RPC Bulletin #26, March 2020

Chris Campbell

March 3, 2020

RPC Bulletin #25, February 2020

Chris Campbell

March 3, 2020

CLOSED ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND

Welcome, chums, to our first monthly bulletin of 2020 - and we kick off with a headline that may seem cryptic but is actually cleverly designed to help you remember that the gates to Richmond Park will be CLOSED at night from the THIRD of February. Geddit?!

The reason for the closure is, of course, the bi-annual deer cull which takes approximately six weeks to complete, during which time you will not be able to ride your bike through the park from 8pm to 7.30am. Long-time subscribers will know that The Royal Parks never gives an exact date for when it will complete the cull because the number of deer that need to be despatched will depend on the overall health of the herd, so keep an eye out for the gates reopening some time in mid-March.

The two dates for this year’s culls are now up on our website, along with the schedule for four other road closures during the following 12 months. Take a look now and pop ’em in your diary. We will also remind you in our bulletins closer to the time of each event.

RIDELONDON CALLING

One of the events that necessitates road closures is the Prudential RideLondon, which has been routed through Richmond Park since its inception eight years ago. But many will be concerned that this August may be the final time the annual cycling institution comes to our neck of the woods.

Surrey County Council is engaging in a consultation to find out how residents feel about the event. Obviously, some will say they are put out by the disruption, although thousands of others turn out to cheer on amateur cyclists like yourself who get to enjoy riding on traffic-free roads in London and Surrey for a day - and let’s not forget its participants raise more than £12million for charities.

So if you want to keep the Pru Ride in Surrey, please fill out the survey. You have until 16 February to make your voice heard!

TOILET TROUBLE

Those of you who follow us on social media will know that we briefly paused our Christmas break to post an alert about two bikes being nicked from outside the toilets near Roehampton Gate, along with one from the cycle hire shop and another somewhere near Colicci. We also posted a photo of a young lad who was said to be acting suspiciously in the vicinity (we should stress, though, that no one witnessed him committing a crime.)

Subsequent to these four bicycles being stolen, the cycle hire shop has reported that thieves have filched around a dozen of its bikes (although none have been taken since November).

But we are pleased to report that the police have managed to nab a couple of toerags on stolen bicycles. The pair tried to offload the two bikes to a third person but failed and rode off towards the centre of the park where they were apprehended. Caught red-handed - lovely work, officers, and thank you for your efforts!

Once again, if you see anything suspicious, call 101 and ask for the Royal Parks Command unit, or call 999 if it is an emergency. We recommend that you carry a small portable lock so your pride and joy isn’t targeted, and if you don’t have one, remember that Colicci will loan you one for a cash deposit of £5.

WATER NICE GESTURE

Speaking of Colicci, the Roehampton Gate cafe has installed a small water basin and tap for you to fill up your bidons which you may not know about if you only use the external serving hatch. Pop inside, have a look to your right and you should see it. A nice gesture from our Italian pals – grazie mille!

TWO GOOD

Our extended hiatus over Christmas and New Year has left us with a bulging in-tray. Rest assured that we have resumed our efforts to set up a meeting with the police to explore the figures for speeding in the park, and we will attempt to find out why The Royal Parks proposes a timeline of between five and seven-and-a-half years for a review of road use in Richmond Park – a timescale that appears to be at odds with the gaining momentum of the Movement Strategy.

The proposed draft of the strategy, which is likely to improve cycling in the park, is due soon. Those of you who took part in the first phase of the consultation will probably receive an email in the next few weeks seeking your further views as phase two commences. We will let you know ours in the next bulletin.

SEE YOU NEXT MONTH...

Thank you for allowing us to pop into your inbox. As ever, please share our newsletter with your cycling friends – and if they like what they read, encourage them to sign up to our mailing list too. The more subscribers we have, the bigger our voice.

All the best,

Richmond Park Cyclists

Chris Campbell

January 27, 2020

RPC Bulletin #24, December 2019

Chris Campbell

January 27, 2020

Each month, we email a bulletin to everyone who has signed up on this site. Below is the mailout that we sent in December 2019. 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.

BRAND NEWS

Shove over, Kylie Jenner! Get out the way, Ariana Grande! You gotta go, Cristiano Ronaldo! There’s a new influencer in town - and the name of this upstart brand is Richmond Park Cyclists!

The official confirmation is there in black and white on page 14 of The Royal Parks’ ten-year Management Plan, where the organisation to which you proudly subscribe is acknowledged as one of the five stakeholder groups that are “influences” on how Richmond Park is managed. Cheers, TRP!

Hopefully, this opening item comes across as it is intended: a little pat on our backs, rather than an orgy of self-congratulation. In a year which has seen this busy little bulletin report on the progress of the Movement Strategy, the now-abated spate of bike thefts by Colicci, Richmond councillors’ move to have a borough-wide 20mph limit plus a whole lot more, it is satisfying to achieve a small, official recognition of our efforts from the people who run the park. So thank you to all the cycling groups we communicate with, our sponsors - and, of course, chiefly yourselves for subscribing.

