Welcome to News from the Streets, where we review the many cycling infrastructure schemes being built in Newham. Since our last instalment in February, there has been good progress on a variety of projects to celebrate. We can only hope that, with a change of Mayor and a significant shift in the political landscape of Newham after the elections, this momentum is carried forward in the coming months and years to turn our borough into the cycling powerhouse it deserves to be.
Romford Road
Moving west to east:
Sections B South (Radlett Close to Tavistock Road) and D South (Green Street to Woodgrange junction) have received their blue surfacing at crossovers:
Section B (south side) at Dyson Road. Photo: Jonathan Rothwell
There is good progress on Junction 3 (Richmond Road/Green Street), which will lead directly into Section D. There’s even now an information board on the hoardings telling you what the finished scheme will look like!
Kerblines for Section F (Balmoral Road to Station Road via Woodgrange Park station) continues to make progress steadily eastwards on the north side only at this stage.
Section H (Rabbits Road to Little Ilford Lane) is now lined and open for use in both directions, and has also received its blue surfacing at side roads. We are pleased to see this significant and challenging section opened, including Romford Road’s first inline ‘sparrow’ type crossing. This offers benefits for all users:
When you are crossing as a pedestrian, you deal with cyclists and drivers separately, making the task of crossing the street easier to manage.
If you’re cycling, you don’t need to stop when the general traffic light is red—you just give way to people using or waiting for the zebra crossing as normal.
Shorter crossing distance for pedestrians means the pedestrian traffic light phase can be shorter, meaning less red time for buses and cars.
Section I (Little Ilford Lane to Lugg Approach) is still in progress, and as we understand is being bundled with the works for Junction 7 (Little Ilford Lane junction.) This will include 2 new parallel crossings and, most excitingly, a protected T-junction at Little Ilford Lane. When complete, these will mean a big chunk of the scheme is effectively complete from Rabbits Road all the way to Lugg Approach.
Looking ahead, we hope that work will also be able to start in the coming months on Woodgrange Junction (junction 2, again connecting to Section D) and that Rabbits Road junction (junction 7) can see get in the ground this year.
Finally, we are aware of the topic of vehicles being parked in the cycle track, both for loading (which they shouldn’t be doing) and antisocially. While things are improving, it’s still not uncommon to see people loading or even with their cars fully parked in the cycle track. Please report these issues to the Romford Road team using the email address STRomfordRoad@newham.gov.uk, it helps make the case for measures such as bollards and block boulders to keep the cycleways and footways clear.
Water Lane parallel crossing
Work has now moved to the Manbey Grove side of the crossing. The footway rebuild on the eastern side is complete, with only the cycle track due to receive its final surfacing (which we assume will happen at the same time as the new crossing is raised.)
We particularly like the multi-coloured block paving—a simple way to jazz up the built environment. This scheme will make a big difference to the Maryland Cycleway link.
Water Lane crossing as of 25 April. Photos: Jonathan Rothwell
The cycle track is still waiting for its top surface, but the kerb lines are now extant as far as the future Decapod Street/Henniker Road crossing, the realigned Cycleway 16 route. The lamp post has also been removed from the cycleway. We hope that there will be further progress on this route in the coming months—it would be nice for our next ride with Colegrave School to use the new protected cycleway all the way!
The future route of Cycleway 16 – getting closer. Photo: Jonathan Rothwell
Westfield Avenue
International Way and Olympic Park Avenue junctions are now both open for use. At time of writing, the Olympic Park Avenue cycleway received its markings in the last 72 hours—and the freshly-resurfaced bridge span is very smooth and a joy to cycle on (with the exception of short strips by the bridge’s expansion joints.) Work is still ongoing around the entrance to the construction site opposite Olympic Park Avenue—so be careful for the time being.
Work is now beginning in earnest on the new expanded footway on the last section to the Marshgate Lane junction—with a new footway on the eastern side of Westfield Avenue for the very first time.
The parallel crossing connecting to Anthems Way is also complete. There is still some outdated signage (including a battered and now incorrect ‘no cycling’ sign) to be removed.
Connection to Olympic Park Avenue from Westfield AvenueOlympic Park Avenue crossing of Westfield Avenue.Anthems Way crossing.Crossing from International Way.Around the freshly completed sections of Westfield Avenue. Photos: Jonathan Rothwell
Elsewhere in the Olympic Park
The main structure of the expanded Greenway ramp to Marshgate Lane is now visible, although there is still clearly a way to go until it gets its tarmac surfacing and the surrounding landscaping is complete. The end date of “Spring 2026” (already extended from Autumn 2025) seems very optimistic. Hint: if you’re in the area, be prepared to give visitors in sparkly garb directions to the ABBA Arena.
Photo: Jonathan Rothwell
The (somewhat stop-start) cycle track on Pool Street is largely complete, and is being connected to the extended Carpenters Road cycleway at one end, and Montfichet Road’s legacy cycle track on the other end.
Pool Street junction with Montfichet Road. Photos: Bluesky user MacLondonThe draft proposal from LLDC’s website. We are not aware of any changes to this design.
Beckton Corridor
The section of Jake Russell Walk (National Cycle Network 13) between Royal Albert Way bridge and Beckton Park has been resurfaced, to the same standard as the rest of the Beckton Corridor—the awful anti-cycling barriers are gone, and the surface is smooth asphalt. Some finishing work is still being done to the footway at the crossing to Beckton Park, which we feel should really be a parallel pedestrian and cycle crossing.
Photos: Jonathan Rothwell
Royal Docks Corridor—City Hall area
The extended section of the Royal Docks scheme along Western Gateway to the bike bus stop continues. The rain gardens for the medians are now almost fully planted, and the north-side cycle track connecting to the bike bus is awaiting its top surfacing and its connection to the existing cycle track on Tidal Basin Roundabout. The footway is in the process of being reconstructed. The cycle track on the City Hall/Kamal Chunchie Way/cable car side is still to be constructed.
Western Gateway, north side off Tidal Basin Roundabout and south side by City Hall. Photos: Jonathan Rothwell
Keeping track of the many ongoing projects in Newham is a lot of work for our volunteers. If you live or work near one of these sites, we’d really appreciate it if you would volunteer to tell us when things make progress. Email newham@lcc.org.uk or join our discussion group if you can help us, or want to get involved in our campaigning.
