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Statement on the Greenway closure

We are collecting people’s experiences, stories, pictures, and videos from Greenway users put at risk by the dangerous diversion. Please send to newham@lcc.org.uk or DM us on Instagram or Twitter/X. Thank you.

Newham Cyclists, part of the London Cycling Campaign, is today calling for Thames Water to immediately re-open the Greenway at Manor Road bridge until a safe diversion can be put in place.

As a volunteer group which exists to help more people access cycling, we are disappointed and angered by Thames Water’s and their contractors’ decision to close part of the Greenway, Newham’s only safe and inclusive north-south cycle route, while the diversion route is dangerously busy with car and van traffic. They chose to do this despite us warning them as early as July that this would be unacceptable and unsafe.

The result is that people who use the Greenway—from children and families cycling to school or the park, to dog-walkers, to workers at Newham Hospital—are being forced onto a narrow bridge at Abbey Road DLR with fast and heavy traffic. Cars and vans speed and emerge suddenly due to poor sight lines, which is a major collision risk. Some drivers are impatient, intimidating cyclists by revving and passing too close. Many people cycling, particularly children, are riding on the pavement in fear; the pavement is much too narrow for pedestrians as it is.

We have been inundated with messages from Greenway users reporting frightening encounters on the diversion. We think it is only a matter of time before someone is hurt, or worse.

Thames Water chose to close Manor Road bridge on the Greenway without waiting for Newham Council to deliver a safe diversion.

This is despite us asking Thames Water to plan for the possibility they’d need to close Manor Road bridge in mid-April; and despite us making clear in late July that any diversion must be “kid-safe”, particularly by the start of the school year.

Instead, Thames Water chose a course of action that deprived local residents of their safe route to work or school one week into the school year.

We have also raised concerns about the following:

  • confusing signage making it unclear where diverted cyclists are supposed to go and suggesting they should cycle on a narrow strip of kerbing. We are aware of at least one lady falling from her bike following these instructions
  • social safety on the diversion via Canning Road and Abbey Lane, particularly after dark for women and gender-diverse people
  • concerns about the attitude of some of Thames Water and Barhale’s workers on site. We received one report from a woman who has had contractors make comments towards her on two separate occasions. It should go without saying that we find this behaviour appalling and reprehensible.

Our demands

We are calling for the following measures:

  • Thames Water and Barhale: Re-open the Greenway to people walking and cycling until the diversion is safe. We don’t believe work has substantively started yet, so this should be possible. You can resume work once Newham have made the diversion safe by closing Abbey Road to motor traffic.
  • Newham Council: Get on with delivering a safe and inclusive diversion, with an experimental traffic order on Abbey Road.

What we want Thames Water to do

We want Thames Water and their contractors Barhale to immediately re-open the Greenway until Newham Council have delivered a safe and inclusive diversion that is suitable for everyone to use, including children. As of Sunday 15th September we believe work on the sewer barrels has not yet begun. It must be delayed, and the Greenway re-opened to people walking and cycling, until a safe diversion is in place.

To be clear, we told Thames Water in mid-April that they should start planning for the possibility they’d need to completely close the bridge. At this point, they should have contacted Newham Council to start planning a diversion and getting paperwork in order. As we understand it, they did not inform Newham Council of this possibility until early July, over two and a half months later.

Local people trying to go to work or school should not be put in danger by Thames Water’s utility works.

What we want Newham Council to do

Newham Council must deliver a safe diversion for the Greenway, quickly, so Thames Water can proceed with their sewer replacement work. The quickest and best solution is an Experimental Traffic Order to close Abbey Road to motor traffic, enforced with a traffic camera and fines. Abbey Road is not part of the strategic road network; no buses or heavy freight use it due to the weight limit on the bridge. The traffic that does use it can easily use the more appropriate route via West Ham Lane instead. Emergency vehicles would of course be welcome to use the bridge.

While we understand that Thames Water gave an unacceptably short notice period, particularly considering the summer holidays, Newham also needs to make sure it has the ability to respond to changes like this in a quicker fashion.

Given Thames Water’s history with closing the Greenway and failing to complete works on time, and their current precarious financial position, we suggest that the plans are prepared to extend the traffic order or make it permanent after 18 months.