We are taking a break for Christmas, so this bumper edition will have to tide you over until the end of January. Without further ado, here is an explanation of the whopping 154-page Management Plan, crunched down to four cycling-related tidbits...

SOUNDS LIKE A PLAN

The Royal Parks’ Management Plan sets out how the challenges of increased visitor numbers and the stewardship of the park’s environment will be met from now until 2029. Cycling, public transport and walking will remain the favoured and prioritised means of accessing the park.

You can read the document for yourself here. Before you dive in, here are the key elements related to cycling that we have managed to locate:

Visitor numbers have doubled in a decade and are up four-fold compared to 25 years ago. TRP notes that on “sunny weekends and evenings [...] the park feels it is becoming overrun” (p15). It will “no longer promote ever-increasing levels of access without being aware of the negative consequences” and aims to “stabilise visitor numbers at around 2018 levels” (p129).

There has been an “increase in tensions between all users” caused by the “volume of users and through traffic” (p55). This has led to “increasing reports of conflicts between road users” (p29).

The Movement Strategy to determine “appropriate use of [the] road and cycling network” in Richmond Park is mentioned on p143 on a list of 41 key projects. The strategy, which is widely expected to lead to improvements for cycling in the park, is defined as a long-term project in the plan: the graphic at the end of its entry indicates it will be implemented in five years’ time and will take two-and-a-half years to complete. But as our regular subscribers already know, the first phase of The Royal Parks’ consultation process for all its green spaces has already ended and evidence-based proposals should be finalised and adopted in Richmond Park in the next couple of months. Does this mean that the much longer timescale in the plan is out of date, or that a small number of changes will be coming soon, with the rest delivered in a few years’ time? No doubt TRP will clarify this in the next round of consultation.

Amazingly, the cafe at Roehampton Gate - an institution for almost everyone who rides in Richmond Park - was introduced in 2004 only as a temporary facility! TRP says it now “sits uneasily in the centre of the car park”. There are plans to “reroute the road” around the car park, “reduce the amount of tarmac, create more parkland and offer park access from the Roehampton estate”. The only snag? It needs to find “a funding source” first (p87).

The Management Plan is a mine of information about the park, so have a read - and let us know if you have spotted anything interesting that we may have missed.

POLL POSITION

All of you who took part in the Movement Strategy’s online poll will have received some great news in your inbox earlier this month as TRP’s transport and access boss Mat Bonomi revealed what the 6,956 respondents have said (and if you weren’t one of them, you can have a gander at the figures here).

Overall, 78 per cent agreed TRP should “discourage the through-movement of commuting motor vehicles”. Among those who said they were cyclists, 87 per cent supported the reduction of through-traffic. The need for additional cycling infrastructure “featured heavily” among the 1,800 comments received.

The results of the survey cover all eight of The Royal Parks’ green spaces, although the Standard reported that driving in Richmond Park “sparked the biggest response”. Data specific to Richmond Park should be available when TRP publishes its draft strategy early next year, and there will be further consultation before the strategy is adopted.

As long-standing subscribers know, we have been exploring the concept of Intelligent Road Charging with stakeholders for some time. So far, a charge for shortcut journeys through the park with some possible exemptions is the only potential solution that allows the gates to stay open (thereby keeping the park accessible to all user groups) and does not require heavy infrastructure. And we are encouraged by Mat’s comments to the Standard: “The survey is just one piece of the decision-making matrix but it provides us with a really great starting point and a great mandate to be a little more courageous and think outside the box.”

But there is still some way to go before it is properly considered. We attended the recent Stakeholders’ Breakfast, and some of those present were concerned that the next phase of consultation would include IRC. Mat assured them that TRP will carefully consider any proposal that impacts traffic movement outside the park. We are confident that the advantages of IRC will become apparent - and, of course, we will let you know about any further developments next year.

FEELING THE PINCH

We have written to The Royal Parks about eroded parts of the Tamsin Trail following feedback from our subscribers. The original path significantly narrows in parts, making it effectively one-way. In this situation, cyclists would normally give way to pedestrians but confusion with oncoming users at pinch points is a safety risk. We will let you know what TRP has to say about a programme of repairs and restoration.

PARK AND DONATE

Richmond Park Cyclists enjoys good relations with The Royal Parks. If you value the charity’s work in maintaining the environment in which you cycle and also allowing us to sit on the meetings it has with stakeholders, why not show your appreciation by making a donation? TRP has installed card machines close to the car parks where you can donate any amount of your choosing. The Government’s grant to TRP will be reduced to a small fraction of its current amount as the organisation has become a registered charity, so anything you donate would make a difference.

