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“Not everyone can leisurely take a bike”: Active travel scheme branded “most expensive cat litter tray in history” by residents threatening to move away from “nightmare” area – but cyclists say town centre will become “safer and more pleasant place”

The council has apologised for the disruption caused by the road works, but insists the scheme will transform the town centre for residents and businesses and “greatly improve the experience for pedestrians and cyclists”

A public realm improvement scheme, which aims to make Stretford town centre “greener and safer” while “greatly improving the experience of pedestrians and cyclists”, has been branded the “biggest, most expensive cat litter tray in history” by disgruntled residents and motorists, after 12 months of construction work has left them allegedly ready to “move out”.

However, local cyclists and active travel campaigners, while admitting the works have “dragged on”, say the finished scheme will make Stretford’s town centre “a more pleasant place for people to live and shop”, and have criticised “impatient” drivers who criticise projects aiming to “improve any mode of transport other than their own”.

According to Trafford Council, the public realm improvement works to Stretford’s Kingsway and Barton Road junction will make the town centre “greener and safer, greatly improving the experience for pedestrians and cyclists”, through the creation of new cycle lanes, crossing points, footpaths, and green spaces.

Forming part of Trafford Council’s long-term ambition to reduce health inequalities and address the climate crisis, the local authority’s economy and regeneration executive member Liz Patel says the scheme will transform Stretford town centre “into a great place for residents, shoppers, and businesses”.

Stretford Kingsway improvement works (Dom Cycling) 3

“These new road designs for Kingsway look fabulous and will make the road a safer experience, safer for pedestrians and cyclists and will complement the redevelopment work currently taking place at Stretford Mall,” Patel said earlier this year.

“Lots of exciting work is taking place in Stretford and the town centre will be amazing when the work is completed.” 

However, with 12 months of construction work only now nearing completion, some residents have been openly critical of the project, claiming that it is causing congestion and long delays.

Stretford improvement works (Trafford Council)

“It’s a complete waste of money. No one I talk to when I’m walking my dog on Victoria Park has a good word to say about it,” 79-year-old Dave Cowell told the Manchester Evening News this week.

“It’s the biggest, most expensive cat litter tray in history, as far as I am concerned. I’m so fed up, I’m planning to move out of Stretford. I’ve had enough.”

Meanwhile, Roya Nasiri, who runs a beauty parlour on Kingsway, said her takings have gone down by more than half since construction began on the scheme.

“It’s been a total nightmare,” she said. “This should all have been finished a long time ago. They’ve caused all this disruption, but you never see any work going on. It’s crazy.”

“I travel into Stretford Mall every day by car,” Joane Scott wrote on Facebook. “I don’t mind being stuck in traffic. It’s going to be beneficial in the long run. What I do mind, though, is while the traffic is at a standstill at the red lights for at least 10 minutes, I can’t see any men at work anywhere.”

> “The reality is cyclists are going places”: Ontario premier slammed for “put cyclists on secondary roads” stance, amid “ineffective and dangerous” plans to block bike lane projects

Meanwhile, utilising a narrative commonly deployed by opponents of cycling infrastructure, Michelle Osborne claimed that the apparent increased congestion and creation of cycle lanes in the area would only benefit “leisure” cyclists, claiming that “not everyone can leisurely take a bike”.

“It’s actually a daily battle to get through Stretford. No wonder people are always in bad moods. Trying to get to work/school is a nightmare,” she said.

“Not everyone can leisurely take a bike. This work has been going on the 18 months. No wonder people of Urmston, Stretford and Chorlton are unhappy.”

Stretford Kingsway improvement works (Dom Cycling) 2

However, in response to this criticism – which once again appears to situate cycling as the exclusive preserve of able-bodied, leisure types – Harrie Larrington-Spencer, a disabled cycling campaigner and researcher at the University of Salford who specialises in inclusive active travel, said: “I think the scheme is really nice and can’t wait till it’s finished”.

She continued: “Why are drivers so impatient when something is to improve any other mode of transport than their own?”

“We are getting there, albeit slowly,” added Sarah. “I will never understand residents who’d prefer a dual carriageway past their homes than some plants, a narrower road and nice things to look at. It makes zero sense.”