Information for editors and casual observers

What is the Greenway?

The Greenway is an off-road walking and cycling path built on top of a Victorian sewer. It runs from Wick Lane (near Victoria Park) via Stratford, West Ham, and Plaistow, finishing in Beckton. It serves Roman Road Primary School, Brampton Manor Academy, Newham Sixth Form College/NewVIC, Newham University Hospital, and many other local amenities.

It is part of the London Cycleway network. It’s the only cycle route between the north and south of Newham that is traffic-free, and is generally safe for people to use at all times of day and night. Recent investments in lighting, barrier removal, adding greenery, and crime prevention have made a big difference. People use the Greenway round the clock. Greenway users are diverse: all ages, all genders, all ethnic backgrounds, all walks of life, making all kinds of journeys.

Because the Greenway is on top of a sewer, it is technically owned by Thames Water, the privatised water company in London. The Greenway is a so-called “permissive path” through private land. Recent improvements have largely been organised and funded by Newham Council.

What has happened?

Thames Water are currently refurbishing the sewer the Greenway lies on top of. Next to be refurbished is Manor Road bridge, which is near West Ham station. They need to close the entire bridge to walking and cycling in order to do their work. This is understandable.

What is unacceptable is that Thames Water closed the bridge to people walking and cycling with a diversion that is extremely unsafe.

Those following the official diversion are dumped onto Abbey Road, a narrow bridge over the DLR which is used by motorists as a shortcut to avoid West Ham Lane. Traffic comes thick and fast, with lots of cars and vans which speed around blind corners. Some drivers routinely intimidate people cycling by overtaking when that’s dangerous, passing too close (sometimes as ‘punishment’ for causing a few seconds’ delay), honking, or revving aggressively. The pavements are also much too narrow for large volumes of people walking, let alone cyclists who feel bullied off the road. No-one should have to deal with this on their way to work or school.

Abbey Road is owned by Newham Council, who are in the process of arranging an experimental traffic order (ETO) to close it to motor traffic (except emergency vehicles.) We think that Thames Water should have waited for the ETO to take effect before closing the Greenway. They chose not wait, and instead closed the Greenway on Weds 11th September.

This is an example of extremely poor planning and co-ordination on Thames Water’s part. At a site meeting with Thames Water in mid April, we told them that they should start planning for a “just in case” diversion in case they did need to close the Manor Road bridge completely. Had they engaged properly with Newham Council then, maybe the paperwork would have been ready for the ETO to go live on day one of the Greenway closure.

Instead, the Greenway has now been closed one week into the school year, with children, families, and other less confident cyclists expected to dice with death on Abbey Road in front of fast-moving traffic.

There are a number of other issues with the usability of the diversion:

  • Confusing signage making it unclear where people cycling are supposed to cross Manor Road, another busy road. We are aware of at least one near miss where a woman fell from her bike, while following signage that suggested she should ride on a narrow strip of kerbing rather than a wide shared footway. She is fortunately unhurt, but could easily have fallen into oncoming traffic.
  • Missing signage at turning points in the diversion making it unclear where people are supposed to go.
  • Poor lighting and environmental details on Canning Road leading to a poor feeling of social safety, particularly after dark and for children, women, gender-diverse and LGBTQ+ people, and those who feel more vulnerable in public.

Why does it matter?

The Greenway is the only safe cycle route that connects north-west Newham to south-east Newham, providing a connection between Cycleways 2 and 3 and serving schools, colleges, and Newham Hospital.

For many, cycling is more affordable, convenient, and reliable than public transport. Many people who live in Newham depend on walking and cycling for their day-to-day travel—particularly for non-discretionary journeys that they have to make, no matter what. People deserve to be able to make those journeys safely.

