Councillor dubbed ‘Tarmac King’ in cycleway row
A SENIOR councillor has been dubbed the “Tarmac King of Cardiff” in a row about new “cycle superhighways” being built through leafy parts of the city.
Caro Wild is Cardiff council’s cabinet member for strategic planning and transport and has spearheaded the creation of new cycle routes as part of an active travel policyl.
But not everyone approves of what is happening, and the Bute Parks Alliance has been strongly critical of the new cycleways, claiming they intrude on areas of tranquillity that should remain unspoilt.
The group recently wrote to Cllr Wild, complaining about plans for a cycle superhighway they believe would desecrate 100 acres of woodland and meadow in north Cardiff known as Nant Fawr.
In the letter the group stated: “The Friends of Nant Fawr are rightly distraught after seeing the council’s active travel plans which predictably include the development of another very wide, segregated and lit tarmacked cycle superhighway right through both these rural areas.”
They went on to ask whether any consultation had taken place with objectors to the plan, adding: “Will the proposed routes adopt the same absurdly wide road dimensions, lit, tarmacked and segregated as recently imposed on cycle routes through Sophia Gardens and Pontcanna Fields, thereby diminishing precious green spaces there and changing the whole nature and visual quality of those spaces?
“From experience most of the present accidents occurring on pathways in Bute Parks are caused by inconsiderate, selfish commuter cyclists going too fast. Wide immaculately surfaced cycleways simply encourage cyclists to speed in order to get from A to B in the fastest possible time.
“It’s ironic that the council is proposing to introduce 20mph speed limits on traffic in large areas of the city while at the same time introducing perfectly surfaced and very wide cycleways in the parks, thus encouraging commuter cyclists to go much faster potentially endangering other park users especially young children and the elderly.”
They end their letter: “If [cycleways] have to run through rural areas they should be very discreet, unobtrusive and respectful of the bio-diverse nature of those areas.”
Cllr Wild responded: “I have met the Friends of Nant Fawr recently. We discussed their concerns, and I promised their views would be taken on board as part of the consultation we are undertaking.
“But we make no apologies for our ambitious work to implement safe routes for people to cycle.”