Newsletter for Spring 2010

Front cover

Ashford International Station wins ‘Station of the Year’ prize in the National Cycle Rail Awards in February.

‘Ashford’s focus on increasing cycle parking capacity, ensuring security and determined efforts to improve cycling and promote more sustainable travel options for commuter’s meant their bid was a clear cut winner’.

Editorial

Most people in Kent do not know what the motto of Kent means. Our motto is symbolised by the horse named Invicta. Invicta means unconquered. This is because William the Conqueror apparently did not conquer Kent in 1066. The people of Kent rose up and managed to negotiate a type of conditional surrender and kept many of their laws such as Gavelkind. Only Kent can boast of this and it happened because a handful of people refused to accept what looked like a forgone conclusion.

Has our poor horse been led away to the knacker’s yard? Have we become so feeble minded and cowardly of spirit to be cowed by the backward, short term and environmentally destructive policies that central and local government are forcing upon us?

The last thing Kent needs is more housing, more cars and more roads, but this is exactly what our authorities have in mind. Thousands of houses are to be dumped on countryside around Whitfield, thousands of houses, slip roads and a Park and Ride are planned for farmland around Canterbury. Other districts in East Kent are facing similar proposals. Our local authorities say they are powerless to object? But are they? Are we? Must all of Kent be covered in concrete and fume belching vehicles before we understand what finite means and wake up too late to the consequences of climate change?

The bicycle is the way to our new Invicta. It treads lightly on the planet. It takes up little space, is quiet, clean and efficient. If we all took to cycling, we would learn why continual growth and consumption is a bad thing. By slowing down, we would reconnect with our own neighbourhoods, nature and respect the earth’s limitations. Let us try to rekindle the Invicta in all of us by cycling. If we dare to keep Invicta as our motto, we must soar forward astride our bikes and refuse to accept stupid plans for Kent.

Emily Shirley, Editor

Chairman's Ramblings

Well, this year is promising to be an exciting year with some 25 events already confirmed and lots of interesting rides including the ever popular foray across the water to Ardres in April. June 13th sees the return of the Big Wheel of Kent Ride. Yes, it is back! We have managed to secure the Dane John Gardens in Canterbury for the finish line, so bring the family and enjoy the day!

Spokes became a member of the Climate Change Coalition last year and along with other local member organisations, we will be doing a two day event, at Canterbury’s first ever Climate Fair. So please try and come along and show your support. Behind the scenes we have been busy with various planning applications, surveys for future routes and responding to several strategies such as Kent’s Integrated Transport Strategy, Canterbury’s Local Development Framework and other consultations. Information on all of these can be found on the website.

The Spokes event stand has proven so popular in the last two years that we have decided to include dates of our future appearances in the newsletter. We will be visiting many town centres this year so please, if we are in a town near you, come and say hello and or lend a hand. For further information please go on the website and as usual please, please contact me if you can help out.

• April 24th Canterbury
• May 1st Faversham
• May 8th Folkestone, Precinct with Shepway Cycle Forum
• May 9th Ashford, Victoria Park
• May 15th / 16th Canterbury Climate Fair
• June 12th Sandwich

Steve Fawke

History and Future of the Crab & Winkle

The Crab & Winkle was opened 3rd. 1830, and was the first steam hauled regular passenger railway in the world. On Mon. 3rd. May, we will be celebrating the 180th anniversary of this historic line at the Winding pond (see Rides list).

In its heyday, transport was steam powered but now it is leg powered. Leg power is the future and this is likely to outlast the steam powered version days of the Crab and Winkle. Therefore it has a great history and an even greater future! The vision is child-centred because children are the future and they deserve the best.

“It is so obvious that it cannot be easily be seen”

Ivan Illich

The Crab & Winkle Line Trust was set up in 1997 to promote the public use of the abandoned railway for cycling, walking and for the disabled. In 2002 the Trust, started the planning process that is still ongoing, even after 8 years! Recently planning permission was granted on the route extending it to Whitstable Harbour and there remains at least one more stage… the proposed bridges over Old Bridge Road and over Teynham Road. They are now being shown to the public before planning permission is sought.

These bridges will include an upstand on the parapet to ensure that the crossing is also ’wildlife friendly’ as the new bridge will reconnect the wildlife corridor along the former railway.

The Trust, as the applicant, is extremely grateful to Sustrans, as the agent, who have been working in partnership with Kent County Council and Canterbury City Council to create this high quality route as part of a multi-million pound project which will complete a greenway and promenade along a 12 mile stretch of the Kent coast and beyond.

When, as we hope, the bridges are constructed, we will have a fully connected, quality traffic-free route for trips to work, school and tourism in a sustainable way, which will benefit health and the environment.

Come and celebrate the history and the future on Monday 3rd May at the Winding pond (midday, mid point and high point of the line). Bring a picnic, a party piece or musical instrument, but above all, bring yourself.

Robin Townsend, Secretary of the Crab & Winkle Line Trust

Big Wheel of Kent: Sunday 13th June 2010

In association with national Bike Week SPOKES East Kent Cycle Campaign will once again be running the Big Wheel of Kent cycle event. This will be a celebration of cycling that will include long and short rides for all types of cyclist and a cycling festival at Dane John Gardens in Canterbury. The event will target both experienced cyclists and those who are new to cycling or who only get on their bikes occasionally. We will demonstrate the health, economic and climate related benefits of cycling and provide an opportunity for all to discover Kent’s rich network of Sustrans cycle routes and interesting byways and hidden-away places in and around Canterbury.