PLENTY IN ’20

By the time the next bulletin is out, we hope to have set up a meeting with the police to find out why the number of motorists pulled over for speeding in the park (as revealed in last month’s update) appear to be quite low. Looking ahead to the long-term, we are exploring the possibility of running a car-free day in the park next year, getting a noticeboard put up outside Colicci dedicated to cycling news relevant to the park, and finding the funding to install a track pump outside the cafe. As ever, please let us know about any ideas you have to make Richmond Park an even better place to ride your bike in 2020.

TIME TO PLAY

We end this year with a happy postscript concerning the attempt to alleviate traffic outside Kingston Gate by making some of the nearby roads one-way. As reported in April’s bulletin, the idea was voted down by residents - but the section of King’s Road from the gate to Park Road was closed off on Friday for children to play in.

A local dad out with his kids told us it is part of Kingston Council’s play streets initiative. The section of road is shut on the last Friday of the month between 3.30pm and 6pm, so please bear this in mind if you are going into the park or leaving it around this time. And if you like the idea, stop to tell the parents like we did!

SEE YOU NEXT YEAR...

Thank you for allowing us to pop into your inbox. As ever, please share our newsletter with your cycling friends - and if they like what they read, encourage them to sign up to our mailing list too. The more subscribers we have, the bigger our voice. The next bulletin will be out at the end of January.

Have a great Christmas and New Year!

Richmond Park Cyclists

Chris Campbell

January 27, 2020

RPC Bulletin #23, November 2019

Chris Campbell

January 27, 2020

Each month, we email a bulletin to everyone who has signed up on this site. Below is the mailout that we sent in November 2019. 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.

REMEMBER, REMEMBER…

...the FOURTH of November! This Monday evening - the one before Bonfire Night - there will be more loud bangs than a firework display as the biannual deer cull commences. It lasts approximately six weeks, during which time the gates will be locked in rotation from 8pm every evening and opened at 7:30am.

The Royal Parks carries out the culls to control the number of deer. The amount that needs to be culled varies according to the health of the herd, so TRP does not give exact dates for when it will finish. In any case, you won’t be able to ride through the park at night while the cull is taking place, so use an alternative route. It’s for your own safety!

POLICE TARGETS

The Richmond Park Police Panel decides on policing priorities for the following three months - and we are pleased to say that we accepted its invitation to make a special presentation at the latest quarterly meeting which took place three weeks ago.

We explained to the police, local councillors, The Royal Parks and various stakeholders how the profile of visitors who ride bikes in the park should be as varied as the general population - but at the moment there is a smaller presence of women, children and other groups which research shows tend to feel more apprehensive on the open road than men.

We outlined the main safety concerns of cycling in the park: close passing, large vehicles and motorists pulling out or manoeuvering without due care. We also brought up Intelligent Road Charging - the idea of reducing the number of shortcut journeys by data capturing vehicles’ number plates as they enter and leave. The attendees were already familiar with the concept from RPC’s representations at previous meetings (and many subscribers will already know IRC was part of our submission to the Movement Strategy, the first stage of which The Royal Parks is still in the process of concluding).

Sadly, our proposal of covert policing to catch dangerous and careless road users, as well as the presence of trade vehicles, was ruled out on grounds of resourcing. Duty officers cover both Bushy and Richmond parks, and with up to only two pairs patrolling at once, each has to be able to get to the other park for an emergency. Policing Richmond Park in plain clothes in an unmarked car would not be possible as they would be expected to head quickly to a potentially dangerous situation in uniform and in a marked vehicle.

At each meeting, the attendees vote for three priorities that the police will target during the quarter-year. This time the areas decided on were dogs off leads, deer harassment and the theft of autumn fruit. All relevant issues for a national nature reserve - but while we appreciate the chance to make a presentation to the panel, we also look forward to making sure cycling-related issues are prioritised by the police in future.

SPEED CHECK

One area that could be a priority is speeding. Prior to the panel meeting, the Royal Parks’ police distributed figures to attendees which recorded how many motorists and cyclists were stopped for exceeding the 20mph limit from July to September, and what action was taken. The figures are encouraging, although they throw up some interesting questions. (We should stress that it may turn out that we have made some incorrect assumptions, so we will speak to the police in the coming weeks and include any clarifications or corrections from them in a subsequent bulletin.)

Traffic Offence Reports, which can result in a fine or another action, were issued to 41 drivers; there were none for cyclists. Motorists who were judged to have breached park regulations totalled 48, while for cyclists it was five. Obviously, a car can typically do much more harm than a bike, so these figures reflect a proportionate approach to speeding which many cyclists would welcome.

But when it comes to verbal warnings, there were a far greater number dished out to cyclists than motorists each month - between two and six times more. Why should this be?

Many people ride their bikes together with other cyclists in the park, and stopping a speeding group reaps more verbal warnings than pulling over an individual driver. And there are some cyclists who can be somewhat enthusiastic with their speed when descending, sometimes without realising it, so an eagle-eyed policeman or two waiting at the foot of a hill could have a busy day.