Timeline of events

  • 2022: Newham Cyclists gets wind of the likelihood Thames Water will be planning long term closures or diversion to the Greenway in future.
  • Mid-April 2024: Thames Water starts work on the Manor Road bridge. At the time they believe they can keep the bridge open for walking and cycling at the same time as replacing the sewer barrels. Our co-ordinator at the time, Olawale Ajibola, spots the likelihood that this won’t be possible, and asks Thames Water to start considering what would happen if they needed to fully close the Manor Road bridge to walking and cycling.
  • Mon 8th July 2024: Thames Water contacts Newham Council to tell them they will be seeking to close the Greenway for 18 months at Manor Road bridge. Newham Council forwards this information to us and puts us in touch with contacts at Thames Water and Barhale, their contractors. We ask where the diversion will be, for how long, and how Thames Water proposes people will complete their journey without dismounting and without mixing with traffic. We receive no response.
  • Fri 12th July 2024: We follow up to ask if there is any information available. We are told we will have information on the diversion shared with us by Friday the following week at the latest.
  • Fri 19th July 2024: Thames Water tells us they plan to close the Greenway from Monday 19th August for 18 months, claiming they have made this “difficult decision” because there is no space on the bridge to maintain a through route and complete the work. When prompted, they provide us with a proposed diversion via Mitre Road. We tell them this is a concerningly short notice period, and won’t give time for them to address obvious issues with the diversion; we remind them of the importance of the Greenway to children and families. We arrange a site visit with representatives from Thames Water, Barhale, TfL, and Newham Council’s highways team on 29th July.
  • Mon 29th July 2024: Our Coordinator and Deputy Coordinator, Jonathan Rothwell and Dr Karen Flanagan, join the site meeting, and afterwards test the diversion together. We determine that the ramp down to Manor Road by West Ham station needs to be widened, but that Abbey Road is easily the worst part of the diversion—in fact both Jonathan and Karen receive a punishment pass from a driver while cycling safely and legally on the bridge. We explain in our summary email to those present that “no protection or traffic reduction here is not an option.” We urge LBN to start work on the traffic order at Abbey Road so that it can go live before the start of the school year in September. We receive confirmation from Thames Water’s representative that our notes match their recollection of the meeting.
  • Tue 30th July 2024: A representative from Thames Water tells us they will be making a press release about the closure of the Greenway, and asks if Newham Cyclists would like to provide a remark about the ongoing liaison. We don’t think this is appropriate at this stage because we don’t know what the ultimate state of the diversion will be like, so decline to provide a quote.
  • Weds 7th and Thu 8th August 2024: Thames Water runs a drop-in session at the Canning Road junction for Greenway users. While this engagement is welcome, it only runs from 10am-6pm.
  • Weds 14th August 2024: Thames Water tells us they will delay the closure of the Greenway until 2nd September, so that they can do work to widen the Manor Road ramp, one of the action points we identified on 29th July. We remind Thames Water that it is critical everything is done and ready by the start of the school year, noting: “If someone has a bad experience with them or their kids cycling to school in the first few weeks of the school year, they may end up driving for the rest of the year, which obviously isn’t what we want.”
  • Fri 16th August: We receive confirmation from a contact at Newham Council that they are working on the Abbey Road ETO option, within the resource constraints they have available.
  • Tue 27th August: We contact Thames Water and Newham Council to ask for an update, and receive no response as our contacts are on holiday. At this point it is clear the Manor Road ramp will not be ready for the proposed 2nd September closure date.
  • Fri 6th September: We again ask for an update. Thames Water now say they expect to finish the Manor Road ramp on Monday 9th September, and close the Greenway immediately after; Newham say they are working on the ETO to do the necessary statutory consultation with the emergency services in the following week; however it will not be done by then. We formally ask Thames Water once again if there is any possibility the Greenway closure can be delayed again until the ETO takes effect on Abbey Road, and receive no response.
  • Weds 11th September: Thames Water completes the widening of the Manor Road ramp, and closes the Greenway. Immediately Newham Cyclists begins receiving feedback on our website and social media about how dangerous and unsafe the diversion feels, particularly Abbey Road and the confusing signage crossing Manor Road.
  • Thu 12th September: We share the feedback we have received with Thames Water, and express our disappointment that our request to delay the closure of the Greenway until the ETO is in place was ignored—particularly in light of us having repeatedly made it clear that any diversion must be kid-safe if in use during the school year. We suggest that if work has not substantively begun, the closure be reversed until the ETO is put in place. We receive no response from Thames Water or Barhale. We are also contacted by a Greenway user who reports having received inappropriate remarks from Thames Water site workers while she was using the diversion.
  • Sun 15th September: Our Newham Parks Ride passes the Greenway closure, using the diversion. From both ends of the worksite, it appears work has not actually begun yet (see photos.) One of our riders has a near miss, falling from her bike while following signage that suggests she should ride on a narrow strip of kerbing rather than a wide shared footway. She is fortunately unhurt, but could easily have fallen into oncoming traffic. We are also contacted by a mother who cycles with her two young children to Victoria Park on the Greenway and had a frightening encounter on the diversion. We again ask Thames Water to re-open the Greenway to people walking and cycling until the issues with the diversion are resolved.
View onto the Greenway facing northwest. It is apparent that sewer barrels work has not begun yet.
View onto the Greenway peering through HERAS fencing. It is again clear that work on the sewer barrels has not begun yet.