There will be three types of ride. Radial (spokes) rides from other towns and cities in Kent and finishing in Canterbury, two circular rides starting and finishing in Canterbury, and two short rides in and around Canterbury. The radial rides will cover distances of between 7 and 35 miles. The circular rides will be 28 and 12 miles respectively. The short rides round Canterbury will use routes that cars can't use. The radial ride starting points will be Maidstone, Rochester, Sittingbourne and Faversham along National Cycle Route (NCR) 1, Herne Bay via Whitstable and the Crab & Winkle Way, Ramsgate and Deal via Sandwich, again along NCR1, Folkestone along Regional Route 17 and Ashford along NCR18. Riders must register at our web site below (from 1st April) – the rides are free. Maps and guides will also be available from the web site.

The cycling festival in Dane John Gardens will be a reception area for the rides. Further to that it will be a fun and interesting event for young and old, cyclists and non-cyclists. The event will run from 12noon to 5pm. There will be live music. Local cycling organisations, cycle shops, participating charities and other interested organisations will have stalls. Food and beverages will be on sale. SPOKES will be organising a Dr Bike stand and a cycle training stand, and with Sustrans will provide information about cycling and cycle routes in East Kent.

SPOKES is working on the Big Wheel of Kent with help from Sustrans, Canterbury City Council, Kent County Council and the local NHS PCT Health Promotion Team.

• We are looking for local charities who can use the ride as a sponsored ride, supporting their own charity.
• We need SPOKES members to lead or help with the rides.
• We need SPOKES members and others to work as stewards at the Dane John Gardens and general help with organisation.
• Local bike shops and other bike / health related organisations can apply for space to set up a stall or their own promotional event, for which there will be a small charge.

SPOKES will seek sponsorship from participating organisations to help cover costs.

For details: http://www.bigwheelofkent.org.uk/ or http://www.bikeweek.org.uk/

Or please contact: Ben Knox at vice-chair@spokeseastkent.org.uk or 07760 171265

Ben Knox

New highway fault reporting system

Kent Highway Services, the portion of Kent County Council that maintain the county’s roads, cycle paths, and associated infrastructure, have just launched an improved fault reporting service. It includes the ability to:

• Point out the location of faults by clicking on a map;
• Look up a street address in order to locate a fault;
• Receive a reference number in acknowledgement to each fault that you report. Fault progress can be tracked by entering the reference number at the website;

Amongst several things the site can be used to report issues with:

• Potholes;
• Signing – missing, damaged, etc.;
• Failed street lighting;
• Overgrown vegetation

Aside from being an efficient way to report faults, Kent County Council uses data about the faults that have previously been reported in order to set its budget for maintenance. We therefore highly recommend reporting any issues that are detrimentally affecting your day-to-day cycling. The website can be accessed at: http://www.kent.gov.uk/khsfaults/

Gregory Williams

Current and future cycle routes and facilities

It’s been a busy time for cycle routes. Kent County Council have recently finished consulting on proposed cycle routes in both Dover and on the Isle of Sheppey. In addition, the Crab & Winkle Way extension in Whitstable has received a further boost with the latest planning application granted and a consultation is open about the Crab & Winkle bridges. Planning applications have been placed in Ashford for a cycling / walking bridge over the M20 and a cycle route and bridges at Willesborough Dykes from Asda towards Park Farm. In Thanet there’s a consultation out for improvements to the cycle network beside Pyson’s Road. In Canterbury we look forward to the completion of the Chartham to Canterbury riverside cycle route this summer and the opening of the Horses & Goats tunnel, a traffic-free alternative way into Wincheap.

Canterbury City Council have also started to advertise proposed changes to byelaws between Hampton and Swalecliffe and Herne Bay and Beltinge to allow cycling on the promenade there, thus allowing the growing Oyster Bay Trail route, which currently runs through Reculver Country Park, to take shape.

Gregory Williams

Spokes website

Meanwhile, Spokes’s Minutes Secretary, Keith Hanna, has been busy preparing a whole new Future Routes section to the Spokes website. It contains details on the various cycle routes that have been proposed and their current progress on the path towards implementation. By its very nature it’s an ongoing project with more to add. We look forward to your feedback and other possible route ideas.

Gregory Williams

Low Cycling Budget Blues

It is clear that we will need to campaign for a larger slice of the transport budget if we want to get safe, accessible and extensive cycling measures across East Kent. Please send Spokes your council’s transport budget for 2009-2010 for publication in the next Spokes newsletter.

In the Canterbury district, the amount of money spent on cycling is minuscule compared to Park and Ride provision even though 2009-2010 has had more activity than usual on cycle path construction.

£237,000 was spent on Park and Rides and £10,000 of that, on Canterbury slip road proposals compared to £90,000 (capital budget) on the construction of the Coastal cycle route (phase 1), the Chartham to Canterbury cycle route and the Herne Bay to Canterbury cycle route. It would appear from these figures that the Canterbury Park and Rides are being heavily subsidised by the taxpayers because the income generated by them does not cover their running costs. It also illustrates that the lion's portion of funding is being spent on Canterbury to accommodate cars. Just imagine what £237,000 spent on cycling could do across the whole district?

If you live in a different council, please send Spokes your council’s transport budget for 2009-2010 for publication in the next Spokes newsletter.

The Spokes blog

Our newsletters come out once a quarter, but, as you can see in this issue, alot happens in that time. So, we’ve recently added the Spokes Blog to our website. In case you’re wondering, blog is short for web log, a diary of sorts where we write about the latest news and our thoughts. The best bit is that you can post comments back to us on anything we write about. It’s probably best explained by taking a look. Pay a visit to www.spokeseastkent.org.uk/blog

Gregory Williams

Consultations

For the longer term Spokes have made representations to Kent County Council’s draft Integrated Transport Strategy, Canterbury City Council’s Local Development Framework, and Ashford’s Cycling Strategy consultations.

Gregory Williams