycles or even the tourists. You are not really welcome to Chelmsford City Centre unless you can walk your cycles or go elsewhere to those who welcome you better.

And recently they had built new shopping complex Bond Street & they have created it as shared space where you are allowed to cycle!

And as I was writing this blog for the past few weeks & collating the information for it, I started to see the signs appear & honestly some of them I say are down right dangerous! Who in their right mind would fit these signs onto bollards?

No cycling onto the pedestrianised area but how would you know if you are coming off the road?

This one is hidden by a tree & is too far into the area.

Still want you to walk across the 4M wide strip of the pedestrianised zone, don't care if you can't walk or able to push your cycle whatsoever!

Though would help if they had some the right way round...

But even the signs are confusing, as there is now a 'no vehicle' sign, despite drivers are allowed to drive on the pedestrianised area.

How would you like to take your knees out on these whilst crossing the access road on a dark evening?

Seems to be a lot of money wasted on signs in my opinion.

So it is all about safety of those who walk right? Despite the evidence saying it is safe. Well you would think so but when people including me ask the Authorities, especially Essex Police to keep pavements & shared paths clear from illegal pavement parking under the Road Traffic Act. You think they would right? I'm afraid not!

So why so much effort to fine those cycling in the pedestrianised area of the High St that are causing NO danger to others but refuse to fine &/or prosecute those deliberately parking & obstructing pavements & shared paths which is a far bigger danger to those using them? To me that is nothing more than harassment to those cycling & nothing to do with safety, especially when you know nothing is being done daily on the driving on & obstruction of pavements & shared paths by drivers.

So does every pedestrianised street have a ban on cycling? No, in fact some actually encourage it!

I have seen recently Ipswich High St now allows cycling in the pedestrianised zone back in 2016.

Also have been informed that they allow it in Leicester High St too.

Photos courtesy of @RantyHighwayman

And can read more about it here: Lessons from Leicester & ‘Considerate cyclists welcome’ signs to go up in city centre.

In Cardiff too: Cyclists to share pedestrianised areas in new city centre Castle Quarter

Another location is Bolton in Greater Manchester where pedestrianised areas restrict motor vehicle access but not cycling.

Even in Colchester they have part-time pedestrianised zones where motor vehicles are not allowed unless under certain circumstances but cycling is allowed & I have cycled there myself many times & it has a high footfall but never an issue.

And in the Netherlands as shown a few times in this video by blogger Bicycle Dutch: Ride on the Tilburg cycle demonstration route where those who cycle are guests in the pedestrian zones.

And there are likely to be many others if I spent more time to research the UK & Europe.

Also I am not alone in this way of thinking, like this blog from As Easy As Riding A Bike: Cycling in pedestrianised areas

So Chelmsford City Council & Essex County Council if you really do want to encourage more people to cycle than drive like you claim in the consultation couple years back, then you really need to reconsider your backwards archaic 20th Century anti-cycling ban in the pedestrianised zone. The proof is there that it is safe & encourages more people to cycle, not to say make going to the City Centre friendlier for those with families &/or with disabilities/mobility issues & use their cycles as mobility aids. There's plenty of resources from those like Wheels for Wellbeing to back it, so how about leaving the carcentric 20th Century behind & move into a better, cleaner 21st century?

Take it from a disabled person who relies on his cycle & walking stick, Wolf Simpson

Update January 2020

It's been almost a year since I wrote this blog & has had much support due to what I've researched & common sense. And has peaked the interest of some in Chelmsford who have gone out & asked similar questions which has had some interesting results. The first one I got shown was from Lee which the response was interesting to say the least.

So there is no bylaws on the pedestrianised High Street, which poses more questions & have been asked by Paul which got the usual fob off from ECC who are responsible for the High Street as a Highway.

In fact Chelmsford Council have already answered they are not responsible as they don't enforce it back in 2015.

So if no-one knows who is responsible, is there anyone responsible? And is there any legal ban on cycling in the High Street.

Well Paul got a quick response to his question & it is an interesting one as they now claim it is between 9am & 6pm..

But if you look at any of my photos of Chelmsford High Street, there are no signs to depict this! Only place I have seen this done is in Ipswich.