Who are Newham Cyclists?

Newham Cyclists is part of the London Cycling Campaign, a registered charity. We are a volunteer group who exist to help all kinds of people access cycling as a cheap, accessible, and convenient form of transport. We believe cycling should be for everyone, not just the fast and the brave.

Media contacts

Media enquiries should go to newham@lcc.org.uk, or to @NewhamCyclists on Twitter/X and Instagram. Your contacts are Jonathan Rothwell and Dr Karen Flanagan.

Please be mindful that we are a volunteer group, so will answer your queries amongst our work and personal commitments.

Cycle route changes – Bridgewater (southern approach to Olympic Park)

The Waterworks Bridge is being replaced. We have been informed by the team that work will start in September 2024 and should be complete winter 2025. During this time there will be adjustments to cycle and footpaths. Alternative routes, we are told, will be clearly marked.

A minor diversion of the cycle path on the west side of the river is required by 13 September. Subsequently, the cycle/foot path which connects the bridge with the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park (marked below as U03) will close at the end of September, and pedestrians and cyclists will be rerouted via the newly opened path (marked as U07).

We are hoping that disruption to cycling should be minimal. If you have any concerns please contact us at newham@lcc.org.uk

Readout of July 2024 meeting

We rode from the Atherton Centre along the new Romford Road cycleways, and collected feedback from attendees. We then rode to Here East.

At the subsequent meeting we discussed:

  • The Romford Road cycleways –  generally we are very happy with the improvements  but have the following comments:
  • As we expected (and as we warned in our initial consultation response in January 2023) there’s a problem with the entrance to the cycle track after Woodgrange Road. The geometry is awkward and requires those cycling to take primary and then swerve to enter ’their’ lane.
  • The geometry of the ends of the cycle tracks makes it difficult for those cycling to re-join the carriageway.

We will ask for additional feedback via groups.io, and then send feedback to the Romford Road team.

  • Greenway closure for 18 months: we met with Newham Council (Highways and Sustainable Transport) and Thames Water earlier today and rode the proposed diversion. Our feedback was that Abbey Road is unsafe. It is possible that the road could be closed to traffic, and another possibility could be a diversion via Crow’s Bridge. We await feedback from Newham.
  • Excel – we received a complaint about cycling safety at Excel which we escalated. We have received a response from Excel which states that the waterfron route will reopen “in the autumn”. We will monitor the situation.
  • Proposed Silvertown and Blackwall tunnel tolls: we will respond to this consultation. We have already responded negatively to the ‘bike bus’ consultation and will continue to campaign for meaningful walking and cycling river crossings.
  • Woolwich foot tunnel Northern lift has been out of action for some time and one of our members has reported that there appears to be an impasse between Newham and Greenwich on cost of repairs. We contacted Newham Council. UPDATE: the councils have struck a deal to repair the lift .
  • TFL staff  questioning legitimate bike transport on the Elizabeth line, at Liverpool Street – this has been referred to LCC.

Please contact us through this site if you would like further information.

