I’ve been notified by the County Council of a major change to the junction of Worcester Street/Hythe Bridge Street and George Street to open it up to four-way traffic so that some traffic does not have to loop all the way round Hythe Bridge Street and Park End Street any more. Traffic going East on Hythe Bridge Street would still only be able to go left into Worcester Street but traffic from all other directions would be able to turn in any direction. There would also be share cycle/pedestrian features on some corners. I think these are a good idea as if so many cyclists are jumping red-lights any way, the pragmatic way to deal with that is to design in a safe way of them being able to avoid those red signals in the first place. You can see the plan here, and you’ll get a large version if you click it.
Time is short on this consultation so if you have any views or questions please do let me or the County Council know as quickly as you can. I will also forward all comments added to this blog post.
Opening up this junction is an excellent idea, but this area is very busy with pedestrians too and the shared spaces could present an interesting challenge especially on the narrow NW corner. If I read the notes correctly there will be no right turns from HBS into WS, except for cyclists. Does this mean that cyclists will have to use the shared space to turn right (and then wait at the toucan crossing on WS) or will there be a place in the main sequence for right turning for cyclists across the junction?
This seems like a bad move for pedestrians. I would prefer something which provided a clear route for cyclists and more room for pedestrians, rather than encouraging still more motor traffic.
This seems like a bad idea to me. I’d prefer something that provided better routes for pedestrians, rather than worse ones. And preferably clear marked cycle routes as well, to try to reduce pedestrian-bicycle conflicts. Adding cars to the mix is going to make a confusing crossing an even slower and more dangerous intersection.
I think the routes for cyclists need to be more clearly marked , however I do agree this junction needs to be opened up.
I echo the concerns above regarding understanding what is proposed with a view to shared space and where the cyclists can go. At busy times of day the NW corner is a mass of pedestrians. Clearly there *is* a plan for a system of pedestrians sharing the junctions with cyclists but it does not come out clearly in this sketch.
I would prefer a one-way system around the HBS-Worcester-Park End – Frideswide block (probably clockwise). In that way you would be able to provide ample space for pedestrians, wide cycle lane and good motor vehicle space.
Pedestrians can get really annoyed about cyclists on the pavement, so the shared use area for cyclists and pedestrians seems unworkable to me. However, as a cyclist, I also dislike sharing space with cars, so more cycle lanes does seem like a good idea.
Looks like this could be an improvement but shared cycling/pedestrian routes on the NW corner will be difficult to navigate as either a pedestrian or cyclist and there will be the inevitable conflicts. I’ll probably keep to the road to avoid conflict and avoid having to rejoin the road which I find pretty intimidating.