Welcome to News from the Streets, where we discuss the many cycling infrastructure schemes with spades in the ground in Newham. Since our previous instalment in late 2024 there is a lot to report.
Romford Road
Sections B and D westbound are largely complete and have been open since just before Christmas. Greenery is still to arrive in some of the rain gardens. We are also still waiting for the blue surfacing at the crossovers on these sections, which can only be done after a period of dry weather. The cycle tracks are already being well used and work well at rush hour—and traffic flows well, even bounded on both sides by the Earlham LTN and the newly-permanent West Ham Park LTN. So this is something great to celebrate!
Sections H is largely complete, but will not be opened until the junctions receive their blue surfacing. We also believe that section I is being held up by a serious flooding issue that Thames Water are taking a long time to resolve. We hope that once they are formally opened, the serious issues with people parking their cars on the cycle track outside the shops can be resolved.
Work on Green Street/Richmond Road junction is underway. The “classic” road closure that was at the roundabout with Windsor Road has now been relocated, and work is moving to the area of the junction itself. This will provide a new, protected cycleway for the east-west alignment, and toucan crossings to permit cycling movements to Green Street, along with rain gardens and resurfacing.
Work has also begun on Section F, with kerb lines starting to appear for the new cycle track eastbound from Balmoral/Katharine Road junction.
Finally, we understand that once work completes on Green Street junction—hopefully in summer—work should begin on Woodgrange junction, assuming no further delays in traffic modelling. We certainly hope that Thames Water’s existing works at this junction do not overrun or cause further issues.
Water Lane crossing
Work has, at long last, begun on the priority pedestrian and cycle crossing of Water Lane on the Stratford-Forest Gate backstreet Cycleway link, with its unusual diagonal design. This will also add a zebra crossing closer to the junction with Forest Lane, which is desperately needed by users of Maryland Station. It will also introduce new mode filters at the Manbey Grove and Louise Road junctions, further strengthening the successful Manbey and Atherton LTNs. We hope that the speed humps will also finally do something to control the serious issue with traffic speed on Water Lane.
The new cycle track, which was consulted on back in 2022, is now open all the way from Montfichet Road to Olympic Park Avenue, with work ongoing on the International Way and Olympic Park Avenue junctions—the latter of which has now closed off the rat-run from Westfield car parks through East Village, for conversion to a protected cycle track. Planting has started to arrive in the rain gardens. We expect that once the junctions have finished, the last section of cycle track (and new pavement) will be built to connect to Marshgate Lane junction.
The cycle track is already proving popular, and not just with people cycling—we’re glad that Stratford’s rollerbladers finally have somewhere around Westfield they can feel welcome!
Leyton Road / Cycle Future Route 7
The permanent traffic lights are finally turned on at Chobham Road/Leyton Road/Liberty Bridge Road junction, albeit with the cycle crossings currently closed as the tracks have yet to receive their top surfacing. The cycle track is starting to creep its way southwards. The current phase of works, we believe, will run as far as Windmill Lane junction, as the extension over the Angel Lane bridge to join Great Eastern Road is dependent on a development in the area.
We understand design work is being sped up where possible on the southern section of CFR7, from Stratford to Plaistow, in reaction to the Greenway closure, and hope to learn more about this soon.
Royal Docks
The entirety of the Royal Docks corridor’s 5-stage initial scope is now complete, and an additional phase—funded by the original corridor coming in under budget and some extra external funding—is now underway to extend it to Seagull Lane (for Royal Victoria DLR and the Silvertown bike bus stop) and the new City Hall. This will extend the cycleway, remove the dual carriageway, and remove all the traffic lights and replace them with priority crossings. This will make life easier and more convenient for pedestrians, cyclists, and for the few drivers who use this street. Extra rain gardens will also appear which should make this somewhat windswept area much more attractive.
Good progress has been made since work started in October and the first section of new cycle track is already being used (albeit as a temporary footway while the main footway is being rebuilt.) We look forward to revisiting our City Hall to City Hall video once the works are done!
Progress is being made on the cycleway at Pool Street by the London Aquatics Centre, which will include a short section of separated cycle track (albeit disappearing regularly into shared areas.) We are pleased that this will considerably reduce the carriageway to a sensible width, and believe this will eventually link to a protected track on Carpenters Road (both the existing one and an extension as far as Sidings Street.)
The new ramp up to the north end of the Greenway at Marshgate Lane is still in progress. We understand that improved art and wayfinding for the underpass, which should make it much less grim, should be finished by the summer (hopefully with the new ramp.)
The West Ham Park LTN has been made permanent. We note that in the Cabinet meeting where the approval was voted through, the Mayor of Newham read out a letter from the head teacher of Park Primary School in support of the LTN. We feel that this, plus powerful messages from residents with their personal experiences of cleaner air and safer streets, helped the Cabinet and councillors to make the right decision—and will hopefully make it much harder for anyone hoping to take the LTN out in future.
Keeping track of the many ongoing projects in Newham is a lot of work for our volunteers. If you live or work near one of these sites, we’d really appreciate it if you would volunteer to tell us when things make progress. Email newham@lcc.org.uk or join our discussion group if you can help us, or want to get involved in our campaigning.
Thames Water have announced that their closure of the Greenway will extend to Upper Road from 26th January 2026. This closure will last for 3 YEARS.
We have repeatedly asked Thames Water to delay this closure until there is a safe diversion for the newly-closed section of the Greenway. They have refused to do so.
As detailed on our Greenway: Flushed Away! campaign page, the Greenway has now been closed for 478 days – with no end in sight for the 3000+ people who used the Greenway every day before the northern section was closed.
NB: The section marked “Closed from October ’25” is now programmed to be closed from 26 January 2026 onwards.
Schoolchildren, NHS workers, and families are put in danger every day. We are aware of at least 4 injuries on the diversion. More are inevitable if Thames Water presses ahead with this closure before a safe diversion is in place.
We have also heard stories on our “Map of Pain” of people having to pay significantly more to travel, people feeling they have to buy a car to travel short distances, and one family who’s moved out of Newham at least in part thanks to Thames Water’s works.
Our demands as part of our FLUSHED AWAY campaign remain as before:
Thames Water must not close any more of the Greenway until there’s a safe alternative for cycling. No dismounting, no riding in heavy traffic.