“It was an unsafe, shocking 1960s racetrack before, now look at it,” another resident wrote. “When I’ve been passing, there are people using the benches and kids playing. For that, it’s more than worth it.”

“The works have dragged on, but Stretford will become a greener, safer and more pleasant place for people to live and shop,” said local active travel campaign group Walk Ride GM.

> “Cyclists dismount” sign put up as roadworks begin on “ham-fisted” bike lane repeatedly targeted by “brazen” cone-stealing vandals, despite road being open to motor traffic

“The public realm Improvement works to Kingsway and the Barton Road junction are due to be completed in the next few weeks,” a Trafford Council spokesperson said.

“These works will make this part of Stretford greener and safer for pedestrians by replacing the barrier lined dual carriageway that divided Stretford town centre from neighbouring residential areas.

“The council would like to recognise and apologise for the disruption caused during the highway improvement, safety and resurfacing work in and around Stretford town centre.

“The works will transform the town centre into a place that better meets the needs of local residents and businesses and includes new crossing points, bus stops, lighting, footpaths, seating, planting, and trees. This new highway is being resurfaced during these final stages.

“To carry out the work, there will be some overnight road closures for five nights starting from (today) September 30. We are also working to provide permanent cycle lanes on Chester Road to provide safer travel active travel routes along the busy A56.”

> "Ham-fisted" cycle lane cones to be replaced with protected cycling infrastructure — as councillor resists urge to "individually remove each traffic cone by drop-kicking"

The creation of this protected cycling infrastructure on the A56 hasn’t been without its hiccups, however.

Last August, Trafford Council finally committed to introducing segregated cycling infrastructure on one of the city’s busiest and most talked about routes, after multiple instances of vandalism which saw the flimsy cones separating the current cycle lane from motor traffic being removed and stacked at the side of the road by upset locals, transforming the purported bike lane back into one for cars and prompting the local authority to announce that the police had been involved.

a56 pop-up lane - via onetrafford.PNG

And in July this year, Trafford Council announced that the much-maligned “ham-fisted” cones are set to make way for new, properly protected active travel infrastructure, after £2m of investment was approved – though the local authority were soon on the receiving end of criticism after ‘Cyclists Dismount’ signs were employed as construction work began on the lane, despite the road still being open to motor traffic.

After obtaining a PhD, lecturing, and hosting a history podcast at Queen’s University Belfast, Ryan joined road.cc in December 2021 and since then has kept the site’s readers and listeners informed and enthralled (well at least occasionally) on news, the live blog, and the road.cc Podcast. After boarding a wrong bus at the world championships and ruining a good pair of jeans at the cyclocross, he now serves as road.cc’s senior news writer. Before his foray into cycling journalism, he wallowed in the equally pitiless world of academia, where he wrote a book about Victorian politics and droned on about cycling and bikes to classes of bored students (while taking every chance he could get to talk about cycling in print or on the radio). He can be found riding his bike very slowly around the narrow, scenic country lanes of Co. Down.

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13 comments

Avatar
Boopop | 1 month ago
4 likes

I'm sick to the back teeth of cretins making the bad faith argument of "not everyone can cycle".

No-one in positions of power ever said in "everyone can cycle", but often you look around and get the distinct impression that someone's been shouting through a loudhaler "Everyone should drive" for the past half century.

Where have all these bastions of fair and equitable transport been all this time when we've been practically forced to drive everywhere by consecutive local governments? The truth of the matter is they don't care about "everyone", just themselves, and they only pipe up once a change is made that they deem to negatively their interests.

As the saying goes, when you're accustomed to privilege equality feels like oppression.

Avatar
chrisonabike replied to Boopop | 1 month ago
1 like

Yup - a wheen of them.  Too many to enumerate (although Eric Pickles stands out in memory).

Or as put elsewhere - "selective concern".