But speeding in a car is much easier to do - and speaking as motorists ourselves, we have always noticed that some drivers regularly exceed the speed limit as a matter of course. Believe it or not, every week we drive through the park with the speedometer’s needle fixed resolutely at 20, and on almost every occasion a car overtakes and maintains its speed at 30mph or more.

Surely that frequency suggests the number of motorists who receive verbal warnings should be greater than those given to cyclists - who, even at their fittest, cannot typically exceed 20mph for a sustained period of time. And would not reducing speeding make the park more welcoming for vulnerable users? Let us know what you think and we’ll reflect your views at the next panel meeting.

HARD AT WORK

You have probably already enjoyed cycling on the new road surface that has been laid between Robin Hood and Roehampton Gates or noticed the reinstated section of the roadway edge near Richmond Gate - so we would like to thank The Royal Parks and its industrious workmen for carrying out the works so promptly. And on the subject of hard workers, spare a thought for TRP’s transport chief Mat Bonomi, who is still slogging through the thousands of responses to the Movement Strategy survey, which should bring improvements to cycling in Richmond Park. Keep an eye out for more news soon - either in our next bulletin or our social media channels.

TIME FOR BREAKFAST

Finally, a date for your diaries - Wednesday 15th November. That’s when the next Stakeholders’ Breakfast Meeting is taking place, and Richmond Park Cyclists will once again be attending on your behalf. Taking a broader management perspective that the Police Panel, the biannual event is The Royal Parks’ opportunity to explain what it is doing to maintain and enhance the visitor experience whilst safeguarding the park’s environment for future generations. Please let us know what you would like us to discuss by emailing richmondparkcyclists@gmail.com.

SEE YOU NEXT MONTH...

All the best,

Richmond Park Cyclists

Chris Campbell

October 31, 2019

RPC Bulletin #22, October 2019

Chris Campbell

October 31, 2019

Each month, we email a bulletin to everyone who has signed up on this site. Below is the mailout that we sent in October 2019. 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.

UN-FOLDING DRAMA

Eagle-eyed coffee-sippers may have spotted a notice about a stolen folding bike stuck in the window of Colicci and feared that yet another theft has taken place outside the Roehampton Gate cafe - but it turns out this latest incident, which took place on September 12th, is entirely separate from the six-week spate of bicycle nabbings that we reported ended back in March. This new theft took place somewhere along the roadway from Sheen Cross to Pen Ponds, and we hear that it was taken in somewhat peculiar circumstances after the owner stopped to speak to another cyclist. The bike is an electric-powered six-speed Brompton with a cobalt blue frame and M-shaped handlebars. Think you’ve seen it? Give the police a bell on 101, quoting crime reference number 0709984/19.

A-DEER-ANCE TO SAFETY

It’s rutting season for the deer - which means our ungulate chums are frisky in more ways than one. The antlered scamps have been hoofing it pretty quickly across the roads and will continue to do so for the next few weeks, so please keep an eye out for them whenever you are riding in the park. Look to the side as well as up the road, taking special care during darkness - and remember they can be difficult to spot even in daylight as they are camouflaged by their surroundings. Be good to our deer friends, everyone!

CONTROL PANEL

We are going to be representing your interests at the latest Richmond Park Police Panel on Wednesday 9th October. Longtime subscribers will know that this regular event is a get-together of representatives from the police, local councillors, stakeholders and The Royal Parks. With roads and trails busy at times, we help non-cycling representatives appreciate that enforcement against those who flaunt the rules of the road should be proportionate to the danger they pose. Reply to this email with any particular cycling-related concerns that you would like us to bring up.

GOING THROUGH A LONG PATCH

More news from The Royal Parks about its ongoing programme of road maintenance. The patch repairs between Robin Hood roundabout to Pen Ponds car park which we told you about last month have been done but the tar-and-chip resurfacing has been postponed until the warm weather returns next summer.

Meanwhile, the road between Sheen Cross and Richmond Gate will be closed on Monday 7th and Tuesday 8th October for the reinstatement of part of the roadway edge which has begun to fall into the grass verge. Then the road between Robin Hood Gate and Roehampton Gate will be closed for repairs on Wednesday 9th to Friday 11th.

In both cases, please use the bike paths that run parallel to the roads and be aware that the contractors have an obligation to keep you off the site of the repairs. It’s for your own safety!

SEE YOU NEXT MONTH...

Thank you for allowing us to pop into your inbox. Next month we hope to have news of The Royal Parks’ survey that will form the basis of its bid to reduce traffic in the park. In the meantime, keep an eye out on our social media channels for any developments. And, as ever, please share our newsletter with your cycling friends - and if they like what they read, encourage them to sign up to our mailing list too. The more subscribers we have, the bigger our voice.

All the best,

Richmond Park Cyclists

Chris Campbell

October 31, 2019

RPC Bulletin #21, September 2019

Chris Campbell

October 31, 2019

DU TO ARRIVE

It’s the world’s largest cycling sandwich - two runs with a bike ride in between - and once again it is coming to Richmond Park. The annual London Duathlon is being held next Sunday (8th September), which means that the gates and roads will be closed all day - although you can still enter the park through the pedestrian gates and ride along the Tamsin Trail as well as the other cycle paths.