Thames Water must contribute financially to these safe diversions. Signs and speed cushions aren’t enough
Thames Water must pay to reinstate the Greenway to the highest quality when their works are done
We are writing to you again to request that Thames Water delay Phase 3 of the Greenway closures in order to allow Newham Council time to construct safe diversions for walking, wheeling and cycling.
Since September 2024, we have been contacted by the following people who have used the Greenway diversion during the Phase 1 closure:
A chef who was hit by a car when crossing Manor Road at the diversion, who suffered heavy bruising, abrasions and lacerations (they tried to report this to police but missed 24 hour time limit due to being laid up)
A mobility scooter user who uses the Greenway to visit their mother daily, and is constantly impeded by the temporary signage on the pavement
An epidemiologist who had their foot run over by a car whilst he was stopped at lights on Abbey Road (reported to police—no action was taken because the junction is not covered by CCTV )
A physiotherapist whose cycle wheel got caught in the cracked road surface on Leywick Street, causing them to fall, and to suffer a broken arm
A homelessness charity worker who fell off their bicycle on Abbey Road when trying to avoid temporary signage, who suffered heavy bruising
Almost 100 people who have contacted us to say that they find the diversion dangerous and frightening, many of whom have reported close shaves with motor vehicles on Abbey Road
We have had more correspondence on the Greenway diversion than on any other issue. This reflects the high volume of Newham residents using the Greenway and that, as seen above, many who live in Newham depend on the Greenway for their day-to-day travel. All these people have been put in danger by this unsafe diversion and your failure to meaningfully contribute or coordinate a safe alternative.
We have already written to you to advise that the diversion routes proposed by Thames Water for Phase 3 are particularly unsafe. We are concerned that the list of Greenway diversion injuries will lengthen, and that “close shaves” will become “people killed in road traffic collisions”. If we are contacted by someone who is injured on the diversion after you begin Phase 3, we will be telling them that Thames Water were warned and chose to ignore us. Once again – you must delay Phase 3 of the Greenway closures in order to allow Newham Council time to construct safe diversions for walking, wheeling and cycling.
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Thames Water’s reply:
Thank you for your email regarding our essential work on the Greenway. We take safety and wellbeing extremely seriously, which is one of the key reasons we are carrying out this project in the first place.
Since the beginning, we have liaised with London Borough of Newham, as the Highway Authority, and continue to meet with them on a weekly basis when safety for cyclists, along with other road-users and pedestrians, is discussed. We have contributed financially to the measures already in place and have taken on board the official safety advice given to us at every step of our planning.
As we have previously said, these works are vital to ensure services continue to everyone living in the area and the Greenway will re-open once these works are finished. We understand the disruption this is causing but when we opened this route to the public, it was done with an agreement the Greenway would need to shut when repair work to the pipes underneath is required.
However, I can confirm we taken the decision to delay extending the closure of the Greenway to Upper Road until the New Year. This has been updated on the website, and all site signage is currently being updated.
Thames Water’s new phase of sewer works have closed more of Newham’s protected cycleways. This is part of a worrying pattern of poor planning and hostile design that has plagued these works over the last 12 months. This is unacceptable and dangerous.
The current layouts at Stratford High Street. Images by Kerena Fussell and Karen Flanagan
We wrote to Thames Water on Tuesday 29th July 2025 to demand:
They fix the dangerous closure of Cycleway 2 before schools return in September
They delay the next phase of their works until there’s an acceptable diversion—which Thames Water should help fund
When they are finished, they fund the restoration and improvement of the closed sections of the Greenway to the highest quality.
(To the Thames Water project manager)
The next phase of Northern Outfall Sewer works on Stratford High Street has begun, and have resulted in you closing both a key pedestrian/cycle crossing and a large section of the protected TfL Cycleway 2. People cycling westbound are expected to ride in the road in front of heavy traffic, including lorries.
This layout is unacceptable. It’s dangerous for people cycling, particularly children and families. We are particularly concerned if this will be the state of affairs in September when children return to school.
Separately, you have confirmed on your website that you intend to close the Manor Road to Upper Road section of the Greenway from October onwards. The two months between now and October does not give Newham Council and other stakeholders enough time to provide a safe alternative route. The diversion routes you have proposed on your website even for the current closed section, including Rick Roberts Way and Abbey Road, are unacceptably dangerous, as they have remained since the Greenway initially closed on 11 September last year. The “safer” alternative you suggest, via Bridge Road, has still not been signed after 9 months.
The total length of your “temporary” closure of the Greenway will now be at least 4 years. We feel this results from Thames Water failing to properly monitor the condition of the NOS, and not understanding the importance to the community of its long-standing role as a key transport corridor for those using the cheapest modes.
Our position on this matter is simple:
Thames Water MUST, working with Newham Council, provide a safe way for people cycling on TfL Cycleway 2 to complete their journey, without dismounting or riding with heavy traffic. We expect this to be resolved, at latest, by the start of September when children return to school—irrespective of whether or not the works on High Street are complete by then.
Thames Water MUST NOT extend the closure of the Greenway until there is a safe, best-practice diversion for people walking and cycling. You must delay the next phase of your works until there’s a practical, usable alternative that does not involve cyclists dismounting, riding on narrow pavements, or riding in heavy traffic. We feel Thames Water should contribute financially to Newham Council’s costs in providing this diversion—piecemeal funds for ineffective speed humps and temporary signs, as we’ve seen on Abbey Road, are not enough.
Thames Water must, upon completion of your works, fund the restoration and improvement of the Greenway to the highest quality. This should be to the latest best-practice standards, and led by Newham Council.
We look forward to your timely response on this important issue for the local community.
Newham Council decided not to remove car traffic from Abbey Road, despite this being the formal diversion for the borough’s only safe north-south cycle route. This is despite horrendous near misses on a daily basis—danger which will affect people turning to their cycles during next week’s Tube strike. This is unacceptable. We demand action before someone is hurt or killed.
Halloween may have been yesterday, but the Greenway nightmare is far from over. We have been informed by Newham Council that they will not be proceeding with the traffic order to remove traffic from Abbey Road—a narrow, weak bridge which isn’t on the Strategic Road Network and was never designed to carry the volume of traffic it does—after objections from the Police.
