TfL and Camden Council propose permanent locations for two bus stops in Prince of Wales Road.
- for eastbound buses, just east of the cycle gap to Queens Crescent
- for westbound buses, east of the cycle gap
Click here to see the consultation leaflet LB Camden has hidden the file and we don’t have a copy
The surprising thing is that they have sacrificed two parking bays (which they describe as well used) to make room for the stop for eastbound buses
CCC’s response
The proposed location of the stop for eastbound buses, just east of the cycle gap to Queens Crescent is very close to the cycle gap; cyclists will be forced to swing wide. Would a bus-stop be allowed this close to a normal (all traffic) junction?
The proposed location of the stop for westbound buses, takes away a really good long lead in to the ASL. But if the cycle lane markings are retained as shown in the drawing this problem can be made less serious.
We are aware that these buses are currently not very frequent but we would like you to consider moving the eastbound bus stop a bit further away from the cycle gap. It would make the situation worse to put that bus stop to the west of the cycle gap.
RESPONSE from Lisa Price
Thank you for your response Jean. We will include your response in the report.
As a brief reply to the points you’ve raised:- we initially wanted to position the bus stop west of the cycle lane so that parking would not need to be lost however, as you have also mentioned, this would be dangerous for cyclists as they would not be able to see oncoming vehicles and the vehicles wouldn’t be able to see cyclists. We therefore moved it to the east side of the cycle lane.
It is also worth mentioning that the bus will stop towards the front of the bus cage (bus bay) and the first 6m or so of bus cage is purely to ensure there is a clear run into the bus stop. This means that the distance between the back of the bus and the cycle lane will likely be approximately 9m. This is more than is often allowed where parking bays run up to side roads. It is also worth remembering that buses will only dwell in the stop for very short periods of time and other than that time the bay will be completely clear, creating better sight lines than are currently in place.
Having said all this, I do understand your point and we will see what we can do to move the bus stop any further east though this is unlikely due to the high demand for parking in Prince of Wales Road (large portions of parking have already been removed from the road to accommodate the zebra crossing and other features).
Regards,
Lisa
JD Reply on behalf of CCC
Dear Lisa
Thank you for your prompt reply.
I hadn’t thought of the point that the buses would normally stop at the front end of the bus bay, leaving the remainder free. That does put a better light on the proposal. I think that 9m is a reasonable distance from the exit from the cycle track.
And by the way, we were quite impressed that you had admitted to taking out two well used parking spaces. I hope you get away with it as I’m all in favours of improving buses at the expense of private cars!
Regards
Jean
