On Sunday 25 April, over 50 cyclists rode along the Cycle Superhighway 7 (CS7) cycle lanes from Colliers Wood to Balham and back to highlight the need for the bollards/wands on this major cycle route into London.

This article was produced by XR Wandsworth. You can publish your own articles on Nub News by using our Nub It button.

Having the bollards along the route to protect cyclists from motor vehicles has been a great improvement for safety, and cycling groups want to keep them despite the campaign to remove them by Conservative London Assembly candidate for Merton and Wandsworth, Louise Calland, and Wandsworth Conservatives.[1] A similar campaign was successful in Kensington and Chelsea.[2]

The riders were greeted in Balham by a 'Green Man Swarm'. No traffic was stopped: protesters moved into the road with banners when the 'green man' pedestrian light stopped the traffic and then moved back on to the pavement when the green man went off. The banners proclaimed: 'Think Before You Drive', 'Love Clean Air' and 'Make Cycling Safe'.

Cyclists came from XR Merton, XR Wandsworth, XR Lambeth, Friends of the Earth Merton, Green Party members and cycling campaign groups from Battersea, Wandsworth, Putney and Merton.

They carried flags and placards with messages such as '#WeLoveULEZ', 'Rebel for Life', 'Climate Action Now', 'Wake Up Wandsworth' and '#yestoCS7'.

'I definitely felt safer cycling with the wands in place on the CS7,' says Nick from Wandsworth.

'The bollards are brilliant and make my cycle to work so much safer. It has stopped cars parking on the cycle lane and driving too close to me,' says Liz from Morden.

Paul from Lower Morden said: 'It would be crazy to take away the CS7 wands! I have two young children and a partner who already fears for my safety. I cycle from Morden to Kings Cross every week to get to work. The CS7 was the most treacherous part of my journey. The wands made a significant difference to mine and my family's anxiety levels! I would rather not start driving again, as the environmental cost is huge, but taking away the CS7 wands will leave me with no choice.'

New research on cycling injury risk in London, published in December 2020,[3] shows that advisory lanes, ie lanes that cars are advised not to enter, actually increase injury odds by over 30%, while mandatory painted lanes have no effect on injury levels. By contrast, protected cycle infrastructure such as 'kerb separated' or 'stepped' lanes can reduce odds of injury by 40-65%. Although the research provides no conclusive evidence about the safety effects of bollards/wands, which provide a lower level of protection, the study also shows that if they attract more cyclists they should also generate the 'safety in numbers effect'.

LINKS

[1] •  https://www.louisecalland.co.uk/news/recent-transport-changes-around-a24

•  https://www.wandsworthconservatives.co.uk/form/a24petition

[2] •  https://londonnewsonline.co.uk/residents-speak-out-over-decision-to-remove-cycle-lane-in-kensington-and-chelsea/

[3] •  https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/v2x70/cycling-injury-risk-in-london-impacts-of-road-characteristics-and-infrastructure