Dear <<First Name>> 

The St Botolph's regeneration is now being consulted upon. This is not the changes to the roundabout (they are due to go ahead in 2026) but the future of the land to the east of St Botolph's Street/Queen Street between Colchester Town railway station and the Firstsite art gallery.

We have been told that a north-south cycle route is unlikely (but if you reply to the consultation there's no harm in asking again as St Botolph's Street and Queen Street are unlikely ever to have a contraflow bike lane).

What is needed – and is achievable – is a cycle/pedestrian route (green dotted line, below) from Rosebery Avenue and Nicholsons Grove  to give an alternative route from East Hill to St Botolph's. We would go so far  to say that the viability of the council's proposed marketplace depends on high footfall (and wheel turns) along this east-west corridor.

You can find out more and comment here:

Nat Catchpole of the cycling campaign was the mastermind behind our response to Essex's Connecting Essex through Cycling and Walking consultation, which was looking at adding rural Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plans (LCwips) to those already in place in towns across the county.

Looking at the map on the ECC website, we see that several members made contributions in their own right – thank you! 

If you want to see what people said, the map is still public although the consultation has closed.

As well as talking about individual routes, the campaign took the chance to flag up the need for area-wide 20mph limits, as well as the probable effect of climate change on low-lying routes such as the Wivenhoe Trail.  

You can see our full response here:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/14WC6GleuBE2y_j3NjjpNW8XVMG-5ssPeL1TgEGaRegs/edit?usp=sharing

This is your chance to help fund the campaign. We don't need much money to run our slim operation but every little helps.

After Colchester Council approved a watered-down motion to adopt area-wide 20's Plenty in Colchester, the 20's Plenty for Colchester campaign will  meet to discuss and decide its next steps at 2pm on Saturday, March 1, at Dice and Slice, Queen Street. There's also an event on Facebook that you can share.

If you will be attending please respond on the event page to let the organisers know how many tables they need to book.  Please spread the word far and wide.

Stuart Johnson, the campaign chair, has made  a formal complaint to  Colchester City Council over a Lib Dem newsletter issued by Catherine Spindler, the councillor for St Anne's and St John's, late last year. 

The leaflet claimed that the 20's Plenty for Colchester motion being put to the full council was "demanding that all  Colchester roads have 20mph restrictions in place".  

We said this claim was untrue and misleading because some roads would stay at their current speed limit, as happened in Wales when it went to area-wide 20mph. 

We asked Ms Spindler and the Lib Dem group to correct this but we were rebuffed. 

Unfortunately we have been left with no option but to raise a formal complaint. We will keep you informed regarding progress.

Cyclists know more than most about the dangers of air pollution. If you're in a car with the aircon on, music playing, people talking, you may not notice that the car in the jam in front of you is pumping nasty fumes into your cabin. 

If you are on a bike you can see the condensation as hot emissions hit colder air.

Essex Air, part of Essex Highways, is reviewing its air quality strategy.

The cycling campaign will make an official response but we also encourage members to have their say. Please be sure to make these points:

The full survey can be found here:
https://consultations.essex.gov.uk/essex-highways/essex-air-quality-strategy

This was a pothole with a difference – it was more like a lake at Brickwall Farm on a route that cyclists often use to avoid Peartree Road and Straight Road. The track is also part of the National Cycling Network Route 1.

Andy, a cycling campaign member and a frequent user of the path, took the problem to his county councillor Sue Lissimore. 

A mapping glitch meant the job took a while ... but the lake is now drained.

Andy said: "This path connects the Fiveways junction along Peartree Road/Dugard Avenue, through Stanway Green to Shrub End Road/Boadicea Way. It is easily traffic-free to the Lidl supermarket and beyond and mostly very accessible on anything but a pure road bike. 

"It does of course link up with Dyers Road too (at the junction with Peartree Road/Blackberry Road) and this leads to a virtually traffic-free route to Stane Park. It not only connect Stanway to Lidl, but Shrub End to Sainsbury's!"

Sue said: "I included it in my member-led priority scheme so that it was fixed. It took a while as the road was actually misdescribed on the highways maps so we had to get that changed first. We got there in the end! 

"The member-led scheme method is really important because councillors choose the priority of works and we get a highways crew for a week every six weeks. 

"It would be good if the readers of CCC News could cite this method when they  inform their own county councillors of work that needs doing."

Thanks from the cycling campaign, Sue! 

Many years ago I had my eyes opened by a Sustrans tactic to get the land the charity wanted, writes Will Bramhill, campaign secretary. It was building a cycle path in, I think, Hampshire but one particular lane between two houses was too narrow. Canny boss John Grimshaw bided his time then used several hundred thousand to snap up one of the houses. He took four metres of garden off the boundary then put it up for sale again.

There are several spots that I know of in Colchester where we could do the same to achieve a wider path ... or any path at all.

