Minutes of Camden Cycling Campaign Meeting on 9th January 2006
Present: James Brander, Stefano Casalotti (chair), John Chamberlain, Jean Dollimore Meade McCloughan (minutes), Helen Vecht, Colin Murphy, Dominic Tinley, Paul Braithwaite, Martin Fahey and Anne Boston.
Apologies: Jane Boardman, George Coulouris and Daniel Glaser.
Arrangements for forthcoming CCC meetings
• The February meeting in Primrose Hill will be well-publicized by the Community Association in whose building it is taking place.
• Dominic volunteered to leaflet bicycles in the Primrose Hill area with publicity about this meeting – Jean to e-mail the details to him so that he can draw up a little flyer. (James mentioned the profusion of bicycles at 30 Fitzroy Road.)
• The AGM will be help in April; Helen is including notice of it in the newsletter she is currently putting together (to be mailed with the February/March London Cyclist). [Notice should also go in the ‘Borough News’ section of London Cyclist.]
• Bob Spellar has said that we don’t need to book Hampstead Parochial School (where we intend to hold our June meeting) until closer the time. We need to check with him about what we do with bikes when we get there – will probably need to lock the gates during the meeting. Stefano to keep in touch with Bob and make the booking in due course.
Speakers
• The Council has confirmed that it will be sending someone to speak at the February meeting about consultations, but we don’t know whom yet.
• Jean has recently approached Paige Mitchell for the April meeting (no reply yet); if she can’t make the April meeting, we should try and book her for a subsequent meeting.
• Ken Worpole: Jean to ask James to approach him if Paige Mitchell can’t do April.
• For subsequent meetings: Jean to ask Ben Hamilton Bailey, whom she met at the Nottingham conference; also, with help from James, the Kensington & Chelsea engineer behind the Exhibition Road scheme.
• Interest was expressed in having speakers back again, in particular John Adams (or. if not him, someone else he could recommend).
• Other names mentioned: Matt Seaton (Guardian journalist); Lynn Sloman (Cycling England) – James to approach; Jon Snow (on how cycling represented in the media?); Richard Ballantyne; Christine Mabey (Living Streets) possibily for later in the year.
• The idea of an annual CCC lecture, to be held in the Council Chamber, was mooted. Jon Snow would be good for this, but we would have to be sure that we could enough big name speakers to keep this going.
Maintenance workshops
• Now arranged as at http://www.camdencyclists.org.uk/rides/velorution0306 .
• There will be publicity in both the next newsletter and the ‘Maintenance Workshops’ section of the next London Cyclist.
• The workshops actually take place in Westminster, and so we should notify Westminster Cyclists.
• Maximum number attendees: 12, maybe 15 (too many?).
• A syllabus is being prepared by Velorution – Jean should have this by early February and will put it on the website.
• Booking: important to get people to book (SIX so far confirmed by email; two others since have indicated intention to attend).
• Charge: £7 per session (£2 unwaged) – this needs to be made clear on the website.
• What about parts used on the course – how will these be paid for? Stefano to check with Velorution.
• There needs to be a CCC representative present on each occasion to take the fees, generally organize things and, if possible, undertake immediate ‘Dr Biking’ for those cycles which require it. Jean can do the March session; John will do either April or May if he’s around; James should also be able to do one; Martin could do April.
• Martin mentioned the bike workshop facility at the Crisis Centre on Commercial Street, funded by TfL. This operates on a ‘drop-in’ basis, which is what James originally had in mind for our workshops.
London Borough of Camden Council Elections
• All the council seats are up for re-election in May; there will be about 80 candidates.
• Jean has drawn up a draft eight-point CCC manifesto, adapting the one used for the GLA elections.
• Various modest amendments to this draft were agreed, such that it now reads:
– introduce a default 20 mph speed limit throughout Camden;
– increase the funding for cycle training so that every child will receive training in both primary and secondary school; provide free training for any adult that asks for it;
– promote the cycle awareness seminars for traffic engineering officers and enhance it by adding cycle training for all of them;
– increase the funding for cycle-specific traffic management schemes and the promotion of cycling, cycle parking and local cycle infrastructure;
– promote more effective enforcement of traffic regulations;
– fully integrate cycling into all transport objectives;
– completion of all the LCN+ routes in Camden to a high standard and on time;
– promote the introduction of more Clear Zones within the Clear Zone Area in the south of the borough;
– promote the regular use of pedal cycles by police officers.
• Jean to submit the manifesto to the local political parties’ policy teams and invite them to endorse it and include it in their own manifestos.
• We will also encourage CCC members to attend hustings in their wards and use the manifesto to question candidates. To this end, we may draw up some example questions. Information could be included in the April/May newsletter (deadline mid-March for the early April LC mail-out).
• It was also suggested that we could write to the incumbent councillors, most of whom are seeking re-election. Their contact details are available via the Council website.
Regents Park
• Stefano reported that the new Superintendent of the Royal Parks (including Regent’s Park) had made positive sounding noises about cycling – saying there needed to be a sensible compromise, even mentioning commuting cycling.
• Tom at LCC has set up a new Parks group, which Stefano is on.
• Stefano to write to the new Superintendent and open communications.
• There has been mention in various places of a cycle route across Primrose Hill.
2012 Olympics
• Stefano reported that LCC has now set up an Olympics group to promote cycling in the infrastructure developments. At present, this meets every other month and generates some e-mail discussion. It would be good to have a CCC representative on this. John said he would be willing to give it a go if no-one else volunteered. Stefano to invite volunteers via the newsgroup [and put it to the AGM?].
Mail-out to members
• James pointed out that there were a number of issues about which we needed to communicate with our members – the Council elections, the upcoming AGM, the proposed new constitution – and it would be a good idea to have a mail-out to all members, ideally in early March.
• Address labels for our members can be got from LCC; we would have to pay for envelopes and postage – cost: postage £126 + C5 envelopes £30?
• This sort of mail-out is something we should try to do once/twice a year.
Any other business
• Bike Week will be 17th – 25th June 2006.
• Camden Green Fair: 4th June, Regent’s Park; Stefano is in discussions already.
• Ola Lawal, Camden’s Cycle Training Officer, has said he intends to include material about CCC on the forms people fill in to book cycle training.
• Colin Murphy reported that he is in touch with the recently revived Brent Borough Group and plans to go to its next meeting (9th February).
• Jean to check with the new LCC membership officer about receiving notification of new members, so that we can welcome them and invite them to attend meetings, join newsgroup, etc.
• Stefano reported that plans still being developed to give the LCC Borough Co-ordinators Group (and thereby the Borough Groups) more say within LCC.
• Meade reminded the committee that he had now amended the draft new constitution –http://www.camdencyclists.org.uk/Members/meademccloughan/constitution
