COUNCIL TEXT
Goodge Street Section 106 Environmental Improvement Scheme
I am writing to ask for your views on the Council’s proposal to introduce an Environmental Improvement scheme in your area.
This scheme aims to improve pedestrian facilities on Goodge Street, between Charlotte Street and Tottenham Court Road. The proposed measures would improve safety in the area by slowing traffic and making crossing the road safer and easier for pedestrians. It would be necessary to carry out the works in two stages.
Stage 1 of the work would be carried out during this financial year using funding from Tesco, in conjunction with their redevelopment of 38-42 Whitfield Street (secured as part of its planning approval via Section 106 of the Town & Country Planning Act 1990). Stage 2 is subject to a successful bid for funding to Transport for London and it is anticipated that this work could be undertaken in the next financial year (2006/07).
Stage 1 would involve the implementation of preliminary improvement measures that do not require significant changes to parking layouts or create traffic calming. This would include:
- Re-paving of existing pavements with concrete paving slabs to the Council’s Boulevard standard, which is the high standard of paving currently used in the Borough.
- Reconstruction of the loading lay-by outside 1-13 Goodge Street at pavement level, which would be paved with granite setts and shortened to create extra pavement space.
- Relocation of the motorcycle parking bay from the lay-by outside 13 Goodge Street to Whitfield Street, as per the consultation undertaken earlier this year (Controlled Parking Zone – Parking Bay Reallocation South of Euston Road Parking Review).
All of the proposed measures are shown on the drawing in the centre of this leaflet.
Stage 2 would include the following measures:
- Raising of the lay-by outside 36-42 Goodge Street and paving it with granite setts.
- Moving of the crossing points across Goodge Street at the Tottenham Court Road and Charlotte Street junctions, so that they are closer to the places where people prefer to cross the road.
- Construction of raised crossing/traffic-calming measures at the Goodge Street/Whitfield Street junction and between 31 and 32 Goodge Street, to make a safer road environment for all users.
- Shortening of the lay-by outside 21 Goodge Street, to increase pavement space.
- Re-arrangement of the residents’ parking bays resulting from the changes to the lay-bys and loading areas. The overall amount of resident’s parking space would stay the same as at present.
- Planting of more trees in Goodge Street.
CCC’s response
Questions
Question 1: Do you support raising and shortening the lay-by outside 1-13 Goodge Street? YES
Question 2: Do you support raising the lay-by outside 36-42 Goodge Street? YES
Question 3: Do you support relocating the crossing points across Goodge Street (at the Tottenham Court Road and Charlotte Street junctions?) YES
Question 4: Do you support the raised crossings/traffic calming measures on Goodge Street (at the Whitfield Street junction and between 31 and 32 Goodge Street?) YES
Question 5: Do you support shortening the lay-by outside 21 Goodge Street? YES
Question 6: Do you support re-arranging the resident’s parking bay layout (resulting from the changes to the lay-bys?) YES
Question 7: Do you support planting more trees? YES
Further Comments:
While we support the facilities designed to improve pedestrian space we are concerned that no proposal for improving cyclists’ flow are suggested. Two points concern us. 1) The eastern end of Goodge street is maintained as two lanes while a single lane would allow more space for cyclists to position themselves to enter Tottenham Court Rd on the eastern or western side. 2) The narrowing of the Goodge Street should not be beyond 4.50m as this would prevent the future introduction of a counter-flow lane. According to DfT LTN 01/04 there is an obligation to remove one-way restrictions to cyclists and Goodge Street represents a good example for introducing a cycling counter-flow lane.
We would also like to see an increase in bicycle parking facilities.
