Agenda and minutes

1. Apologies – Cllr Tim Moore

2. Minutes of the last meeting Monday 12^th January 2015 and matters arising.

Minutes agreed.

·        YHA Cambridge. The cycle racks and lockers have now been installed.

·        Metal bollards (Guided Busway). The Cycling and Walking Liaison Group met with the County Officer responsible for the busway recently, Campbell Ross-Bain, and CR raised the issue of the visibility of the bollards. The main problem is that there is no space to add reflective strips without stopping the bollard from being able to be dropped. The suggestion of using reflective paint is being considered as an alternative. All agreed the situation will be improved as increased development along the Busway will improve lighting conditions.

·        Replacement of Grand Arcade pushchairs. Two new pushchairs have been purchased.

3. Promotion Grant fund application – Cambridge Cycle Campaign.

(Cllr Smart declared an interest as a member of Cambridge Cycle Campaign. Cllr Robertson declared an interest as a subscriber.)

The application is for the maximum award of £5000 to provide a number of cycle repair stations around the city as part of the Campaign’s aim for better, safer cycling and to reduce instances of abandoned cycles. QR codes on the stations could provide access to maintenance instructions as part of a longer term educational programme. Key locations could include the Chisholm Trail aswell as the city centre. Roxanne de Beau has been appointed as the Campaign’s first full-time employee to co-ordinate the project.

The Group’s comments were as follows:

·        Location.

This is a key issue. Some locations within the sensitive historic core of the city may appear obtrusive or may have planning permission or health & safety implications. The Campaign are also requested to consider residential areas of the city such as King’s Hedges where cycle repair shops or tools may not be as easily accessible. Central locations may also feel more ‘public’ leading to the user feeling self-conscious. The Campaign are also asked to consider potential sites at or close to community centres where youth groups could congregate for lessons in bike maintenance. There could also be locations within the new developments on the fringes of the city worth investigating.

·        Maintenance.

The Group raised the issue of maintenance and ownership or asset control following the initial capital cost. The Campaign proposes a partnership between the provision of materials by Cycle Hoop and the County Council’s maintenance programme. (According to HLHJ,

remaining grant money could be used for maintenance within the pilot scheme although the Campaign anticipates costs to be low.)

·        Skills and knowledge.

Although commendable as a sustainable project, the Group expressed some scepticism as to whether there were sufficient willingness and craft skills in the general population for it to achieve success. If the scheme needed partnership working with local bike shops to source replacement materials, the Group expressed the additional concern that this project could be seen by retailers as unwelcome competition.

Instructions on how to carry out repairs would also need to be provided on laminated sheets for  ...  view the full minutes text for item 1.