Rye Lane reopening to buses, but permanent closure still looms

[jazzer]

Shouldn't it be what the people (constituents and traders) want, and not what the councillors want to force on the people and traders. As others have said Peckham Rye Station is a main interchange and not having access to a convenient bus service is nothing less than total madness. Roll on 18th October.

[legalalien]

I would say that pedestrianisation is on the table so long as @lane_rye and Southwark Cyclists keep campaigning for it.

Also looks like Cllr Buck is a fan and has arranged some sort of scrutiny committee meeting with recommendations to cabinet, even though the LDs attempt to call in the decision for scrutiny somehow didn't make it past officers, according to his twitter.

(if you look further on twitter the RL Pedestrianisation campaign wrote to scrutiny committee members asking for call in on the basis of a lack of consultation, so will be interesting to see how they react to the DV decision.

[KidKruger]

jazzer Wrote:

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> Shouldn't it be what the people (constituents and

> traders) want, and not what the councillors want

> to force on the people and traders. As others have

> said Peckham Rye Station is a main interchange and

> not having access to a convenient bus service is

> nothing less than total madness. Roll on 18th

> October.

?Never, in the field of public service, has one Council done so much in the name of so many, when actually it?s for so few?. 🙄

[JohnL]

I'm fed up now of the taxis picking up and dropping outside my window LOL and everybody shouting whilst they wait - it's not a taxi rank.

That's such a selfish reason though :).

[Pugwash]

Councillors need to be reminded that their actions/lack of actions could make a difference when the local elections take place.

[KidKruger]

True.

But what a shame that this is what we need to resort to to remind councillors they?re meant to be servicing the community.

MPugwash Wrote:

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> Councillors need to be reminded that their

> actions/lack of actions could make a difference

> when the local elections take place.

[McMurphy]

I missed this thread until just now, but very encouraged to see large scale support for reopening of bus routes down rye lane, permanently shutting them makes absolutely no sense.

if the goal was to reduce traffic, it's not had the desired effect in my household as we now have to get a taxi to Denmark hill when traveling with small children and luggage.

if the goal was to increase cycling, as a regular cyclist I can't say it helps, as, in my view, rye lane was fine to cycle down with buses on, and is arguably now more dangerous with pedestrians in the middle of the road. having had a well locked bike stolen from under a camera in Peckham rye bike sheds last year, after which I was told following filling in 30 minutes of forms that there's no CCTV, that's where simple focus from the council could be applied to increase cycling.

shame that I missed the zoom 'consultation', please let me know if there's a link where I can submit my thoughts to the council on the matter, else will go direct via my councillor.

[IainJ]

Thanks, McM, and sorry to hear about your bike theft. These sheds need to be secure if people are to have confidence using them.

I'd suggest writing to Cllr Rose copied to your local councillors, MPs and the Mayor.

There is supposed to be more consultation after 6 and 18 months but if form is followed, bus users outside Rye Lane will be unaware it's happening until it is too late, and the Council will only hear the local lobby.

[legalalien]

Councillor Rose is apparently briefing the Oversight and Scrutiny Committee on the reopening of Rye Lane to buses and the Streetspace trials/ reviews in the borough at their next meeting on 13 October. Agenda here:

https://moderngov.southwark.gov.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?MId=7002

I imagine there will be some limited opportunity for committee members to ask questions, for those concerned, might be worth trying to get one of the committee members to ask whether closure to buses is permanently off the table or not?

List of attending councillors at https://moderngov.southwark.gov.uk/mgMeetingAttendance.aspx?ID=7002

[richard tudor]

What is quite interesting is Jasmine Ali, Deputy Leader and one of the Cllrs for this part of the world, who also lives just off Rye Lane has not put her name down to attend.

First hand knowledge on the situation.

Then again she nevers answer any emails on this subject particularly as to whether the P13 will be reinstated on its original route.

Surly Cllrs like this should be in attendance?

[legalalien]

I guess the attendance list is just the committee members plus (in this case) the Cabinet Member summoned to the meeting - maybe other councillors can turn up on the day if they are interested but might not be listed? I don't know quite how that works.

[Annasfield]

McMurphy Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I missed this thread until just now, but very

> encouraged to see large scale support for

> reopening of bus routes down rye lane, permanently

> shutting them makes absolutely no sense.

> if the goal was to reduce traffic, it's not had

> the desired effect in my household as we now have

> to get a taxi to Denmark hill when traveling with

> small children and luggage.

> if the goal was to increase cycling, as a regular

> cyclist I can't say it helps, as, in my view, rye

> lane was fine to cycle down with buses on, and is

> arguably now more dangerous with pedestrians in

> the middle of the road. having had a well locked

> bike stolen from under a camera in Peckham rye

> bike sheds last year, after which I was told

> following filling in 30 minutes of forms that

> there's no CCTV, that's where simple focus from

> the council could be applied to increase cycling.

> shame that I missed the zoom 'consultation',

> please let me know if there's a link where I can

> submit my thoughts to the council on the matter,

> else will go direct via my councillor.