So that poses a few more questions, as it is not signposted correctly & so far no-one can provide actual evidence of an order of any sort for the ban, is the ban legal at all? And if there is a ban but only between 9am & 6pm, how many people been fined incorrectly outside that time period?

So thankyou Lee, Paul & Peter for your enquiries. It's clear that this ban was not done correctly & look forward to finding out more information as so far this has not been an easy task to get what should be a clear cut enquiry. I myself would have expected the informations to be on display in the banned zones for those who need to know, just like you get for the conditions of a car park if you overstay or not buy a ticket.

Other enquiries are being made on this in different ways & will update the blog as I find out more.

Update July 2020

Well due to the pandemic, getting further information from the Councils has been delayed but will keep an eye out on the situation. More so now the Government wants more people to walk & cycling so removing barriers to cycling put in by carcentric councils now needs to be done more than ever.

During the Lockdown I came across of some lovely photos on twitter courtesy of Hackneycyclist who kindly allowed me to use them, they are of Mare Street, Hackney, London, UK.

Just look at the photos, this easily could be the High Street in Chelmsford. The place looks almost the same, notice how relaxed everyone is & there's no issues & plenty of parking for cycles. Mobility not an issue no matter the age or ability, so it can be done in this Country.

And this so could be the top end of the High Street by Shire Hall.

It is those who are narrow-minded, 'ableist' & anti-cycling who think only motor vehicles should have access is the problem. It's time these in the Councils start changing their mindset, if you want more to walk & cycle then you need to make it more accessible for them which includes those who cycle & use cycles as mobility aids.

Update September 2020

So after 10 months away from Chelmsford due to a spine operation & then the pandemic, I'm now back to working in Chelmsford & can see how the High St is doing & of any changes due to the pandemic & social distancing & unfortunately there was none.

Drivers are still allowed to drive through the pedestrianised zones, people are still not allowed to cycle in the pedestrianised zones & all this is while people are now having to queue outside shops in the pedestrianised zones.

And to make matter worse drivers think it's perfectly fine to use hand held devices to make calls whilst driving through a pedestrianised zone.

Not only dangerous but illegal.

And yet all these people are 'breaking the law' gently cycling through the pedestrianised zone.

And there is definitely an increase in cycling around Chelmsford City Centre.

They're cycling the most direct routes as there is no network to get about easily & have to go a much longer route to get from A to B. But 'cyclists are so bloody dangerous' we keep hearing & yet the stats which I have already explained earlier in the blog, why is it then Councils, shops & the public are happy to use the cycle space/shared paths for their benefits if 'cyclists are so dangerous'?

Meanwhile Essex County Council has put in a speed limit through the pedestrianised zone crossing that's busy with pedestrians at THIRTY MILES/HOUR!!! Now this is bloody stupid! In such a high pedestrianised area you would expect a limit to be 5-10mph, NOT 30mph!

So again we see the authorities put driver's convenience before pedestrian safety when encouraging drivers to speed through the crossing in a pedestrianised zone. But still demonise cycling by banning it based on no evidence they are dangerous in pedestrianised zones, in fact quite the opposite.

And yet they still try to enforce the cycling ban & as yet not proven the ban is even legal or correctly put in place as mentioned in January's update. Tho some of the signs for the pedestrianised zones are now not even visible to let anyone know & haven't been for about a year now.

And with the Government now wanting more people to walk & cycle, the authorities need to change their mindset on cycling & so far what I am seeing they are not! The pedestrianised zones need to be accessible to those who cycle, the illegal ban needs to be removed & stop motor vehicles from going into the pedestrianised zones as they are the issue here with safety, not cycles!

And I am not alone in this mindset for cycling, it is done elsewhere & it works. This is from Brian Deegn, Advisor to Greater Manchester Cycling & Walking Commissioner and Mayor of Leicester.

And this from Netherlands where they allow Cycling in pedestrianised zones & limit motor vehicles.

And if you think cycling is going to be the only mode to worry about in pedestrianised zones, times have now changed over past few months. Micro-mobility is now happening & people are not just cycling & yes before you say it, e-scooters are not legal to use on the roads but here they are & there's plenty around now.