This is a terrible outcome which leaves people who rely on walking and cycling in severe danger. Near misses are extremely common. It is inevitable that at some point, one of those “near misses” won’t be a miss any more.
Keeping Abbey Road open to traffic exposes the most vulnerable road users using the cheapest modes of transport to unacceptable danger, including during next week’s Tube strikes. This failure of leadership from the Council undermines the superb workthey’re doing elsewhere.
It is a matter of time before someone is seriously injured or killed on or around Abbey Road while using the Greenway diversion. We have expressed this concern repeatedly over the past months.
What now?
Short term changes
The “good” news (if we can call it that) is that the traffic calming we were promised over a month ago should finally be installed soon—it has been paid for by Thames Water, and the council are awaiting approvals from TfL’s structures team (since the bridge is over the Jubilee line and DLR.) We hope this should be imminent but feel the delivery of traffic calming has taken much too long. We are also concerned that speed cushions might make close passes by motorists more likely. We will closely monitor the situation.
We have asked for the “do not overtake cyclists” signs we were promised by Thames Water on 20th September to be installed as well. Drivers overtaking cyclists has been a common theme in almost every report we’ve had from Greenway users of a near miss.
Newham Council are also looking at signing a diversion route via Bridge Road (parallel to the DLR.) While much safer than Abbey Road, and actually more convenient for accessing Stratford and destinations to the north east, Bridge Road is nowhere near up to the standard of the Greenway, with narrow bollards at the south end limiting access. It also adds considerable delay to journeys towards Bow and central London via C2, in the region of 10 minutes.
The Bridge Road diversion which Newham Council are going to sign. It’s better than Abbey Road… but a significant diversion if you’re heading west.
The long-term (but still-might-not-happen) plan
The “permanent” solution Newham are planning is to widen the southern pavement on Abbey Road to provide a 4m two way cycle route, with the northern pavement reserved for pedestrians. A single lane would be available for motor traffic, which would either be one-way or operate in alternating directions. However there are a number of issues at play:
The timescale for this kind of work is at least 3-6 months, even with Newham’s officers focusing on it full time. This is frankly disastrous, meaning people cycling will continue to be endangered on the Greenway diversion well into the New Year (when many people begin cycling to work for the first time, and may have a terrifying first experience)
Physical infrastructure will be expensive—well over £150,000. While we obviously think this is a price worth paying to avoid even one serious injury or death, Newham Council is extremely strapped for cash; that money will have to come from somewhere.
Stakeholders may object to any solution on Abbey Road that reduces capacity for cars. If the Police have an issue with a full closure (exempting emergency services) they may also have an issue with reducing its capacity to make way for cycling infrastructure. This is despite—as we said before—Abbey Road not being on the Strategic Road Network, never being designed for the 9000+ vehicles that use it each day, and the A112 and A12 being eminently more suitable for those volumes of traffic.
We are not aware of any progress on the mooted diversion via Crows Road, which would run through private land.
Other things we have asked about
We asked about speed cameras. These would likely need co-operation from TfL and the Police.
We asked about changing the traffic light phasing on the Abbey Road/Leywick Street junction, to split the east/west phase into 2 phases and make it easier for people cycling to turn right. This would also require collaboration from TfL.
Further feedback from Greenway users
This is another selection of some of the feedback we have received. We have tried to credit the people who provided it where we can—please let us know if this is your feedback and you would like your name added (or removed.)
I was just almost flattened by a van swinging out of the yard at the junction where the greenway is closed, and the van then proceeded to block my exit onto the bridge. On top of this, the road surface on the bridge in wet conditions is highly dangerous, especially when being forced into the kerb by close passing traffic. — Laura, via email
The right turn into Leywick Street is particularly awful – much better for Abbey Road to be closed to vehicle traffic, or single lane with traffic lights enabling cyclists to use the other lane —hilbobbling via Instagram
A driver on the bridge heading towards West Ham from Stratford way overtook me at the bridge and when he realised he’d collide with a car coming the other way he cut back in and forced me to a near crash.— Orrin, via email
It’s ridiculous. That road is known for cars speeding and then add that to when you are cycling with your family… it’s added 15 mins minimum of stress to a relaxing family friendly route… — architect_mummy via Instagram
This is my route home. It’s not safe. I’m really not looking forward to using it in the wet and the dark. —@cattleprod via twitter
There is nothing to indicate to drivers that it has become a diversionary cycle route. Drivers ignore the 20mph speed limit and there are no cameras to enforce it. — annekehodnett via Instagram
What must happen now
Newham Council need to get their act together and deliver a truly safe solution for cycling on the Greenway, fast—preferably by Christmas. Thames Water, plus other organisations such as TfL, need to help them achieve this.
This could involve:
Giving Newham Council’s officers the money, staffing levels, resources, and expertise necessary to accelerate delivery of cycling infrastructure on Abbey Road Bridge–preferably by Christmas;
Reviving the experimental traffic order with a view topermanently closing Abbey Road bridge—yet again, a narrow and weak structure that was never designed for the heavy traffic it now sees;
Working fast to deliver a diversion via the currently-closed Crows Road and negotiating with landowners and stakeholders to make that happened
In the immediate term: Overtaking of cyclists on Abbey Road needs to stop. The “DO NOT OVERTAKE CYCLISTS” signs that were promised need to go up within days. Speed cameras and a police presence may lead to better compliance. We will contact TfL about speed cameras. Thames Water should contribute to the capital cost of installing any cameras.
In the long term, Thames Water needs to recognise the importance of the Greenway to the community and change their planning so that nothing like this happens in future years. Providing a safe alternative for people who rely on the Greenway for their daily travel should’ve been a key dependency that was fulfilled before the Greenway was closed.
What you can do
Your photos, videos, and stories are powerful! Share them with us at newham@lcc.org.uk or on Instagram and Twitter/X. We may soon be undertaking a larger campaigning activity in November—please let know if you want to get involved in this too, or better still, join our email newsgroup.
We naturally continue to encourage you to complain to your councillors (find out who they are here). While this decision was made by Newham Council’s officers (permanent employees) and not their elected representatives, it’s still important that you tell your councillors your concerns. It helps them gauge the strength of public feeling about the issue and press for action. If you want to make an impression, you could also write to the Mayor of Newham, Rokhsana Fiaz.
