8.30pm, a session in The Victoria Hotel (behind Leeds Town Hall) where we can congratulate each other and plan the next Action meeting.

Come along to the first session and you’ll be able to do some of the following:
• Share a positive cycling story on Facebook
• Find out when your councillor’s surgeries are
• Use the ‘Write to Your MP’ sites to send comments.
• Contact your councillor about taxis in bus lanes
• Contact pothole-reporting hotline with your favourite road defect
• Report a parking infringement (you may want to take pictures or videos between now and the meeting, so you’ve got something to send)
• Check out the nearest LCCN route to your home
• Join Leeds Citizens’ Panel
• Post favourite awful junction on Times campaign if it’s still open
• Join the London Cycling Campaign (it’s free and can’t hurt)
• Sign up to a Breeze session (ladies only!)
• Contact a cycle club you belong to and suggest a link with LCAG
• Submit a Freedom of Information request to police or local or national govt
• Comment on the cycle blog on MP Alec Shelbrooke’s page
• Support the Tour de France bid
• Complain to the BBC about their journalist’s “cyclists don’t pay road tax” comment
• Send in (to us or a relevant body) a comment about something from the LCCF
LCAG members can also participate remotely – we’ll keep everything updated on Facebook, and new campaigns information is now available on LCAG’s website to provide all the links and info you need.

Directions to PC Cluster B.25 in the University of Leeds: The Parkinson building is the large pale building at the University’s main entrance on Woodhouse Lane, where there is a turning circle and porters’ cabin. HSBC and Natwest banks are just across the road. To the immediate left of this building there is a block of rectangular arches with lots of bikes parked underneath.

The entrance to the Parkinson building is under the right-most arch – continue along the corridor and down the stairs into the basement. B25 is to the right, with the room number written on the door.

Cycle parking either at Cyclepoint by the rail station – park before 7pm and make yourself known during the evening so LCAG’s key-holder can let you out at the end. For the session at the University parking is available in a cycle cage there; meet by the Parkinson building entrance just before 7pm.”

Here is LCAG’s response to the Council.

On Wednesday 16th November a deputation consisting of members of Leeds Cycling Action Group, the Leeds University Bicycle Users Group and CTC made a statement to all 99 Councillors calling for better consideration for cycling in Council policies.

Here is Leeds City Council’s response.

Here’s your chance to speak to Leeds City Council’s Head of Highways and Transportation Gary Bartlett. He will be addressing and taking questions from the Cycling Consultation Meeting on Wednesday 18 April.   

Please come along if you can, and encourage fellow cyclists to attend. For the pro-cycling officers in the Highways department, it makes their job much easier – and LCAG’s voice as a campaigning organisation much stronger – if we can show there is a group of people who care about the city’s transport policy towards cyclists. This is your opportunity to “vote for cycling” – please don’t let it pass by!

Draft Agenda can be found here.

Briefing Notes for attendees can be found here.

6.00pm for a 6.15pm start Wednesday 18th April 2012 Civic Hall, Leeds
(Meeting to close no later than 8:45pm)

This will potentially benefit anyone cycling between Leeds and Wakefield on the A61, between the “Rothwell Jawbones” junction and Hunslet road.

The Council are keen to get cyclists’ feedback on these proposals, so if you have any comments please contact Lizzie Reather.

The proposals (described in a Leeds-bound direction:) use a footbridge across the M621 and travel via Middleton Road and Pepper Road to rejoin the A639 (Hunslet Road) in Thwaite Gate. A developer currently owns a field between the A61 and the M621, and a cycle route across this area was planned as part of the development. There is an existing track across the field but it’s quite rough and bumpy at present. There has been no sign of the developer progressing the development, and they have not been in discussion with LCC for some time. It may therefore be a long time before they restart development and a long time after that before a paved cycle link is made across the field.

There are 3 options shown here for the route between A61 and M1 bridge.

