RBKC Council have published their Notting Hill Gate consultation report. Despite many respondents calling for proper, safe, dedicated space for cycling at this atrocious and horrible junction, segregated cycle lanes have been completely refused by Cllr Coleridge and the rest of the Council. The document says that some nearside lanes will be widened ‘for cyclists’, but this could easily make things even worse for those on bikes by encouraging motorists and buses to overtake in the nearside lane rather than changing lanes in order to overtake vulnerable road users (the far safer option).

Sickeningly, given their refusal to make this key junction safe for cycling, the Council have also used images of the ghost bike for Eilidh Cairns, killed by an HGV driver while cycling through Notting Hill in 2009, as part of the consultation document.

The only result of the Council’s decision not to segregate this junction will be more Londoners, like Eilidh, being killed while they cycle through it. We are deeply disappointed. Perhaps the Council are simply seeking to acquire more ghost bikes for publicity purposes.

Here are a few submissions by residents that the Council chose to ignore, as well as our advice as the RBKC branch of the London Cycling Campaign (LCC):

Many thanks to @nuttyxander for highlighting this report and the submissions.

This is a link to the London Tonight report on the installation of the ghost bike in memory of Eilidh Cairns in 2009. Amazing how little has changed since then.

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