It’s also worth complaining to Thames Water quoting ref BB00472913 because none of this would have happened had they managed their assets properly & not sprung a closure of the Greenway on the Council with only a few months’ notice. We think Thames Water must fund at least part of Newham’s costs for the permanent solution.
We support this scheme and hope that it will go together with a wider scheme to improve both the C-link and the Water Lane area, which is blighted by high volumes of high speed traffic despite not being a main road. We are very aware that there was recently a fatal crash here (two Fridays ago.)
We’ve asked for clearer visual priority for people walking and cycling, with a continuous surface treatment, to make more likely that drivers will give way to people crossing (as they legally should.)
You can find our response below, and use that to inform your own response to the survey.
Inspired by Camden Cyclists’ excellent series of the same name, this post is about the progress of the many cycling infras schemes with spades in the ground in Newham. We will post new ones as and when volunteer time allows and there’s something new to report.
Romford Road
As a large project which will take a number of years, the long-awaited Romford Road public realm improvement scheme is broken up into sections. Sections B eastbound (Water Lane to Radlett Close) and D eastbound (Woodgrange Road to Richmond Road) were the first to be consulted on, and are the first to have been substantively finished. Snagging work should now have been completed for both.
Work has now begun on section B westbound. We’d expect work on section D westbound to take a little longer, owing to the recent fire at Forest Gate Police Station. Work continues on sections H and I.
The open cycle track on sections B and D eastbound is already being very well used by people cycling. In particular a lot of cyclists want to turn right into Dyson Road and the West Ham Park area, and so are already cycling around the barriers to use the zebra crossing.
The massive carriageway on the Westfield Avenue bridge (2 lanes + central hatching!) has already been narrowed by the arrival of materials presumably associated with the construction work. This, combined with hatching on the opposite side, reduces the road width to its final configuration of one traffic lane in each direction. This appears to have already led to a significant reduction in vehicle speeds at what was a real danger spot for people driving, and bodes well for improved safety on the whole corridor for all road users.
West Ham Park LTN
The planters have been installed at the point closures on Ham Park Road for this LTN which is going live on Monday 4th November, although the formal “no motor vehicles” signage has yet to be installed. Signage for the other two point closures on Vicarage Road and Tavistock Road will also need to be installed soon. (UPDATE 8 November: This was an error in the traffic order, the implementation date is now 25 November.)
You don’t need to stand on Ham Park Road long to see why this LTN is desperately needed! Even at 2pm on a Saturday when this photo was taken, large bursts of traffic were forcing their way through this narrow residential street from both the east and the west. We were somewhat concerned for the safety of a cat crossing the street (alas, not visible in the photo!) We look forward to this LTN coming into effect soon, for a safer West Ham Park for all cats (and humans.)
Greenway diversion
We are still waiting for the delivery of any measures at all to make the appalling Greenway diversion via Abbey Road safer. Our latest understanding is that speed cushions are imminent (a purchase order having supposedly been raised by Thames Water) and the ETMO to close Abbey Road to motor vehicles will be coming in late November (UPDATE: now cancelled because Newham Council chickened out) followed by permanent works to build out the south pavement to become a shared cycle track. We will post when we have more confirmed details. There is still no sign of permanent signage for the diversion, with portable temporary signage still in use and still regularly going missing.
New “cyclists dismount” signage has appeared on the shared pavement under the bridge, which has been narrowed… by Thames Water’s own storage unit. “Cyclists dismount” signs are generally not helpful and should only be used as a last resort—they do little more than tell people cycling they’re unwelcome, and many people ignore them. They are also not inclusive of Disabled cyclists using cycles as mobility aids, who may not be able to easily dismount.
We feel this dismounted section can be avoided by extending the traffic light phase for the pedestrian crossing, sending cyclists on this phase through the section of carriageway under the bridge. This is eminently achievable, but requires Thames Water and Newham to collaborate on traffic light phasing, signage, and road markings that work.
Greenway users have now been exposed to over 6 weeks of unacceptable danger, all of which would have been avoided had Thames Water planned their works properly and not closed the Greenway until the diversion was kid-safe.
Work around Beckton station is continuing. The priority pedestrian and cycling crossing on the Frobisher Road arm of the roundabout (into the Asda car park) is now available for use. Drivers leaving the roundabout are generally respecting the priority of people walking and cycling here. It remains to be seen how this develops with time as the scheme nears completion and the volume of cyclists increases.
The connection with the Beckton Corridor route is closed for resurfacing. The traffic lights across the bus station are largely complete, although they’re not turned on yet. There’s an unusual detail of the cycle part of this crossing being separately marked as if it were a parallel crossing, although the traffic lights suggest a shared toucan crossing. The cycle part also uses non standard pedestrian “stud” markings, rather than the “elephants’ footprints” that are generally used in this country to mark a cycle crossing.
Royal Docks Corridor
This scheme is now well underway with work visible on site throughout the entire corridor from Canning Town to Connaught Roundabout. Kerblines have begun to appear on North Woolwich Road near Pontoon Dock, and the junctions are progressing nicely.
Extra work is now happening on the previously-opened eastbound cycle track near the Oasis Academy and petrol station at West Silvertown. The planting is generally in, although not looking as verdant as Romford Road just yet. Junctions south of the viaduct are still largely on temporary traffic lights.
Some value engineering is evident on the Silvertown Way viaduct, where the original plans for a fully stepped cycle track have been replaced by a semi-protected painted cycle lane with kerbs at intervals. The kerbed dividers seem sufficiently bulky that it seems unlikely people will be tempted to speed and risk crashing into them, but it remains to be seen whether drivers end up invading these lanes and parking in them.
Work on the northern end near Canning Town station and the connection with Cycleway 3 seems largely complete, albeit not including the more direct crossing of Cycleway 3 across Canning Town Roundabout which we suspect may come as part of a later scheme.
Tidal Basin Roundabout
Work appears largely complete at the new Tidal Basin Roundabout, although the new shared pedestrian and cycle crossings are still mostly closed off.
This scheme is primarily to accommodate the enormous volumes of traffic which are likely to use the new Silvertown Tunnel, an urban motorway project which wehaveconsistentlyopposed. Even with the new greenery, you only need to look at the wide, sweeping traffic lanes to see who the roundabout and tunnel are really designed for: heavy lorries, and large volumes of private cars. People walking and cycling will be expected to wait up to 5 times to cross this massive new incarnation of the roundabout, adding further delay and encouraging risk-taking on journeys to City Hall, Dock Road, and the proposed new housing at Thames Wharf.