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chrisonabike replied to Boopop | 1 month ago
2 likes

Meanwhile where you fix the transport system so that it's safe and convenient not to use a car for some trips *:

https://bicycledutch.wordpress.com/2012/12/06/who-else-benefits-from-the...

https://bicycledutch.wordpress.com/2018/07/03/inclusive-cycling-on-tricy...

https://bicycledutch.wordpress.com/2011/10/13/safe-cycling-for-8-to-80-y...

https://bicycledutch.wordpress.com/2015/03/08/women-cycling-make-it-happen/

* The difficulty is this takes several things:
 - facilitating active travel
 - ensuring widespread, reliable, frequent, and affordable public transport
 - AND making motoring and parking just a bit less convenient.
 - (and as a result of these slowing or perhaps even reversing our trend to centralise amenities so effectively you "need" a car for shopping, going to school, going to the doctor ...)

Avatar
Oldfatgit replied to Boopop | 1 month ago
2 likes

Most of cretins are able-bodied virtue signalling tossers, who when they do think of disabled people, it's only to moan because they get to park closer to the supermarket door.

When you point out that many disabled people do cycle, the disabled person is never quite disabled enough.

I've often been accused of not being disabled because I'm on a bike ... normally silenced by me showing the 2 8" long scars that form a Y shape on my knee.

Avatar
kingleo | 1 month ago
11 likes

They never complain about new roads being built, made wider, trees being chopped down for road improvements or the cost.

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Accessibility f... | 1 month ago
8 likes

It's long been "a daily battle" to get through the A56/Kingsway/Edge Lane junction because that is the only way people from the M60 can drive to Chorlton.  The other motorway exits do not allow them to go north to Chorlton.  So everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, drives through Stretford.

Add Man Utd and Old Trafford cricket traffic into the mix and it's not good.

Want to fix traffic congestion in Stretford?  1) allow motorists to get to Chorlton from the M60.  2) move the matchday parking outside the M60 and bus supporters in and out.

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Stephankernow replied to Accessibility for all | 1 month ago
2 likes

Local knowledge and showing up how a decent idea needs proper thought and planning.
If they do not solve the two problems you state they are back to square 1.
Thank you for giving a local perspective

Avatar
brooksby | 1 month ago
16 likes

Quote:

Michelle Osborne claimed that the apparent increased congestion and creation of cycle lanes in the area would only benefit “leisure” cyclists, claiming that “not everyone can leisurely take a bike”.

“It’s actually a daily battle to get through Stretford. No wonder people are always in bad moods. Trying to get to work/school is a nightmare,” she said.

A lot of people see someone riding a bike and assume that they are (just) riding for fun.  It is so far outside their experience that they cannot conceive that someone might be riding their bike to - er - go to the shops, or - the horror - to go to work.

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mctrials23 replied to brooksby | 1 month ago
8 likes

Obviously everyone in cars, usually a single person is going about their very very serious and important business. 

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muhasib replied to brooksby | 1 month ago
2 likes

Obviously her idea of leisure is to cycle around Stretford Town Centre.

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chrisonabike | 1 month ago
1 like

Congestion and delays because "works"?  That's pretty much inevitable because most useful new infra will specifically go on the busier roads and big junctions e.g. where lots of people now drive.

(Of course this isn't the only possible way to do things - we can get a lot of benefit through modal filters and thinking in terms of separate networks for different modes [example from Amsterdam], although they may share some space / intersect at points.  And sending the cars elsewhere - motor vehicle bypasses and ring roads - is an option).

On the other hand for the last few years I've started noticing just how much of my city's streets are somewhat restricted - or indeed completely closed - and not just "overnight" either.  (One particular road I think it was towards a year).  I suspect most places of a reasonable size this is the case.  Drivers re-route.  No doubt sometimes this causes aggravation but I do wonder how much is "but cyclists".

Dots not joined - if all the other drivers (and indeed extra future drivers) didn't feel that they had to drive it would be a lot more convenient to drive...

Avatar
the little onion | 1 month ago
19 likes

Angry Man in Local Newspaper Complains About "Change"

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alexuk replied to the little onion | 1 month ago
15 likes

Hehee! *bang* on. 

Alternatives: "Resident complains they have to drive their kids to school, as the roads aren't safe to cycle. Council tries to make the roads safe to cycle: "Resident complains that change will make it hard to drive their kids to school!".

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