Consultation response: Blackwall and Silvertown Tunnel road user charge

Transport for London has consulted on their proposals to introduce a user charge for drivers at the Blackwall and Silvertown Tunnels. The proposals were for:

  • a £4 charge at “peak times” for drivers using the Blackwall and Silvertown Tunnels. Peak times are northbound 0600-1000 and southbound 1600-1900 on weekdays only
  • a £1.50 charge at “off peak times” for drivers. Off-peak times are all times between 0600-2200 that are not peak
  • no charge overnight
  • At the same time TfL announced details of a “green and fair package of supporting measures”, including: free bus journeys on routes 108, 129 and SL4 for “at least 12 months”; free DLR journeys between Cutty Sark-Island Gardens and Woolwich Arsenal-King George V for “at least 12 months”; free travel for those cycling on the Silvertown tunnel cycle bus for “at least 12 months”, with the service guaranteed to run for at least 3 years.

We neither supported nor opposed the proposals.

  • Generally we support a fair and equitable system of road user charging. But this requires practical alternatives for people to make their journeys without driving.
  • TfL has no coherent strategy for non-motorised river crossings in east London, meaning there is no practical alternative to driving for many journeys. Future political campaigns and administrations will target the user charge for abolition, allowing unfettered cross-river motor traffic.
  • We continue to oppose the Silvertown Tunnel as a crossing for private motor traffic. It is a 1960s-quality urban motorway project that shouldn’t have been approved. We still have no confidence in TfL or the current Mayor ever delivering a viable cycle crossing east of Tower Bridge, despite the clear need for one.

We do not believe the proposed road user charge is high enough to deter people from making unnecessary journeys or switching to a more sustainable mode. We also think the alternatives are too expensive and too impractical.

It is particularly concerning to us that the proposed off-peak tunnel user charge of £1.50 is 25p cheaper than a single bus fare. Even at peak times, the tunnel user charge for cars is £2 cheaper than the Cable Car fare, and 10p cheaper than the Doubletree Rotherhithe ferry. At off-peak times, the Cable Car fare is a whopping four times the price of the charge a driver would pay.

We are disappointed that the “green and fair” package that TfL has supposedly already agreed for pedestrians and cyclists only guarantees free river crossings for those without a car for the first year, and only in specific circumstances. We maintain our scepticism about the practicality of the cycle bus, particularly considering it will finish at 9:30pm.

To apply a crude analogy: the stick is not big enough to be a deterrent, but is big enough to be annoying. Meanwhile, the carrot isn’t substantial enough to get people to move to a mode other than driving.

We urge TfL to work with the national Government to invest in and urgently progress the desperately-needed walking and cycling river crossings that east London has needed for decades.

Silvertown and Blackwall user charge consultation responseDownload

Consultation response: Chobham Manor phase 2

Newham Council and LLDC consulted last month on some measures to improve some junctions in the Chobham Manor area.

The proposals are to

  • straighten out the zebra crossing from Honour Lea Avenue over Olympic Park Avenue into the Olympic Park, and add a parallel crossing to formally allow people to cycle across it with priority
  • add a mode filter at the junction with Temple Mills Lane and Abercrombie Road, only allowing buses and coaches
  • add speed cushions on Abercrombie Road and Olympic Park Avenue.

We were pleased to support these proposals, although we had reservations about the use of speed cushions which are not in line with best practice for cycle routes. We suggested the use of sinusoidal humps instead, and consultation with local stakeholders who use three-wheelers.

Chobham Manor junctions consultationDownload

Greenway update – closure postponed to 02/09/24

UPDATE: Thames Water in fact closed the Greenway on 11 September, before the diversion was made safe. For our statement on this matter and a full timeline of events please see our latest post.

There are two pieces of news to share about the partial closure of the Greenway/Cycleway 22 (previously reported here.)

Firstly: Thames Water have postponed the closure to start on 2nd September, to allow for additional work on the diversion route. This will include widening the ramp down to Manor Road and improving lighting, which is already in progress. It will still be steep, but this should make it a little more convenient to navigate and give plenty of space when passing pedestrians, wheelchair/pram users, and other cyclists.

Map of the Greenway. The section from Canning Road to the Manor Road steps is marked as 'closed from 2 September 2024 for 18 months' and the section from there up to the Abbey Road ramp is marked as 'closed later for a shorter time.'