It remains to be seen how this operates in practice. We remain deeply sceptical that the Silvertown Tunnel project will achieve its stated aims, and think it will be seen as an historic planning failure like the vestiges of the Ringway scheme from the 1960s. This roundabout, which expects those without a car to dance between traffic islands, is only part of that legacy.
Bow Roundabout
Work on this scheme has begun and will continue for some months. The usual “cycle gate” arrangement for Cycleway 2 at Bow Roundabout continues on temporary traffic lights.
The effect will be to add an additional traffic lane on one side of the roundabout, create an additional eastbound lane for traffic leaving the roundabout onto Stratford High Street, create an additional westbound lane for traffic entering the roundabout from High Street, reverse the direction of the connecting lane under the flyover, and cut back the contraflow lane so that uses this connection to join the main westbound carriageway to go around the roundabout.
TfL declined to assess the new layout under their Cycling Level of Service or Junction Assessment tools, because (cf. the FOI response) “the decision to separate cyclists from traffic at this location has already been established here and the route is a Cycleway.” We find this logic questionable:
The creation of additional lanes (and indeed this scheme being hurried through using the DCO before the Tunnel opens) suggests TfL believes traffic volumes will increase here.
CS2 eastbound is not physically separated from general traffic here. There is an existing issue where the painted lane is blocked by parked cars, forcing cyclists to merge into motor traffic that’s accelerating off the roundabout.
This issue will be compounded in the new layout by increased traffic volumes, the overwhelming majority of which will be through traffic, whose drivers may see the motorway-type design as an invitation to speed…
and by the new merge movement just west of Cooks Road, which runs the risk of drivers in the left-hand lane swerving into the cycle lane to avoid a collision with another vehicle merging from the right. While curtailing the contraflow lane is very welcome and will reduce the risk of motorists colliding head-on, we question why a new eastbound lane on High Street for the approx 60 yards before it merges into the first lane was considered necessary.
We will be monitoring this new layout very closely when it goes live, and won’t hesitate to hold TfL to account for any necessary mitigations to ensure the safety of people walking and cycling.
This is where 2 general traffic lanes off the roundabout will become 1—which may make the painted lane feel even more vulnerable than it currently is.
The new series of BBC1’s Ambulance was partly filmed at London Ambulance Service’s control room at Dockside earlier this year, and features locations and events many will recognise (including the fire at Forest Gate police station.)
The Romford Road cycle track’s new planting helped inspire a firefighter to rejuvenate Stratford Fire Station’s own garden space.He was interviewed recently on Gardeners’ Question Time on BBC Radio 4. We think the rain garden past the fire station makes it one of the loveliest cycle lanes in Newham.
Other news across London…
While Newham Cyclists focuses on Newham, your cycle knows no bounds and many of our journeys start and finish outside our borough. Here’s some news from our neighbours that may be of interest…
Hackney Cycling Campaign have done an extraordinary job pressuring Hackney Council over their unsafe Pembury Circus design (largely consisting of magic painted rectangles & early release traffic lights.) The decision has now been called in for review, and they are hoping to involve Active Travel England as the project uses Levelling Up Fund money. If you walk or cycle through Pembury or Hackney Central, get in touch with HCC to see how you can help them demand better from their council.
Redbridge Council have launched a draft of their Sustainable Transport Strategy.Contact our friends at Redbridge Cycling Campaign if you’re interested in helping them. Of particular interest to us is Ilford Garden junction, which will connect to the end of the Romford Road cycleway. Deadline 5th January.
Keeping track of the many ongoing projects in Newham is a lot of work for our committee and volunteers. If you live or work near one of these sites, we’d really appreciate it if you would volunteer to tell us when things make progress. Email newham@lcc.org.uk or join our discussion group if you can help us, or want to get involved in our campaigning.
Finally there is some movement on the ETO, which will reduce traffic on Abbey Road. But the process will take some weeks. In the meantime we must keep the pressure on in order to achieve safety for all Greenway users.
Many thanks to all those who attend our meeting on Monday 30th September, where we presented the latest plans for Abbey Road from Newham Council. We shared your feedback and questions about the Greenway Diversion with Newham Council and Thames Water.
We were able to meet with Newham Council on Friday 4th October, and we received another update. We present the latest information below.
Update from Newham Council on Abbey Road
In order to make Abbey Road safe for cyclists and pedestrians, Newham Council are progressing 4 projects in parallel:
Traffic calming – signs and speed cushions will be added to Abbey Road ‘in the next 5 days’. Cycle-friendly sinusoidal humps were investigated, but found not to be feasible on the bridge for engineering reasons.
Experimental traffic order(ETO)– this will prohibit motor vehicles from using Abbey Road for the extent of the weight limit. This process takes time—emergency services need to be consulted and any concerns they have need to be addressed. The initial letter was issued on 2nd October, with responses required by 9th October. The earliest possible date that the ETO could be implemented and Abbey Road closed to general traffic is 31st October.
Engineering works to provide cycling infrastructure – whilst the ETO is in place, the southern pavement on Abbey Road would be extended to 4m to provide a two way cycle route, with the northern pavement reserved for pedestrians. A single lane would be available for motor traffic, which would be one-way or two-way with a signalised shuttle. The likely timescale for this work is 3-6 months.
Investigating an alternative diversion via Crows Road – there are discussions taking place, but no firm proposals as yet.
Our thoughts on the above:
We feel that traffic calming on its own is an ineffective solution, but we understand that this is a temporary measure until the ETO is introduced, and many people have asked about ‘do not overtake cyclists’ signs as an interim measure. We raised the issue that speed cushions often nudge cyclists into riding too close to the kerb while encouraging drivers to straddle the cushions, making close passes more likely. We suggested an alternative implementation with half-cushions on the sides and full size cushions in the centre, inspired by the cycle street treatment on Vauxhall Street. We suspect it may be too late for our alternative to be considered, but we shall see.
We have been campaigning for traffic reduction on Abbey Road whilst the Greenway diversion is in place, and we are delighted that the first steps have been taken. The ETO should be introduced as soon as legally possible in order to protect cyclists and pedestrians on Abbey Road.
