This week I met with a specialist transport planning consultancy located right here in the Ward in Queen Street. They shared a grounded but powerful idea to tackle what many of us see daily: chaos between cyclists, pedestrians and delivery vehicles on Queen Street between Upper Thames Street and Cannon Street.
The Problem
The existing situation on Queen Street (specifically between Upper Thames Street and Cannon Street) currently presents a challenging environment for all users, but most notably for pedestrians. There are large number cyclists and a high-level of pedestrian footfall, most notably during the morning and evening rush hour and over lunch time periods. A substantial number of cyclists route on Queen Street, but there is no ideal crossing location for pedestrians and no clear priority for either user, which often leads to conflict and safety issues. The number of pedestrians and cyclists and the variety of directions are greater than would normally be designed for such a shared space, and this is exacerbated when goods and delivery vehicles access Queen Street from Cloak Lane. Overall there is a limited carriageway space for all users, no crossing point for pedestrians and again no obvious priority.
The Solution
Enhancements could be made to Queen Street to improve safety for all users by providing clear priority, including pedestrian crossings and a segregated cycle lane and crossing (a sparrow crossing), whilst slowing down cyclists through the use of planters, alongside clear signage for all.
For info, a sparrow crossing would be similar to the below image, but in the context of Queen Street the pedestrian element would be much wider and probably both sides of a central cycle route.