Another call cyclist here (I use Rye Lane 2x a day)

Agree I?ve felt safer when it was buses rather people. I?ve had so many near misses with pedestrians.

I love the diversity of Rye Lane, but it really is filthy & the rubbish strewn everywhere is grim. Really needs sorting. I don?t know why, but in my head the pedestrianisation made it worse. Don?t even get me started on the glass.

[Annasfield]

Another call cyclist here (I use Rye Lane 2x a day)

Agree I?ve felt safer when it was buses rather people. I?ve had so many near misses with pedestrians.

I love the diversity of Rye Lane, but it really is filthy & the rubbish strewn everywhere is grim. Really needs sorting. I don?t know why, but in my head the pedestrianisation made it worse. Don?t even get me started on the glass.

[tiddles]

Councillor Richard Leeming has confirmed in an email that Rye Lane will shortly reopen to buses - let?s hope this is the case

[KidKruger]

Looked like all the road paintage, where the buses stop

, has been refreshed when I passed on Tuesday. I?m

[grajm]

Rye Lane is fundamentally too narrow for all the users that want to use it (pedestrians, cyclists, delivery drivers, buses) to do so simultaneously in comfort. Anything that pleases bus users will annoy cyclists & pedestrians; anything that pleases cyclists will annoy pedestrians & bus users, and so on. So we need to think a bit outside the box. In my view the best solution would be to keep buses off of Rye Lane but create direct Peckham Rye Station access from a) Bellenden Road (between Holly Grove and Blenheim Grove) and b) the Consort Road / Copeland Road junction, with step-free entrances and well-lit, covered, CCTV-monitored walkways (maybe even a travelator for the ~250m from the Copeland entrance to the main station). Add bus stops by those entrances and then bus users could easily access the station and the other Rye Lane users would have a little more room to move and breathe.

[intexasatthe moment]

Sounds like a very costly suggestion grajm .And wouldn't the restricted access caused by the sharp bend and railway bridge at the Copeland/Consort Rd be a negative if bus stops were to be introduced?

I think Rye Lane is plenty wide enough for road traffic if restricted to buses ,cyclists ,delivery vehicles .

[grajm]

I agree it wouldn't be cheap, but we just spent $1.1bn on 2 new Northern Line stations to service laregly empty investment apartments so surely a few million could be thrown Peckham's way! On the road layout, yes it is a bit complicated there - I would suggest making the roads around the bus garage into an anti-clockwise one way loop.

[Nigello]

A railway station needs a bus stop (or two) as near as possible to it to make it easier for people to use public transport and different modes thereof. Buses can hold up to 60+ people; Peckham Rye station is on at least 5 routes, so the amount of people being made to walk an unacceptably long way now is way more than cyclists using Rye Lane (I would estimate).

The Lane could do with wider pavements, I agree, but letting business owners cover at least 1/3 of the space with their wares (as can be seen at the station) is a surefire way of decreasing that valuable space that is for public, not private use.

Not that many people cycle, compared to bus and/or train users. Cyclists being diverted or encouraged to go down the back route would add a minute to their journey but buses being sent around the back adds many more minutes to passengers' journeys.

[alice]

The parallel bike route is always virtually empty when I?m on it. Actually think it?s faster. Any ideas why people don?t use it?

[oimissus]

I really don?t think diverting buses off Rye Lane onto residential roads (which already form the Southwark Spine which runs parallel to Rye Lane) is a good idea.

Surely Rye Lane has been shared by buses, pedestrians and retailers for decades?

[sally buying]

I am 75 years old and have always lived in the neighbourhood and Rye Lane always had the above.

NOt sure why the need to change something that has been tried and tested and works

[Nigello]

Councillors and officers sometimes seem to live in the flat-but-joyous images that adorn plans for communal spaces, leisure centres, transport interchanges, and as such like to believe that such pictures are reality. How anyone could think removing public transport in an area where locals are much less likely to cycle than in adjoining (richer) areas, let alone one which has a busy rail station hitherto served by five or more routes from all compass points, baffles me. Cycles, buses and limited commercial vehicles can easily live together; people don't want to feel that their mode of transport is being promoted or demoted so don't segregate where it is unnecessary. Cycling is great but not for everyone by a long chalk and provision of public transport on main thoroughfares (especially where an important rail hub is situated) is egalitarian and progressive, as well as making economic sense.

[Spartacus]

alice Wrote:

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> The parallel bike route is always virtually empty

> when I?m on it. Actually think it?s faster. Any

> ideas why people don?t use it?

A perfectly legitimate question Alice and possibly key to allowing bus users and cyclists to both have their cakes and eating them

[malumbu]

This thread is becoming more and more an avenue for those of you who are angry about LTNs to let off steam.

What was Rye Lane like a couple of years ago? Numerous cars parked on double yellow lines causing congestion to buses. Well I am glad the former has gone. If there was one bone to pick with Southwark it was parking enforcement, which I did (but got no where....)

Thanks so much to Gragm for some positive suggestions. I posted before that it was not beyond to wit of man/woman to come up with solutions about how to get those most needy from bus stops to the station. I'm pleased at least one of you has thought about solutions.