The event is scheduled to finish at 6pm, but the organisers have asked cyclists to remain off the road while their contractors carry out deconstruction and clear-up of the site.

Best of luck to everyone taking part - especially to any of our lovely subscribers who are putting on their running shoes. Let us know how you get on!

ROUNDABOUT NOW

A quick reminder about the roadworks that we first mentioned in last month’s bulletin. Patch repairs on the stretch of tarmac from Robin Hood roundabout to Pen Ponds car park are due to start on Monday 9th September. It will be followed by spray tar and chip resurfacing. The timetable could be affected by the weather, but the contractors hope to finish in one week. Do keep an eye out for signs.

SOUNDS BAD

Last month we told you how Heathrow wants to send planes over Richmond Park every 75 seconds, with or without a third runway, which would be the first shake-up of its flight paths in 50 years and create noise that would threaten the tranquility all of us enjoy when riding our bikes. The Friends of Richmond Park, which is spearheading the campaign against the moves, has now sifted through 8,900 pages of documents to provide a summary along with suggestions of what you could say if you choose to respond to the public consultation before it ends on September 13th. Please have a look at FRP’s latest update here and its example wording for your email to Heathrow.

MOVING CLOSER

Finally, a small reminder that the next stage of The Royal Parks’ consultation on its Movement Strategy - which is likely to lead to a significant reduction of motor traffic in Richmond Park - is due within a matter of weeks. More than 7,000 people responded to the initial survey which TRP will share in a detailed summary. Hopefully we will have more news in our next bulletin - so please share this email with any of your cycling buddies who you think may be interested in subscribing.

SEE YOU NEXT MONTH...

All the best,

Richmond Park Cyclists

Chris Campbell

October 31, 2019

RPC Bulletin #20, August 2019

Chris Campbell

October 31, 2019

DOWN TO MONKEY BUSINESS

A big thank-you to everyone who filled in The Royal Parks’ survey for its public consultation, which we are confident will bring about positive changes for everyone who rides a bike in Richmond Park. And a tip of the hat to our chums and co-sponsors Look Mum No Hands! who did a fantastic job helping us spread the word on social media in the run-up to the July 14 deadline. Cheers, guys!

There was a greater response than anticipated - and now TRP’s transport manager Mat Bonomi faces the onerous task of wading through the masses of completed online forms submitted via Survey Monkey to understand everyone’s views before presenting the results to his board and the trustees. We should have more news for you after that time.

To recap the schedule which we mentioned a couple of bulletins back, the second phase of the Movement Strategy’s development will take place in September and October, then evidence-based proposals which emerge from the process should be finalised and adopted by TRP’s board by December. By then, your favourite wordplay-loving monthly newsletter may have decided to go with “2020 VISION” as a headline - unless TRP beats us to it in a press release!

If you filled in the survey and were concerned to read in the follow-up email that members of an obscure motoring group had responded, then fear not. TRP will be carrying out surveys at the park’s gates to make sure that proportions of visitor types are taken into account when gauging responses.

Also, we are proud to be one of the groups who were invited to make a submission directly to TRP. You can read the views we set out - including the reasons why we think charging for shortcut journeys through the park is the most effective way to reduce traffic - in this handy document.

100 AND WAITING

A reminder that this Sunday is the day of RideLondon, the annual celebration of cycling which gives 25,000 people the chance to ride up to 100 miles of traffic-free roads in London and Surrey - including those in Richmond Park. That means the park’s roadways will be shut, so you won’t be able to do any laps. The trails may also have restricted access.

You should, however, be able to ride through the park on the road if you are prepared to wait until the afternoon. The first riders will arrive at 6.20am and the last at 10.30am, and roads will remain shut until barriers and other temporary works in place for the event are removed. After that, it’s worth seeing if you can make a shortcut journey through the park. In the past couple of years we have had no trouble cycling from Ham Gate to Roehampton Gate at around 2pm on the day of the event.

For the first time, the RideLondon-Surrey Classic - the pro race version of RideLondon - will not go through Richmond Park and will start in Bushy Park. Get there by midday to see the riders sign on - some of whom, including Brit Alex Dowsett and Aussie triple stage-winner Caleb Ewan, you may have already seen in this year’s Tour de France!

PEN-DING ROADWORKS

Last year’s roadworks which resulted in the lovely super-smooth tarmac that we now all enjoy did not quite extend to the route up to Pen Ponds car park as had been planned - but that is soon to be rectified. At the end of August, there will be patch repairs from Robin Hood roundabout to Pen Ponds car park followed by spray tar and chip surfacing in September, weather permitting.