The proposed widened shared footway would be a safe and acceptable solution, but we are concerned about the optics of installing an expensive cycling scheme that is ripped out again in 18 months. We asked if it would be cheaper to extend the ETO for the full time that the Greenway diversion is in place.
The alternative diversion via Crows Road has potential to be a great – and permanent? – cycle route, but we have no firm proposals to comment on yet.
Communication from Thames Water
Thames Water (TW) have issued a statement about the diversion, which we received on 4th October. This is summarised below.
TW will be advising cyclists to use the Channelsea ramp and toucan crossing to avoid the right turn out of Canning Road.
TW are sharing an alternative diversion route via Bridge Road.
TW are committing to funding traffic calming measures suggested by Newham
TW will change the existing diversion signage to signage attached to existing site furniture.
Our thoughts on the above:
We previously advised TW that we have seen people crossing Abbey Road at the Channelsea ramp crossing. Whilst this avoids the blind corner at Canning Road, it means spending longer on Abbey Road, amongst fast moving traffic. We have also observed that some cyclists who join using the crossing then receive a punishment pass for their trouble, as some drivers perceive them as having ‘jumped the queue’. In addition, several people have raised concerns with us about drivers jumping the red lights at this crossing.
We previously advised TW that the Bridge Road route is a good option for people going to Stratford, Leyton and other destinations to the east, and many people are already using this. However it adds considerable extra journey time (in the order of 10 mins) for those joining Cycleway 2 towards central London, and can almost double journey times for people accessing Pudding Mill Lane, the Olympic Park and Victoria Park. This includes the families with children who have contacted us. We also note that the Bridge Road route has a number of obstructions that make it unfit for large volumes of cyclists (the traffic on the Greenway was last measured as 3,200 cyclists per day prior to the closure, according to Newham Council). We feel that Thames Water should be funding improvements such as widening and barrier removal to the Bridge Road route if they are recommending it as a diversion.
We note that on 20th September, TW wrote to Sir Stephen Timms MP as follows: “In the meantime, we are taking some short-term actions to alleviate the problem:
Additional time added on traffic lights under the bridge
Additional signage making it clear there should be no overtaking cyclists and the road is joint use (the Manor Road signs are in place and Abbey road will be added next week as specialist signs to fit the lampposts were needed)
Signage will be added on Canning Road and the give way line will be reinstated as it is currently faded
Improving the lighting under the bridge
Next week we will be upgrading the crossing points to include tactile paving and wider ramps.” As of 4th October, none of this work has been completed and we asked TW about this on 26th September and 1st October. They responded with the communication above.
Again, Thames Water said they would add semi-permanently attached signage w/c 23rd September, but there has been no movement on this to date (supposedly due to issues sourcing ‘specialist signage.’)
Our position remains that Thames Water should not have closed the Greenway until the ETO was in place.
All the measures that Thames Water say they are taking now are things that should have been organised and ready before the Greenway was closed to walking and cycling—particularly for an 18-month diversion where the closure was supposedly months in the planning. Even so, they are nowhere near sufficient to make the diversion safe for people walking and cycling, particularly during the school year.
This lack of forward planning by Thames Water has created considerable danger to which users of the Greenway have now been exposed for over 3 weeks, and will continue to experience for at least another 3 weeks due to the nature of the ETO process. We find this wholly unacceptable, and believe it was avoidable.
Manor Road
We have contacted Thames Water and Newham Council about your feedback on Manor Road. In particular you raised the issue of Manor Road pavements, which cyclists are directed onto, but these are not marked as shared use and pedestrians are understandably frustrated when they encounter cyclists. We have asked for this to be remodelled. Also you commented that the spadefuls of tarmac used to provide access to the pavements for cyclists are very narrow. We asked for these to be replaced with standard dropped kerbs.
The pedestrians/cyclists conflict has also worsened because Thames Water have narrowed the shared use pavement on Manor Road by constructing a storage unit on the pavement:
On 3rd October, Thames water told us that “The Manor Road crossing positioning will be altered following feedback from Newham – this has led to a slight delay as new traffic management plans are drawn up.” We look forward to a resolution of this issue.
Further feedback from Greenway users
This is another selection of some of the feedback we have received. We have tried to credit the people who provided it where we can—please let us know if this is your feedback and you would like your name added (or removed.)
We have also been contacted by Joyriders, who run weekly cycle sessions for teenagers who are inpatients at the mental health unit at Newham University Hospital. Their sessions are now “severely impacted” as going to the Olympic Park was one of their main routes, and Abbey Road “isn’t even an option at all!”.
Rode on the pavement as after a car overtook me at speed I decided it wasn’t worth my life to be on the road. — easthammerithome, via Instagram
I’m not able to use the greenway currently while diversion is so bad, & it’s my route to work. Come on @NewhamLondon when will there be some action on the ETO? —@helencbaron via Twitter
Thank you for your work on this. It’s so dangerous. Everytime I’ve used it I’ve been overtaken by a car on the blind hill. —@cattleprod via Twitter
The diversion onto Abbey Road is a death trap. I fear for my life everyday and have been trying hard to find another diversion that is safer. There is nothing. Abbey Road MUST be closed to cars or the Greenway is opened again. Sadly, it will only be a matter of time before there is a serious accident 🙁 —@NewMobile-p1q via Youtube
Was almost hit twice just cycling over the bridge in the rain! This really needs to be addressed urgently before someone is killed. —sophieabreu via Instagram
There’s inconvenience, and there’s real risk of injury or death. Cars get one, bikes get the other. —@Moondoox_ via Youtube
What you can do
We encourage you to complain to Thames Water quoting ref BB00472913, and copy your local councillors in too (find out who they are here.) They finally appear to be waking up to the risk of reputational damage to themselves and their contractors from the poorly-managed closure of the Greenway. We need to keep the pressure on, because we think they can and should be doing more than they are. The more people tell Thames Water how this is affecting their day-to-day lives, the stronger our voice is.
Thank you for raising your concerns with elected representatives. Two elected representatives were present at our meeting with Newham Council, and they spoke about the very powerful stories that they had received from local residents. Sir Stephen Timms MP and Uma Kumaran MP have also emailed Newham Council about the correspondence that they had received from constituents.
