Washington Cycle Campaign Group
I am in the process of establishing a cycle campaign group for the town of Washington (Tyne and Wear, UK).
Washington is a town of about 60,000 residents within NE England, the UK
base of the Nissan car company, and ancestral home of George Washington.
The River Wear forms a southerly boundary to the town, with Sunderland to
the east, Chester-le-Street to the west and Gateshead/Newcastle to the north.
Washington comes under the administrative control of Sunderland City Council.
Greatly expanded as a "new town" in the 60s and 70s, Washington was laid
out as a series of villages, with a mix of private and public residential
accommodation, two shopping centres, and a number of industrial estates.
The planners were able to incorporate large areas of parkland between
the villages, while there has been extensive tree planting, factors that
help make this an attractive place to live. Washington has a
good road system comprising fast dual carriageways, while pedestrians are
well catered for by a large network of traffic free footpaths. Other than
the Coast to Coast national cycle route that passes through the town, there
is no specific provision for cyclists. The town is relatively flat and compact,
if appropriate facilities were to be provided, cycling could play a very
useful local transport role.
I see that the aims of the group would include: -
- Promotion of cycling as an viable alternative to the motor car for short journeys
- Upgrading of Washington's extensive footpath network to shared use status
- The provision of links between existing paths and public buildings
- Provision of safe routes to schools
- Provision of secure cycle parking at public places including the Galleries and Concorde shopping centres
- Improvement of existing, and the development of new, safe cycle routes to and from the town.
- Encouragement of leisure cycling
The methods of meeting our objectives would include: -
- Lobbying local counsellors/politicians.
- Working with local government officers to review proposals and obtain funding.
- Raising the public's awareness of the benefits of cycling by obtaining media coverage for our cause.
- Organising regular bike rides within the area.
- Mapping safe routes throughout the town
- Working with other cycling groups, e.g. CTC, Sustrans, Tyne Bikes etc.
If you would like to get involved please contact me