Residents brand Kensington High Street the most unsafe route for cyclists in London

By Hannah Neary, local democracy reporter

Residents have branded Kensington High Street the most unsafe route for cyclists in London.

People are calling for Kensington and Chelsea council to introduce segregated paths and low-traffic neighbourhoods (LTN’s) to the area to reduce the risk of accidents and encourage others to start cycling.

Karim Alaa El-Din, a second-year student at Imperial College London, often cycles through the borough to get to university and the gym.

He said: “There are no segregated cycleways… and even the so-called ‘Quietway’ is completely insufficient, only covering part of the borough.

“The worst area without a doubt is Kensington High Street. I cycled along there every day for a year and still do regularly.

“I have seen the aftermath of multiple accidents on that road and encountered a few near misses there myself.”

The 20-year-old theoretical physics student said the area would be much safer for cyclists if there were segregated lanes with barries.

Karim added: “My girlfriend almost got run over there by a truck that reversed on a regular lane. She managed to jump out of the way by leaving her bike behind, but otherwise she may well have been crushed.

“The traffic in the area is just extremely difficult to navigate by bike, with bus lanes suddenly disappearing and some sections not even leaving big enough lanes to allow for cyclists and cars to pass side by side.

“I know many cyclists who end up snaking through cars in whichever way they can, to get through. This naturally makes the situation extremely stressful for both cyclists and drivers.”

The council removed a pop-up cycle route along High Street Kensington in December.

Parts of the route, which cost £700,000 in total, were protected by plastic wands.

It was installed by Transport for London and removed by the council following complaints from residents and businesses.

Residents’ group Better Streets for RBKC applied for a judicial review of the decision to remove the temporary route.

The High Court dismissed the case on August 6 and the group has applied for it to be reconsidered at a date to be set by the court.

Opposition Labour councillor Portia Thaxter said she cycles around the borough two to four times a week but she does not think it is a safe area.

She said: “I got hit by a car on a ‘quiet backstreet’ last October, resulting in a fractured face and other injuries.

“Everyday I see dangerous driving, near misses and cyclists with no safe provision.”

The St Helens representative said she finds Holland Park Avenue, Kensington High Street, and Ladbroke Grove are the worst areas for cycling in the borough.

She added: “I find it very dangerous but the ‘quiet’ backroads are just as bad really with rat running, overtaking, and people not giving way.

“I cycle regularly around London and compared to East London, City of London and other parts of central London with TFL cycle lanes, RBKC is wholly inadequate in supporting people who want to cycle and reduce car use in the borough.”

She thinks the best solution would be to introduce protected cycle routes on main roads and lower traffic volumes on residential streets through filters, one way systems and 20mph speed limits.

Local resident Justin Abbott is a confident cyclist and has spent years getting around London by bike.

But he thinks Kensington and Chelsea is a dangerous place to cycle.

“I have seen ambulances. I saw someone lying by the side of the road with blood on their hands.”

He said the council should install segregated lanes and introduce LTNs.

Mr Abbott said the council seems reluctant to improve cycling privision in the area due to the fact there are no segregated lanes in the whole borough.

He believes the council does not consider the needs of people travelling into the are for work, including students and healthcare workers.

“I think they don’t appreciate their responsibility to people who don’t live in Kensington and Chelsea.

“There’s just no real infrastructure for people to get around by bike, it’s not very good for pedestrians either.”

Keen cyclist Gethin Banks said he thinks the council should change cycling infrastructure in Kensington and Chelsea by introducing low-traffic neighbourhoods (LTNs) and introducing segregated routes.

He said this would be the best way to make cyclists feel safe and encourage younger generations to cycle to school.

He often cycled around South Kensington as a student and claims sports car drivers would shout verbal abuse at him.

What the council say:

A spokesperson for Kensington and Chelsea council said the authority has decided to fund research into alternatives to pop-up cycle lanes.

They added: “We want a long term solution to barriers holding back active travel, with full and proper consultation.

“We have more than 9km of cycleway in the borough and have consulted on an east-west link from Shepherd’ Bush to Notting Hill.

“We want to introduce this but it is dependent on our funding settlement from TfL which has been delayed.

“Permanent changes to our roads need consultation and this is an example of a route that has undergone full consultation.