Secondly: The currently-planned diversion will be via Canning Road, Abbey Road, Leywick Street, Richardson Road, Pond Road, and Manor Road. Longer-term Newham Council are looking at an additional diversion via the disused Crows Road bridge, but since this has been out of use for well over a decade it will take some time (and liaisons with multiple stakeholders) to bring it back into use for people walking and cycling. So the official diversion will be via Abbey Road, at least initially.

The above map, with the official diversion shown via Canning Road, Abbey Road, Leywick Street, Richardson Road, Pond Road, and Manor Road. A future alternate diversion is shown via the closed Crows Road bridge.

We are continuing to advocate for common-sense measures to make the diversion route suitable for all to use, and for these to be in place before the Manor Road bridge is closed. Jonathan and Karen, our Co-ordinator and Deputy Co-ordinator, met with Thames Water’s contractor, Barhale, at the end of July, and tested the route both on foot and by cycle. We found the following:

  • The shared pavement on Manor Road, while awkward, is workable, and with a temporary toucan crossing should be fine for people to cross.
  • The best route to join Abbey Road is via Pond Road, Richardson Road, and Leywick Street. This has the advantages of getting of Manor Road quickly, and passing in front of houses, a primary school, and some shopfronts—all of which lead to a better feeling of social safety than continuing on Manor Road. These streets are all effectively a low-traffic neighbourhood so were fine for cycling.
  • Abbey Road bridge is easily the most dangerous part of the diversion. Despite not being part of the strategic road network, and not carrying any bus routes (it can’t due to a very restrictive weight limit), Abbey Road was very heavily trafficked with drivers using it and Rick Roberts Way as a shortcut from Stratford High Street to Manor Road. We received a punishment pass when testing the route in one direction. The pavements are also too narrow for pedestrians, and obstructed by lamp posts. We also found that the sight lines from Canning Road onto Abbey Road were unacceptable, particularly given the speed that drivers approach from the west.
  • Our preferred solution here is a mode filter to prohibit all motor vehicles from the Abbey Road bridge for the duration of the works. Emergency vehicles would of course be exempt from this closure, and would likely benefit from reduced congestion on the bridge.
The above map, showing our suggested interventions - a mode filter on Abbey Road bridge for the extent of the weight limit, and widened ramp with improved lighting from Manor Road up to the Greenway.
Our suggested interventions

We will continue to hold Thames Water and Newham Council to account in delivering a diversion route that works for all users of the Greenway, and protects this vital community asset for the thousands of people who rely on it each day.

We are pleased to report that Newham officers and politicians do appear to understand the importance of the Greenway to the public, and are making a good effort in delivering a diversion that works; we hope that Thames Water will be driven by them. In particular, our view is that if a workable diversion route is not ready by September 2nd, Thames Water should delay the start of their works again until a diversion can be delivered.

We will continue to update our website, our socials (Instagram, Threads, the site formerly known as Twitter) and our newsgroup as the situation develops and more news becomes available.

If you depend on the Greenway and want to help us hold Thames Water and Newham Council to account, then please do! You can help by joining the London Cycling Campaign, joining our newsgroup, and coming along to our meetings (the next will be at some time during September – details will be on the newsgroup.) The more people who campaign with us, the stronger our voice is.

[UPDATE: Postponed] GREENWAY CLOSURE from 19/8/2024

UPDATE: Thames Water in fact closed the Greenway on 11 September, before the diversion was made safe. For our statement on this matter and a full timeline of events please see our latest post.

There is a plan to close The Greenway at Manor Road Bridge for 18 months from 19th August whilst Thames Water works are completed.

A diversion has been proposed, details of which are not yet finalised. Newham Cyclists have met with Thames Water and have provided feedback.

There will be a drop in (bus) session at Canning Road Bridge on 7th and 8th August 10am-6pm where you can raise your concerns.

Please pass this information to any other interested parties.

Readout of June 2024 meeting

24 June 2024: Seven of us gathered at a new venue for us, the Well Centre in East Ham (home of the Bonny Downs Community Association.)

There are forthcoming rides on Saturday 7 July (Greensted Church), and on 14 July (West Ham United-themed Newham Ride).

There will be Fix Your Ride stalls at Woodgrange School Summer Fete on 29 June, and at Forest Gate Festival on 6 July. The roster for 6 July is looking thin so if you are able to help that would be most welcome.

