Pop-up cycleways in West Sussex are to be removed following reports that the temporary lanes added to congestion.
Deployed during the first lockdown in Crawley, East Grinstead, Horsham, Shoreham and Worthing are to be removed, the UK government-funded temporary cycle lanes aimed to provide safe space for people to cycle and reduce pressure on public transport.
However, feedback gathered by West Sussex County Council during the operation showed that the majority of responses were opposed to the cycleways, citing increased congestion as a key issue.
The council said there had been an increase in traffic as the county emerged from the first lockdown. And, due to automatic traffic counters indicating relatively low usage by cyclists, the pop-up cycle lanes are deemed no longer necessary.
Roger Elkins, cabinet member for highways and infrastructure,West Sussex County Council, said: “The schemes fulfilled their main objectives of offering people dedicated space to cycle rather than using public transport, or to leave the car at home and use their bike instead.
“This was in response to the unique set of circumstances during the first national lockdown, including schools and colleges having been closed for months and vastly-reduced public transport capacity.
“The extraordinary environment that led to their installation no longer exists even though we are about to enter into a new national lockdown: schools and colleges are open, traffic volumes have increased and, although public transport capacity is not back to pre-March levels, it is significantly improved.”
Elkins added that the council remains committed to its walking and cycling strategy, and will work with local communities to support investment in sustainable and active travel, using data gathered from the temporary cycleways to deliver future schemes.