There are also works scheduled for Richmond Gate in late September or early October, although The Royal Parks may delay until next year if contractors are unavailable prior to the commencement of earlier gate locking times. Look out for roadside notices nearer the time for more details on both works.

SOAR POINT

There’s something in the air… and it’s rather noisy. Heathrow Airport wants to reroute arriving planes directly over Richmond Park with a flight every 75 seconds. The flight path has been chosen to disturb fewer households, but it would subject noise to the park’s millions of users who come to find sanctuary from urban life.

The redesign of the flight paths - the first in 50 years - is scheduled to begin in 2021, with or without a third runway. Consultation papers will be out in August and in our next bulletin we will suggest ways you might respond to them by the closing date of September 13th. In the meantime, you can join the Friends Of Richmond Park’s campaign by emailing bulletins@frp.org.uk or heading to their website.

ADDRESSING CRIME

Slow but steady progress from the police hunting Richmond Park’s bicycle nabbers who, you may recall, made off with at least 13 bikes from outside Colicci before their spree ended in mid-March. Apparently the cops are awaiting authorisation for further traces on IP addresses linking the thieves to more than one property. More than 150 bikes were sold through one online trading account and two have been returned to their owners. Let’s hope a few more of those who were robbed will be reunited with their pride and joy. Go get ’em, officers!

EXCHANGE AND START

A couple of weeks ago we popped in to see our co-sponsors Cycle Exchange at their new Sury Basin home opposite the big Sainsbury’s in Kingston and we were really impressed by the premises, particularly the cafe which was quite busy even though they had only moved in a few days previously. The pre-owned premium bike specialist’s official launch will be on Saturday 17 August - have a gander at their Instagram and Facebook for more details of events on the day, which include free bike health checks, free barbecue and giveaways. We’ll see you there!

AVOID A FINE MESS

Finally, a brief reminder to avoid riding your bike on the footpaths. You could get a fine from the police if you do. But remember that you can ride on the path next to the road from Roehampton Gate to Richmond Gate, as well as the Tamsin Trail.

SEE YOU NEXT MONTH...

All the best,

Richmond Park Cyclists

Chris Campbell

July 31, 2019

Bulletin #19, July 2019

Chris Campbell

July 31, 2019

Each month, we email a bulletin to everyone who has signed up on this site. Below is the mailout that we sent in July. 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.

ENJOYABLE HOLLY DAY

After two years of exploring a clear, sensible concept that could make cycling and walking in Richmond Park even better, we were delighted to receive an invite to last week’s presentation at Holly Lodge where The Royal Parks set out its Movement Strategy. This process is likely to be the start of exciting changes that should benefit everyone who rides a bike or walks in the park - but before anything can happen, Mat Bonomi, TRP’s access and transport manager, needs your input.

The public consultation finishes on July 14, and while the initial response has been good, TRP needs many more people to fill out its survey - which is why we are sending this edition of our monthly bulletin a week earlier than planned.

We’ll give you the link to the survey later on. First, though, a couple of salient points on what was said during the meeting, which was presented by Mat and attended by councillors from Kingston and Richmond, the Friends of Richmond Park, the park’s police and other stakeholders.

GATED COMMUNITIES

For everyone who rides in the park, the most significant statement made in the meeting is this: The Royal Parks is committed over time to reduce through-movement of motor vehicles in Richmond Park and their seven other green spaces. It is also aware that any changes could have a knock-on effect outside the park, so TRP will collaborate with local authorities and groups before anything is implemented.

The mood in the room was broadly supportive. One concern that did come up a number of times was the question of possible gate closures and the impact they would have on local communities. Intelligent Road Charging, which we have been speaking to many stakeholders about, would be a great way of avoiding this. By charging a fee only for shortcut journeys made by motor vehicles, Richmond Park could remain open to all users while discouraging through-movement of traffic.

If you’d like to know a bit more about what was said at the meeting, have a look at our live tweeting of the event (scroll up to get to the start of the thread, which is in chronological order).

FILL IN THE BLANKS

And now on to the important bit: please fill out the survey! You can find it right here, under the heading “Give us your feedback”. It’s best if you use your own words as they will then carry more weight, but we have set out below some ideas that you may want to consider in your response.

Intelligent Road Charging would fit well with The Royal Parks’ stated aim to reduce the through-movement of motor vehicles while keeping access open to all. It could be used to eliminate commercial vehicles illegally using the park as a shortcut, to identify speeding vehicles and long-term parking by commuters working outside the park, and to further discourage the most heavily polluting vehicles.

As a general principle, the fewer cars driving in Richmond Park the better. Any child drawing a picture of a park would not include a busy road running through it, so why do we accept this as normal in our park?

TRP wishes to improve diversity among the users of Richmond Park. Reducing through motor traffic will make it an even more welcoming and safer place. This will attract less confident and less outgoing people of all ages and physical ability (whether they choose to ride a bike in the park or not). It would also give them access to a wonderful public place that could improve their health and wellbeing.