Option 1
This is the existing bridleway, clearly the main desire line and uses the topography well. However the developer has applied for it to be diverted and that diversion has been accepted. They, in fact constructed part of this diversion before the development stalled (see option 2). This means that we would not be likely to get funds to resurface the existing bridleway in case development starts and it all gets ripped up again.

Option 2
Most of the proposed bridleway (the route will not become actual bridleway in law until completed) exists but needs both ends finishing off. What has been built is of a good quality (although not tarmac) but does not use topography well and requires you to cycle up a hill and back down again. The ends to the bridleway could be constructed but I’m not sure it would be used. Also, again, as it is not bridleway in law until complete, and a new development may be proposed with a new layout and new route for a bridleway.

Option 3
The access road off the roundabout (into Leeds Valley Park West) has cycle lanes marked in block paving and uses the topography reasonably well (not as good as option 1), however it is not connected to the bridge. The developers would need to be contacted to see if they would agree to a temporary link to the M1 bridge. It seems that this could form the only possible temporary route, but I would welcome your opinion as to its value. It seems to be used but not as well as the existing bridleway and it would provide a useful link from Middleton for those travelling over the roundabout on the A61 to other parts of Leeds Valley Park.

The continuation of the route on the Western side of the motorway uses Middleton Road and Pepper Road. There doesn’t seem much scope for on-road provision here. At the South end there are opportunities to harden the verge to form shared-use footways, but once one Pepper Road anything off road would require widening into the road which is very expensive; traffic calming may be an option. There doesn’t seem to be much alternative to Pepper Road; there is a footbridge over the railway off East Grange Drive, but this would divert the route towards Hunslet centre, which might not be better for cyclists heading into and out of Leeds.

The Council would welcome LCAG opinions on these proposals. If you have any comments please email Lizzie Reather.

I would like to invite you to take part in an event to raise money for Sue Ryder Wheatfields Hospice.

We are holding a Virtual Challenge in The Light Shopping Centre, Leeds City Centre on 30th March 2012. The event starts at 9am and finishes at 8pm. The aim is to cycle a total of 937km throughout the day that is 1km for every person referred to our services in 2011.

All we ask is that each person signs up to cycle for an hour or even half an hour at a time slot to suit them on Friday 30th March. There will be 4 exercise bikes set up in The Light. There is no need to raise any sponsorship just turn up and join in.

We would be very grateful for your help on the day to reach our target.

If you are interested in taking part or would like anymore details please email me on katie.bell@sueryder.org or phone on 0113 2033 338. Please feel free to pass this email on to anyone who you believe may be interested.

Thank you and I hope to see you there.

Katie Bell

Let your local MP know your thoughts by contacting them here.

Well not at the moment but Leeds City Council are considering a proposal to allow Hackney Carriages use of existing bus/cycle lanes on the arterial routes in and out of Leeds.

Worried?

Contact your local MP here

Will this increase your fear of using the road?
What next? Private hire cars, white vans?
Will it be enforced? Will other cars use it?
Has anyone asked your opinion?

Here is some of his acceptance speech…

“Thank you to everyone at home who has voted. This is a landmark in cycling and I take this on behalf of cycling.”

“It makes me incredibly happy and so proud that I can play a part in making cycling a mainstream sport.”

“Its incredible to see, its incredible to be part of that, and see the amount of people out riding bikes to work commuting and doing it as a hobby.”

“I see a lot of people out and about riding bikes and it always makes me smile every time I see a family or a child on a bike.”

Attached here is the latest Leeds City Council drawing showing a proposed arrangement on the A660 near Golden Acre park. They had hoped to bring this to the next cycle forum but the scheme needs to be progressed. If you wish to make comments please email Bobby Virdi at bobby.virdi@leeds.gov.uk by 23rd December 2011.

After viewing the standard of cycle lane that could be provided, and after initial feedback from cyclists, they have taken the view that cycle lanes would not be the correct solution at this location.

They will retain the item on the Agenda for the next Forum and take the opportunity to discuss provision of central hatching and/or right turn pockets versus cycle lanes.