At some of our recent Fix Your Ride events, we have helped repair bikes which have been donated to refugees in our borough. These bikes typically require more attention than many others, and often more than we can offer at the Woodgrange Market stall. In some cases we have had to turn people away from the stall due to a lack of capacity. We discussed how to manage this situation, and have decided to explore some suggestions of how we can more effectively help refugees get their cycles roadworthy.

Infrastructure

  • Action in response to the 97 bus incident in Temple Mill Lane is ongoing.
  • There is a meeting arranged with the Romford Road Active Travel Scheme team. We reviewed progress to date and prospects for further progress.
  • We were pleased to attend a site visit of the in-progress Westfield Avenue scheme and meet with the engineers, project sponsors, and other stakeholders. This is a high quality scheme in which good progress is being made, and we are pleased to see efforts being made to retain safe pedestrian and cycle access throughout.
  • The Royal Docks corridor scheme, again high quality, is progressing.
  • We discussed the principles to be pursued at a forthcoming meeting with developers of a site on Stratford High Street.  This is an excellent opportunity to influence in favour of active travel at an early stage of this project.

Outreach

We discussed outreach.  There are 12 sign ups to the new discussion group; regular newsletters are being issued: we are rotating our meetings around the borough; we plan a QR code link to the sign up for the newsletter to extend its reach further; and discussed possible action at university Fresher’s Fairs in the area.

AOB

We have sent letters to candidates in the General Election for whom we were able to trace contact details.

If you would like further details on any of these matters, please get in touch.

Readout compiled by Arnold Ridout & Jonathan Rothwell.

Election ’24: Asking our candidates to support cycling in Newham

There was a General Election in the UK on Thursday 4th July 2024. We wrote to many of Newham’s candidates in the election, to ask them to support active travel if they’re elected.

Newham Cyclists, as part of the London Cycling Campaign, is politically neutral and independent. As part of a registered charity, we don’t (and legally can’t) tell you who to vote for. But we can report on candidates’ policies and allow you to make up your own mind.

Our Asks

We asked our MP candidates to:

  • recognise the importance of cycling, in addition to walking and wheeling, and support it to reach London’s 2030 Net Zero target; also to support London in bringing forward the Vision Zero target to 2030
  • help the Mayor and the London boroughs complete the Strategic Cycling Network by 2028, ahead of the 2041 target—for which there must be more transport funding, and more of it ring-fenced for cycling
  • advocate in Parliament to move national policy away from new roads to active travel—because it’s not prudent to throw £billions after schemes like the PFI-funded Silvertown Tunnel, and other cities and towns across the UK can learn from London’s cycling success story.
Read the entire text of our email to the candidates here.

We’re Newham Cyclists, part of the London Cycling Campaign. We are volunteers who campaign for safer cycling in Newham for everyone, and to break down barriers that stop people from cycling.

Thanks for standing to represent [your constituency] in the general election. We’re asking you to support our mission if you are elected, by:

  • Recognising the importance of cycling, along with walking and wheeling (“active travel”) and supporting it. Active travel projects will help London meet its target of Net Zero by 2030. Of course, not all car journeys in London can be cycled—but TfL analysis suggests lots of them can, if the conditions are made right.

    We also want to see the Vision Zero target brought forward to 2030—saving lives by eliminating serious crashes on our streets. We want you to support TfL and the boroughs in rolling out innovative, proven-safe junction designs; and support the police in renewing focus on reducing harm in road transport.
  • Helping the Mayor and every London borough complete the Strategic Cycling Network by 2028, ahead of the current 2041 target date, to help all kinds of Londoners everywhere to access cycling. To deliver this, London needs more transport funding, and more of it ring-fenced for active travel.
  • Advocating in Parliament to shift national transport policy away from new roads to active travel schemes. It’s not prudent to throw £billions of public money after schemes that shave minutes off car journeys (such as the PFI-funded Silvertown Tunnel.) By contrast, active travel projects are cheap, have a good return on investment, and help bring communities together. Other towns and cities across Britain can learn from London’s cycling success story. We want you to work with the Mayor and other metro regions to secure a future where walking, cycling, and high-quality public transport are viable everywhere.

