Each month, we are emailing a bulletin to everyone who has signed up on this site. Below is the mailout that we sent at the end of December. If you like it, please sign up on our Get Involved section - you will be showing your support for our work and you will receive our free monthly bulletins a month before they appear here. Have a look at our first bulletin to find out more about how RPC was formed and why we are progressing the idea of reducing traffic in the park by charging for shortcut journeys.
SETT-ING A QUICK PACE
It’s a Christmas miracle! After a survey revealed that burrowing badgers had done untold damage below ground, the subsequent installation of an underground fence around their sett has been completed early, which means the road from Robin Hood Roundabout to Beverley Brook is now reopened. Many thanks to The Royal Parks and their contractors for getting the first phase finished in double-quick time - and thank you to all the cyclists who avoided the site while the works took place. The second phase, which is to reconstruct the ground beneath the road and remove all cavities, is scheduled to start on Monday 14 January and will take two weeks, so look out for the signs confirming the dates. As before, you should cycle on alternative routes along the Tamsin Trail or the roads through the middle of the park. And remember - the area is a working site, so no tip-toeing around the barriers!
KICK-OFF FOR RANGERS
The number of people coming to the park has been steadily growing for years - and now a recruitment scheme has begun to create a team of community rangers who will make visitors’ experience even better. They will be on hand to provide information about the park, including its wildlife, heritage and management. Volunteers will be vetted, given a uniform and trained by The Royal Parks who have already appointed a ranger manager and who will be based at Holly Lodge. There will also be rangers in Bushy Park. All rangers will encourage best behaviour and welcome cyclists - so give them a wave if you see them when they start to appear during Easter next year. Or if you fancy becoming a ranger yourself, you can fill out an application form. Let us know how you get on!
SITE UPDATE
After the Christmas break we will be putting up information about the committees and meetings we attend, opening and closing times for the park, and other useful bits and pieces for the year ahead. Most have appeared as items in our bulletins, but it will be useful for all of you to have them in one place for easy reference in the future. In the meantime, have a look at our brilliant sponsors on our website and click the links to find out more about them. They enable us to pay our modest expenses, and we thank them for backing us this past year.
SEE YOU NEXT MONTH
That’s all for this bulletin. Have a wonderful Christmas and New Year, and most importantly, enjoy your riding. As ever, please share this newsletter with your cycling friends - and if they like what they read, encourage them to sign up to our mailing list too.
All the best,
Richmond Park Cyclists
website: richmondparkcyclists.org
twitter: twitter.com/richmondpkcycle
facebook: facebook.com/richmondparkcyclists