Cyclists warn route redesign will 'endanger children's lives'

> Cycle lanes on High Street, Gosforth, Newcastle

- DANIEL HOLLAND Local Democracy Reporter daniel [e-mail]

COUNCIL plans to scrap cycle lanes on a busy Newcastle high street have sparked anger from campaigners. Newcastle City Council wants to remove dedicated cycling routes on Gosforth High Street, in an effort to speed up bus journeys.

There has been a long-running saga surrounding the future of the busy street, going back to when long rows of bollards were first installed in 2020 to create extra space for bikes and pedestrians during the Covid pandemic.

‘Those were removed in 2023 and replaced by a bus lane, which opponents have claimed made the street more dangerous, and cyclists have now been left furious at another planned redesign which they fear would “endanger the lives of children”.

Latest proposals from the council include the removal of the protected northbound cycle lane between Salters Road and Regent Farm Road, which is separated from road traffic by bolt-down kerbs, and a painted southbound cycle lane from Church Road to Ivy Road.

Transport chiefs want to add three new sections of northbound bus lane to the Great North Road - from Forsyth Road to Blue House roundabout, from Salters Road to Regent Farm Road, and Brunton Lane to Rotary Way - funded through Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) cash allocated by mayor Kim McGuinness.

Their designs would also involve the removal of a pedestrian traffic island between The Grove and Elmfield Road, to be replaced by a new puffin crossing between the Poplars and Graham Park Road. Critics argue that the move will prioritise traffic travelling through Gosforth over the local community.