If you know a path near you that would be a super cycle route (with a little help from someone's garden!) then email admin@colchester-cycling.org.uk.

We'll put together a list to see if Essex County Council would consider helping us.

Roșie Pearson, the countryside and pylons campaigner, has tipped off the campaign that a large housing development to be called Tey Village is brewing.

Rosie cut her teeth on defeating plans for the giant West Tey "garden community" of many thousand homes. 

Obviously the cycling campaign has a different agenda. If Tey Village does get the go-ahead, we want to ensure it complies with Active Travel England's rules on new housing. 

In particular we will be pressing for better links between the Stanway side of the village and the Ashbury Drive estate – with bridges over the A12, A120 and the railway line -- something like this in Washington, Tyne and Wear: https://maps.app.goo.gl/DX8Bqesw9fss9Gsy6 

If you want an envy note, one campaign supporter, who was formerly an architect but has moved on to become a software engineer in London, codesigned the Silver Arrow cycle bridge near Dortmund, Germany, which has opened in the past few months. https://dkfs.io/portfolio/silver-arrow/. Wouldn't that look great here in Essex!

If you live in Marks Tey and would like to help with this work, please email admin@colchester-cycling.org.uk

• The government has unveiled proposals to add to the number of cycling offences. See https://road.cc/content/news/10-new-cycling-offences-be-introduced-312337

• Proof yet again of "build it and they will come" – Paris cycle use has doubled in 12 months thanks to improved infrastructure. https://momentummag.com/paris-cycling-numbers-double/

• A consultation by the government concerning the rules on ebikes will not proceed with plans to double power output to 500W or to allow to allow ‘twist and go’ bikes have throttle assistance up to 15.5 miles per hour without type approval. Full report here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/smarter-regulation-proposed-changes-to-legislation-for-electrically-assisted-pedal-cycles/outcome/360a9b7a-f973-4c9b-b4c0-d9c9bb9a1693

• Cycling UK has produced a splendid guide to cycling and potholes. Find it here: https://www.cyclinguk.org/article/how-handle-potholes-bike

• New public health report. If you work for Colchester or Essex councils, or the Esneft hospital trust, please bring this to your bosses' attention. https://www.rsph.org.uk/our-work/policy/healthy-places/a-place-for-health-report.html

... and of course the campaign is pressing MP Pam Cox for news about Labour's promise to increase spending on cycling, and to guarantee that any new expenditure is not stop-start. Meanwhile some people are bridling at the possibility of a Heathrow third runway and the Lower Thames Crossing tunnels. Watch this space!

This chart shows the hierarchy of highway users, as advanced by the Highway Code. It's always worth bearing in mind while campaigning.

Cyclists make their way towards the town centre from Lexden, carefully avoiding the slippery single tram tracks. 

It could be a father escorting his young lad going to his first day at work. The third rider is either a soldier or a postman. A fourth cyclist is just about to tackle the incline but is benefiting from the momentum of the short downhill from the Sun pub. 

This snap was taken roughly where the junction of Tapwoods is nowadays. Lexden church is at the bottom of the hill behind the riders. 

Trams ran in Colchester from 1904 to 1929 but the type of bike and style of dress suggests this picture was taken just after the First World War. 

At the time this would have been the main A12. It predates the building of the Avenue of Remembrance by about 15 years.

We're switching Bike Meet to Tuesdays! Please watch out a link via email to all campaign members and supporters. If you're not a member yet, please sign up via the link below.

Our March meeting will be the annual meeting. Please think hard about joining the committee. Some of us have been here so long -- and we are in desperate need of a rest. Full training given.

If you want to try leisure rides, Colchester Cycling Campaign recommends both Cycling For Pleasure and Happy Handlebars. Both clubs run a variety of events for people of different abilities. 

Cycling for Pleasure: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1594722180845186

Happy Handlebars: https://www.facebook.com/HappyHandlebarsColch

Other clubs and local routes to try: https://www.colchester-cycling.org.uk/maps-rides-clubs.html 

Colchester Cycling Campaign has lots of LOCAL cycling advice on its website. If you have a question, make our advice page your first port of call.

Visit https://www.colchester-cycling.org.uk/advice.html

And still no sign of progress.

Will Bramhill asked Essex if there was any progress last month to be told they "are still looking into" opening the bridge for cyclists and pedestrians. There's obviously no sign of a replacement bridge any time soon.

Have you signed the Colchester Cycling Charter yet? If not, please do. If you work or volunteer, please ask your organisation to sign too. The more people on bikes, the fewer traffic jams will snarl up our city.

Feel free to pass on this newsletter via email and social media by using the link at the very top ... and encourage your friends to join the campaign so they receive their own copy every month.

Chairman: Stuart Johnson
Vice-secretary: Will Bramhill
Treasurer: Catherine Johnson
Your committee: Alex Hooper, Chris Stevenson, Jean Quinn, Nathaniel Catchpole, Alan Spence and Paul Byrne