Proposed cycle lane could increase congestion 800pc

A CYCLE lane planned for one of London’s busiest roundabouts will cause an 800 per cent increase in traffic congestion, an independent report has claimed.

Holland Park Traders Association (HPTA) has commissioned transport experts to analyse proposals drawn up by Transport for London (TfL) to transform a roundabout in West London.

TfL intends to create a “high-quality cycleway with improvements for pedestrians” on the roundabout between Shepherd’s Bush Green and Holland Park Avenue amid claims it is one of the most dangerous junctions in the capital.

The works will involve turning some lanes currently used for vehicles into “new protected” two-way cycle lanes with signals halting traffic to allow cyclists to cross the roundabout. Critics of the scheme claim it will slow bus times and create gridlock.

Independent analysis found the proposed cycle lane will “lead to significantly longer traffic delays”, “increased traffic displacement” on to residential streets, an “increased risk of accidents”, as well as “significant bus delays” and less passing trade for the shops on the famous tree-lined Holland Park Avenue.

TfL insists that it needs to make the changes after 59 people, including 14 cyclists and pedestrians, were injured in collisions there in the three years to last May. But the study questioned the accident data, claiming only one cyclist was injured during that period, while no pedestrians were hurt at all.

The transport analyst’s modelling found that the morning rush hour – from 8am to 9am – would see the current queue of 19 vehicles on Holland Park Avenue soar to 170 cars, lorries and buses, a 795 per cent increase leading to a 12-minute wait for motorists idling in gridlock. During that same hour, the current 24 vehicles that get stuck in traffic would rise to 78, a 225 per cent increase leading to an average five-minute wait. The afternoon rush hour – from 6pm to 7pm – would experience a 159 per cent increase and average 11-minute wait in traffic as the current 49 vehicles stuck in traffic is predicted to rise to 127 on Holland Park Road.

More than 3,000 residents have signed a petition set up by Felicity Buchan, the Tory MP for Kensington, opposing the plans.

A spokesman for HPTA said: “This £6.3 million scheme is once again an example of TfL’s poorly researched and poorly designed schemes that are not fit for purpose. This scheme will close the local independent shops that local residents have tried so hard to protect these past decades.”