The Movement Strategy Discussion Paper talks about prioritising walking and is broadly supportive of cycling. But we would like to see a stronger commitment to maintaining accessibility for cyclists who use it for commuting, and a stronger commitment to enabling and encouraging cyclists using the park for leisure and for exercise.

The Mayor of London’s Transport Strategy targets a significant shift towards sustainable transport. To be consistent with this, The Royal Parks should actively enable and encourage more use of bicycles as a means of accessing the park.

We recognise the concerns of local communities such as Ham and Petersham who rely on Richmond Park for access to and from their neighbourhoods. We think that Intelligent Road Charging would be a highly appropriate solution. Paying for the access the park would reflect how much they value it.

Remember: you have less than a month to complete the survey - so please do it as soon as you can! Once the deadline has passed, TRP will develop a strategy paper which will be put back to us for consultation around October. Whatever evidence-based proposals have emerged from the process should be finalised and adopted by TRP’s board by December. Implementation will begin next year.

SEE YOU NEXT MONTH...

...well, at the very end of next month. Because this bulletin has come out a week earlier than planned, the next one will appear in your inbox in five weeks’ time. As ever, please share our newsletter with your cycling friends - and if they like what they read, encourage them to sign up to our mailing list too. The more subscribers we have, the bigger our voice.

All the best,

Richmond Park Cyclists

Chris Campbell

July 31, 2019

Bulletin #18, June 2019

Chris Campbell

July 31, 2019

Each month, we email a bulletin to everyone who has signed up on this site. Below is the mailout that we sent in June. 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.

MOVING QUICKLY

The prospect of Richmond Park becoming an even better place to ride your bike could become a reality - and much sooner than we had anticipated - as the goal of improving visitors’ experiences across all royal parks gets moving. The Royal Parks has invited Richmond Park Cyclists to attend its presentation on June 14 where we expect Intelligent Road Charging to feature. Longtime subscribers will know that for the past couple of years we have been exploring the idea of reducing traffic in the park by introducing a fee for shortcut journeys made by motor vehicles, so we are pleased that we have been given a seat at the table. Please let us know what else you would like us to bring up at the meeting. One idea we are considering to submit is guidance notes for all road users to ensure everyone treats each other with courtesy and respect.

The meeting forms part of The Royal Parks’ movement strategy which will, in its words, “set a long-term vision for how visitors will move within, access and experience the parks”. It will include reducing the impact of motor traffic and increasing safety. Mat Bonomi, the Royal Parks’ access and transport manager, has asked us to publicise the consultation as part of TRP’s effort to gather input from the public. Please sign up on its website - you will receive regular updates from TRP on the strategy’s progress and we will, of course, provide info on our own monthly bulletins.

The first part of the consultation starts today and ends on July 14. Phase two will take place in September and October. By December, whatever evidence-based proposals have emerged from the process should be finalised and adopted by TRP’s board. This timescale is much quicker than we thought it would be. We hope you are as excited by this welcome development as we are!

CLOSING IN

The recent spate of bicycles stolen from the area outside Colicci cafe may have evaporated - but the cops’ investigation hasn’t. Richmond Park’s police unit say they now have a suspect and are confident that the process of tracing the person could begin soon - which may hopefully lead to an arrest. Every one of you reading this will hope the thief, whoever they are, is caught - but in the meantime please continue to take care when you stop for a coffee. Get a friend, if you are riding with one, to keep an eye on your pride and joy, or pop a wheel out or invest in a portable lock to make sure your bike is less likely to be nicked. Don’t give a toerag the opportunity to spoil your ride!

DOUBLE THE HASSLE

By now, you may already know that Kingston Gate has reopened following roadworks just outside it. There is now a raised crossing on Queen’s Road close to its junction with King’s Road, and another around the corner on Liverpool Road (which is part of a popular shortcut route that runs parallel to Broomfield Hill). It will be interesting to see what effect they will have on the high levels of motor traffic in the immediate area. At the time of this bulletin reaching your inbox, temporary traffic lights are still in place by the Queen’s Road crossing, and we are unsure if there will be a permanent set installed eventually.

In the meantime, we have been speaking to The Royal Parks about the box-shaped gates on pedestrian entrances which a cyclist has pointed out to us make it impossible for those riding larger bicycles to enter the park at night when the main gates are closed. With most bikes, it’s relatively easy to open the door, manoeuvre into the box and turn 90 degrees to enter the park, particularly when you lift the bicycle onto its back wheel to turn it as you walk through the tight space. With cargo bikes, bicycles with a trailer or anything similar this is not an option.

These gates are meant to prevent deer from wandering out at night, although Bushey Park has entrances that are more open and useable for larger bikes - and it also has deer. There may be another very good reason why Richmond Park needs its right-angled entrances. Either way, we’ll let you know when we find out.

IT’S THAT TIME OF YEAR...

