The Voice of Spalding and South Holland
Roads immediately around Spalding town centre could have 20mph speed limits and current on road parking replaced by cycle lanes in a bid to make walking and cycling easier in the area.
Cycling would also be made allowed in Market Place and Hall place in the proposals put forward by Lincolnshire County Council.
It’s part of the Active Travel Fund for which Lincolnshire has been awarded £799,900 to put towards schemes in the county to encourage people to cycle more.
One of these schemes is for Spalding town centre.
The county council say it’s looking create a circular loop in the centre of Spalding to encourage cycling as a method of transport.
New temporary cycle lanes will be created in the town centre, as well as reallocating space on one-way roads. Planters, traffic wands, and other quality infrastructure will be used to ensure the appropriate visual aesthetic, the council say.
The following streets are proposed to be affected:
· Market Place – Allowing cycling at all times.
· Double Street – Removal of on-street parking to create a protected cycle contraflow to Herring Lane.
· Broad Street – Removal of on-street parking to create a cycle lane.
· New Road – 20mph limit for the section between Broad Street and Swan Street with additional signage
· Hall Road – Cycling permitted to Sheep Market.
· Sheepmarket – Removal of on street parking to create additional pedestrian space.
· The Crescent – made entirely one-way westbound with removal of on-street parking for a cycling contraflow.
In addition to this a 20mph limit will be imposed across all of the areas above to improve active travel.
A county council spokesman said: “The scheme will initially be temporary for between a year and 18 months.
“After this time a decision will be made after further engagement with local residents and organisations whether to maintain it, or elements of it.”
A survey on the proposed changes is opened on Wednesday and will continue until May 16. You can complete it here.
Coun Richard Davies, executive councillor for highways at Lincolnshire County Council, said: “This cash won’t just benefit walkers and cyclists. For every journey we can make active travel a viable option for, we’ll take a car off the road, reducing congestion and pollution for all of us.
“For this second tranche of the fund, the DfT have given us more time to spend the money and implement schemes. This gave us the chance to draw up the plans with the communities they are for, and now we’re consulting on the schemes to make sure they’re appropriate and will be used.
“Last year, data from fitness app Strava revealed over 16,000 more cyclists took to Lincolnshire’s roads in 2020, compared with 2019, including thousands more cycling commuters. And, since opening the Lincoln Eastern Bypass with its separate shared-use path alongside, it has proved extremely popular with walkers, runners and cyclists. It’s clear that there is an audience and an appetite in the county for these facilities.
“As well as the eight schemes in this consultation, we’re also looking at plans for a similar project in Stamford – which we’ll share more details about once they are finalised – and we’re keen to hear your ideas for other improvements we can make to our walking and cycling network.
“Let us know where they’d like to see new cycle lanes, widened paths, or road closures and we can factor these ideas in to our future plans. You can submit their ideas to us through WidenMyPath.”
You can submit your ideas for pavement widening, new cycleways or road closures online at www.widenmypath.com. The site allows you to pinpoint on a map where you’d like to see changes.