What needs to happen now
Newham Council needs to complete the delivery of the ETO to close the Abbey Road bridge to motor traffic. We expect them to make sure this happens as soon as is legally possible, i.e. by 31st October.
Thames Water needs to pay Newham Council’s expenses in making the Abbey Road diversion safe for walking and cycling. Agreeing to fund traffic calming on Abbey Road is better than nothing, but it’s nowhere near enough to make the diversion safe. TW should also contribute to the capital cost of advertising the ETO, installing enforcement cameras, and any longer-term solution such as cycling infrastructure on the bridge or a diversion via Crows Road.
Going forward, Thames Water needs to recognise the importance of the Greenway to the community and change their processes so that nothing like this happens in future years. We have been frustrated that Thames Water appears to treat the Greenway as an amenity, i.e. a “nice to have,” rather than as public infrastructure that is as important to people’s daily business as the sewer pipes running underneath it.
We are frustrated by the apparent lack of progress on making Abbey Road, the most dangerous part of the Greenway diversion, safe for people walking and cycling. The result is that Thames Water’s closure of the Greenway is continuing to put local residents in danger on their day-to-day journeys.
A massive thank you to everyone who has shared pictures, videos, and stories of the Greenway diversion since we posted our statement last Monday. Please keep them coming to newham@lcc.org.uk or on Instagram and Twitter/X.
We have had a record amount of feedback about the closure. People are upset and angry that their safe route to work, school, or the park has been taken away, and that daily travel for them and their families is now unacceptably dangerous.
We are passing your feedback onto Newham Council and Thames Water to pressure them into taking action without delay.
We encourage you to write to your councillors (find out who they are here) and to complain to Thames Water too (quote ref BB00472913.) The more people tell them how this is affecting their day-to-day lives, the stronger our voice is.
We also invite everyone affected by the Greenway closure to our next meeting, where we will be discussing progress and our next steps. It will be at 7:30pm on Monday 30th September, at Forest Lane Lodge, Magpie Close, E7 9DE.
Our YouTube video showing the dangerous situation on the Greenway
Feedback we have received
This is just a selection of some of the feedback we have received. We have tried to credit the people who provided it where we can—please let us know if this is your feedback and you would like your name added (or removed.)
It was chaos this morning and the route is not safe. I had a 4×4 keeping at me over the bridge which then decided to overtake me on the bridge and beep her horn at me. —Kulsum, via Instagram
I was overtaken by a car who nearly crashed into the oncoming car on the bridge with my 6 year old on the back of my bike – we were both terrified —Anne Marie, via Instagram
I used the diversion today – not safe. —@SairaSundar, via Twitter
The crossing at the bottom of the West Ham exit is LETHAL! —Ben, via Instagram
This happened just yesterday morning with a car overtaking me and other cyclists on the blind hill which caused a car and bike coming the other way over the hill to brake sharply to avoid a crash. —Rachel, via email
We went in the pavement, my kids were nearly thrown on the road as there were pedestrians and it was narrow —a local mother with 2 children, via email
Then at the bottom right into i think Leywick Street is simply suicidal. I saw two cyclists nearly got run over. I cycled on the pavement. —@Emilybronte53 via Twitter
this [is] impacting the daily commute of NewhamHospital staff. It’s disappointing the closure was not delayed to help get alternative route safe. This was great route for new cyclists. —@CatrionaRowland via Twitter
Changes made on Manor Road
We are pleased that a small change has been made to the signage on Manor Road. People cycling west are now routed onto the shared pavement under the bridge, rather than to cross the road and ride on a narrow strip of kerbline. While a shared pavement is never a perfect solution, this should prevent near misses like those where people have fallen from their bikes on Manor Road. While this change should have been made before the diversion went live, it’s better late than never.
Lighting is also being improved under the bridge, which is welcome.
We understand some changes are coming in the next week to add tactile paving to the crossing of Manor Road. This is welcome, but should also have been in place prior to the closure.
Abbey Road is still abysmal
Abbey Road remains the worst and most dangerous part of the diversion, and we are frustrated to see no apparent movement on a safe solution for this part. Abbey Road is not part of the strategic road network. It cannot carry buses or heavy freight due to a 7.5t weight limit.
Some shots from Abbey Road on a Thursday rush hour. We have chosen to cover the faces of people cycling on the pavement. While it’s technically illegal, we don’t blame people for keeping themselves safe from impatient drivers.
Our view remains that an experimental traffic order (ETO) to close the bridge to motor traffic should be made without delay. The drivers who use Abbey Road would be better making a short detour via West Ham Lane, which is a main road and can accommodate large volumes of traffic more effectively and safely. Emergency vehicles, of course, would still be welcome to use Abbey Road.
Our position remains that Thames Water should not have closed the Greenway until the ETO was in place. If, for whatever reason, an ETO is going to take more than a week from today, Thames Water should pause their works, move their equipment out of the way, and re-open the Greenway until Abbey Road can be made safe.
We have also provided images for the next issue of Newham Voices.
We were very pleased to have the support of two of our local MPs, Sir Stephen Timms and Uma Kumaran, who have written to Newham Council to ask for an update on the application for the ETO.
Sir Stephen also wrote to Thames Water to pass on our concerns. The response he received, and passed on to us, claimed inexplicably that “there are no immediate and straightforward options available.” We don’t agree with this: an ETO is eminently feasible, as was delaying the start of the works until the ETO was in place.
Instead, Thames Water claim they are taking some “short term actions” to alleviate the problem, including… “Additional signage making it clear there should be no overtaking cyclists and the road is joint use.” This will not make any meaningful difference. Signs will not change the fact that Abbey Road is completely unsafe; in our experience, impatient drivers will simply ignore a sign that says “DO NOT OVERTAKE CYCLISTS.”
Thames Water also claim in their response to Sir Stephen that “The safety of everyone is our number one priority when it comes to carrying out any of our operations…” Our position is unchanged: if safety truly was their number one priority, Thames Water would have, as we asked, delayed the start of the structural works until the diversion via Abbey Road was to an acceptable standard. They declined to do this.
What needs to happen now
Newham Council urgently needs to make an ETO to close the Abbey Road bridge to motor traffic. This needs to happen without delay, within a matter of days, not weeks.
Going forward, Thames Water and Newham Council need to fix their processes so that nothing like this is allowed to happen again.
