New crossing on Gallery Road

Lovers' Walk

The Dulwich Community Council agreed at its meeting of 29 January to award £55,000 to fund a new crossing on Gallery Road between Belair Park and Lovers' Walk. This will help join up a car-free link from Dulwich Park and College Road through to Gallery Road/ Belair Park/ West Dulwich Station and beyond.
The bid for funds was submitted by The Dulwich Society, with the support of Dulwich and Herne Hill Safe Routes to School.

Partnership in action

It was the termly meeting of the Dulwich and Herne Hill Safe Routes to School group this week. It's very satisfying to engage with such a committed group of schools, parents, councillors, residents' groups and local authority officers all coming together to share ideas, information and resources.

Some of the highlights we heard about and discussed:

• Juniors at Dulwich Hamlet have been having fun with speed guns and the police, monitoring traffic speeds around the Village.  The little ones at DUCKS have been busy with bikes and appointing Junior Road Safety officers. Teenagers at Charter have had some hard-hitting citizenship assemblies about responsibilities as a driver or a passenger, and some of their Year 10 engineers are learning useful skills as bike mechanics.  

• Tim Warin and James Scott from Sustrans have great plans for the Bike it Plus programme in Dulwich schools - hoping to persuade more of us that getting around by bike is an ordinary, civilised means of travel, as well as helping us have fun on bikes.  

• We discussed progress towards improving crossings on Lordship Lane, Gallery Road and Burbage Road. 

• Matthew Hill, Public Realm Programme Manager, gave a brief overview of Southwark's most recent bid for cycling to school funds from TfL. We look forward to working with Southwark on the detailed feasibility and priorities as this work moves forward.

• Matt also told us that improvement works are about to begin at Paxton Green roundabout, East Dulwich Grove, and Denmark Hill (the link between Greendale and Ruskin Park). Expect traffic disruption if you are out and about by car. As always it might be quicker and easier to walk or cycle.

• Southwark officers are pulling together their final ideas for improvements to the junction of Greendale/East Dulwich Grove/Townley Road. The plan is to go out to final consultation next month, and for works to be undertaken during the school summer holidays.

• 20mph speed limits are being introduced across all roads Southwark controls. Southwark will run a campaign to raise awareness that lower speeds reduce road casualties and create a healthier, more pleasant environment, and will monitor speeds before deciding whether and where any additional traffic-calming infrastructure might be needed. If you do need to drive, please look out for children on foot or on their bikes, and give them plenty of space. 

Partly as a result of feedback at that meeting, we're combining the websites of Safe Routes to School and Dulwich Young Cyclists. This should help avoid confusion and duplication of effort. Please let us know if you notice any glitches.

Happy New Year

Yes I know term started days ago - but this morning's cycle to school was so much more uplifting than last week's gloomy, freezing, damp misery. The birds are singing, the sun is appearing earlier every day, and it's not too cold.

Tim Warin, Sustrans

And I happened to bump into new Bike-It Plus officer Tim Warin on his way to assembly at Langbourne Primary. Tim is full of energy, enthusiasm and ideas to persuade more of us to enjoy cycling and walking. His first task while he settles into his role is to introduce himself to local schools, where he says staff and pupils already have some interesting plans for engaging more children and (re)educating local drivers.