Helensburgh cycle lane plans learned from pupil safety fears

The dedicated lane would run from Helensburgh's Sinclair Street east to Hermitage Academy and ensure a safe route to walk or cycle.

Argyll and Bute Council and Page\Park architects have been consulting with school pupils in particular about how to encourage active travel in the town.

They took youngsters along the route and worked with them to find the exact points where they don't feel safe.

The preliminary proposed route - or "concept design" - runs along the southern side of East Clyde Street until it crosses the railway line and changes into Cardross Road to the school.

This section will ultimately be part of a long-promised route going from Faslane to Dumbarton. But all sections are being developed separately and with individual hurdles and requirements from government funders.

Eilidh Henderson, a director at Page\Park, told Helensburgh Community Council (HCC) last week: "We got some really excellent responses. Children walked with us on their journey to school, where they feel safe, where they feel scared - risks they were taking every day to get to school.

The new road layout with take people between Hermitage Academy and Sinclair Street (Image: Page\Park)

"There were comments about narrowness of pavements, some streets with no footwalks at all, traffic and concerns about speeding and volume, conditions under foot."

Ms Henderson said it was a "linear approach" for the route. They had to take into consideration challenges such as the north-south bridges over the rail line, as well as residential parking along the route.

The architects said East Clyde Street had the width to accommodate a segregated lane for cyclists and other travellers.

Their current consultation, Helensburgh in Motion - one of several now under way on different issues - needs feedback on the route proposals.

"What have we missed?" asked Ms Henderson.

The consultation on the plans can be found at https://pagepark.co.uk/hello/helensburgh-in-motion/.

The proposals identify the route onto the bridge over the rail line as a "critical pinch point" and needs to widen. The bridge itself is wide enough. Vehicles will be forced to slow at junctions.

A cross section of the current East Clyde Street road layout (Image: Page\Park) A cross section of the proposed changes to East Clyde Street road layout (Image: Page\Park)

They will take cycles off Cardross Road and there will be a new crossing to connect directly with Hermitage Academy.

Many of the journeys from those surveyed are from the school to the leisure centre.

One criticism at the meeting was about the current short section of cycle land on West Clyde Street in front of the leisure centre.

The council's Colin Young said it was easier and cheaper to build that at the time the centre was built. It is not the finished design and cycle routes are meant to be segregated rather than just having painted divider lines.

Argyll and Bute Council is currently tendering for a new design team for the route east of Hermitage Academy.