SEVEN.. Reducing, managing and taming traffic

Traffic... ... is the single greatest danger to the cyclist, both in terms of its volume and speed. Cambridge is already heavily congested and many of its roads are not designed for such heavy car usage.

But it’s not just cyclists who have to stomach the effects of heavy traffic. All road users, pedestrians, the environment and our city as a whole suffer when traffic is not curtailed.

As a result, reducing traffic levels is probably the biggest challenge facing transport planners, but it must be achieved if we are to encourage greater cycle use.

Traffic planners and decision-makers often fall into the trap of assuming that the only way to make cycling safer is through specific provision for cyclists. But this could never be achieved city-wide even if it were desirable. We should be aiming to make the whole road network safer because this is what cyclists most depend on. Even with the expected increase in cycle facilities cyclists will, realistically, have to rely on the road network for large parts of their journeys.

For this reason we need to address dangers on the road such as speed, volume of traffic and points where cars may cause an increased hazard. There is less need to create off-road cycle routes if we can make the road itself safer for cyclists.

Traffic calming measures need to be put in place with care and attention and designed with cyclists firmly in mind.

The Campaign believes there are a number of possible solutions.

• Reducing volumes of traffic
• The avoidance of dangerous traffic-calming measures
• Area-wide residential 20 mph speed limit zones
• Conclusion