...when Richmond Park graciously welcomes dozens of riders in funny pointy hats. That’s right - the park’s two annual official time trials are happening on Sunday 16 and Sunday 30 June. The park’s main road will remain open during the ten-mile competition, but please remember that there will be many more cyclists there than you would usually expect to see between 6am and 7:30am. And if you are dedicated enough to be riding at that time of the morning at the weekend, why not enter the 10.4-mile ride yourself? The first event has sold out, but the organisers London Dynamo opened entries for the second time trial yesterday. You don’t even need pointy hat or a TT bike - the standard road category is the most popular, and it is an ideal event for first-timers. Best of luck if you do take part - and get your entry in soon as it will sell out very quickly!

TAKE CARE WITH OUR DEER FRIENDS

Finally, we’d like to send our sympathy to Olympic triathlete Stuart Hayes who was knocked off his bike by a running deer while he was descending Broomfield Hill last week. He suffered multiple fractures and was taken to Kingston Hospital.

Everyone who rides a bike in Richmond Park will have stories about having to abruptly slow down, stop or otherwise avoid one of our antlered chums - tales which, by their very nature, will always go unreported. It’s a testament to the care that people like you typically take in these situations - and the fact it’s possible to ride for months in the park without seeing a single deer cross the tarmac - that collisions of this kind are relatively rare. Nevertheless, please remember to ride with due care and attention. They are camouflaged animals, easily spooked, and can run out at any time!

SEE YOU NEXT MONTH

That’s all for this bulletin. 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. The more subscribers we have, the bigger our voice.

All the best,

Richmond Park Cyclists

Chris Campbell

July 31, 2019

Bulletin #17, May 2019

Chris Campbell

July 31, 2019

Each month, we email a bulletin to everyone who has signed up on this site. Below is the mailout that we sent in May. 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.

THIEVES TAKE THEIR LEAVE

After the theft of 13 bicycles - one of which has been returned to its owner - and quite a few more that the police believe have not been reported, it seems that the thieves targeting Richmond Park have slung their collective hook for now. The park’s resident copper PC Paul Barber tells us there has not been a bike nicked since March 17th, marking an end to the spate of thefts that began on January 31st. It seems the same miscreants are flexing their light fingers elsewhere as bikes have now gone missing from nearby Roehampton University and Ibstock Place School, so the police are still on the lookout. From what they have told us, their investigation is making headway, although we have been asked not to reveal details in case it compromises enquiries. Hopefully the thieves will be caught soon - but in the meantime please make sure you keep an eye on your pride and joy or make it’s secure if you are stopping at Colicci cafe. Don’t be fooled into thinking the thieves will never return!

HEART OF THE MATTER

The things you learn when you meet park stakeholders! Dr Fiona Moore, head of the South East Coast Ambulance Service, now also sits on the Richmond Park Police Panel, and she gave us some useful information and tips regarding medical assistance in the park and outside it.

It turns out the park has defibrillators in four locations: one each in Collici cafe at Roehampton Gate, the Royal Parks and police offices at Holly Lodge, in the park police’s patrol car and at Pembroke Lodge (which is due to have a second unit installed outside). There is an additional defibrillator at the Parkrun, which is available only during the event on Saturdays from 8:30-10am.

Dr Moore also explained what happens when you call 999 for an ambulance. Most cycle accidents in the park are classed as C3 and C4, which means they are not life-threatening. The target response times for such cases is 80 to 120 minutes, although it could be quicker at quiet times. Life-threatening accidents (C1) get a response time of seven to 14 minutes while potentially life-threatening cases (C2) are 18-40 minutes. Again, response times may be quicker.

When you dial for an ambulance, the aim is to answer your call within six seconds. You will then be asked a series of questions to determine the nearest paramedic to your location, as well as the severity of your injury or nature of your illness. During the conversation - and without necessarily telling you - the operator may send a paramedic or despatch the ambulance if available. Additional info can be passed to the crew en route.

Obviously, we hope you never have cause to ask for medical assistance of any sort, but it is worth becoming familiar with landmarks such as the park’s entrance gates and buildings in case you ever need to call for help and give your location. If you want to get to A&E by yourself, the one at Kingston Hospital is the closest. Go straight out of Kingston Gate, keep going until you reach Kingston Hill, and the hospital is over the road on your left.

KINGSTON WAIT

Speaking of Kingston Gate, you may already be aware that it closed yesterday to motor traffic. It will be shut for three weeks while the council carries out essential roadworks just outside the park on Queen’s Road and King’s Road. The pedestrian gates will remain open but could get busy at peak times - so please be patient!

IT MAY BE TIME FOR BREAKFAST

Finally, we will be getting May off to a superb start by attending Richmond Park’s Stakeholders’ Breakfast meeting tomorrow, where we will raise a number of issues you have brought to our attention. We also hope to find out if Intelligent Road Charging - a small fee for shortcut journeys made using motor vehicles - will be incorporated into The Royal Parks’ movement strategy report. We’ll keep you posted!

SEE YOU NEXT MONTH

That’s all for this bulletin. 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