Finally, we remind you that despite noisy opposition to some of the Mayor of London’s policies on active travel and reducing unnecessary car use, he’s been re-elected with a large mandate. Cycling is very popular, and candidates that deliver for cycling get re-elected.

No-one wins, least of all drivers, when transport policy is driven by culture wars. Active travel is cheap and convenient, and we truly believe that everyone can benefit if it’s taken seriously. From kids going to school, to retirees meeting friends, to shift workers going shopping after a long day—we ask you to fight for policies that help more people access cycling for more journeys. A cycling Britain is a stronger Britain.

We look forward to hearing your thoughts on our asks.

The Candidates’ Responses

We emailed the candidates on the morning of Saturday 22 June, and updated this post as we received responses.

There were also a number of candidates for whom we were not able to find email addresses.

This page was last updated on Sun 7th July 2024 at 22:57, to add a (post-election) response from Sir Stephen Timms, and to indicate which candidates were elected. The candidates appear on the page in a random order.

Stratford and Bow

PartyCandidateResponse
ConservativesKane Blackwell[unable to find email]
LabourUma Kumaran
[elected]		[no response received]
GreenJoe Hudson-Small“I agree completely with your aims, and with ending the culture war against active travel.

We’d invest 2.5bn in new cycleways and footpaths including London and we would adopt Active Travel England’s target for 2030.
If elected I’ll push for all of these things.”

[The candidate also supplied a link to the Green Party manifesto.]
Workers PartyHalima Khan[unable to find email]
Liberal DemocratsJaney Little[unable to find email]

East Ham

PartyCandidateResponse
Liberal DemocratsHillary Victoria Briffa[unable to find email]
ConservativesMaria Higson[no response received]
LabourSir Stephen Timms
[re-elected]		[received on Sunday 7th July, after the election]
“I apologise for failing to respond on this. I found I just didn’t know enough about the specifics to judge whether bringing things forward to 2028 from 2041 made sense, and I also have not opposed the Silvertown Tunnel. I shall, however, be very happy to support the work of Newham Cyclists, and please do let me know if you feel I can help at any time.”
GreenRosie Pearce“I too am a local cyclist though not part of your organisation. 
I used to live in Groningen which shows a vision of how behaviour shifts can follow bold policy on cycling. You wouldn’t even take a taxi if you bought furniture there.
Cycling in London is a bit scary often, and it varies a lot by borough.
The green party is aiming for 50% of journeys within towns and cities to be walked or cycled by 2030.
Investment in segregated cycle paths is a must, to achieve this, I think – most people won’t feel confident enough to cycle with current infrastructure and who can blame them!”

West Ham and Beckton

PartyCandidateResponse
GreenRob Callender“As a cyclist living in Newham, I fully support all this!”
TUSCLois Austin[no response received]
LabourJames Asser [elected]“As I am sure Newham Cyclists are aware I am a supporter of increasing active travel and giving people choice especially increasing opportunities to walk and cycle. 

I hope my record as the Environment & Transport lead at Newham Council speaks to my commitment to deliver on that belief. I am very proud of the work we achieved and hope if elected I can support my successors in the continuing work.

I hope too that the work started during my time jn [sic] office on making our roads safer speaks for itself. 

Tackling air pollution and dealing with climate change are going to be key issues in the years ahead and I am keen to play my part in driving forward the changes we need to make.”
ConservativesHolly Ramsey[no response received]
Newham IndependentsSophia Naqvi[unable to find email]
Liberal DemocratsEmily Bigland[no response received]

Where’s my candidate?

As volunteers who juggle campaigning with our other commitments (full time jobs, families, etc.) we simply did not have the time or capacity to approach every single candidate for MP—particularly where their contact details were not publicly available.

We sourced email addresses for the candidates on https://whocanivotefor.co.uk but only emailed addresses that were clearly candidate-specific, rather than general party inboxes. Candidates who were not listed here were welcome to approach us by email to respond to our asks.

We are within our rights not to seek a view from minor or “fringe” parties which advocate for policies not in line with Newham Cyclists’ or LCC’s terms of reference, objectives, and values. For instance, we would decline to engage with candidates or parties that espouse views that are clearly racist, or peddle conspiracy theories.