Elm Lane is in fact in SE6 - but it’s a key part of the proposed walking and cycling route between Forest Hill and Catford avoiding the south circular (corridor 15 in the council’s Active Travel Strategy) so definitely worth an out-of-postcode visit. And, there will be cake!! Plus, if you wish, the opportunity to wear one of Climate Action Lewisham’s hi-vis jackets and wield a litter-picker.
You can see details of the proposed route at
https://lewishamcyclists.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Sustrans-Catford-to-Forest-Hill-Feasibility-Study-240301-FINAL.pdf
We’re still in the throes of persuading the council to implement our route - corridor 15 - as well as/ahead of corridor 17, along the south circular - not least because corridor 15 is a thirteenth of the cost and benefits children at four primary schools along the way!
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That link doesn’t work and I can’t find a live link via Google either.
The link to the proposed route map works. Can’t imagine why they included Trilby Road - it’s steep!
Link to the Google map doesn’t seem to work as an insertion. The link is on this page, in the paragraph ‘Catford to Forest Hill cycle way’.
Thank you for posting the alternative link. I think the one I gave still works if you copy and paste it, strangely. The report has been moved from one section of the website to another, which presumably is what has caused the problem.
Trilby Rd - it’s safe and links up with the cut-through past Perrymount School - but you’re right, it isn’t flat. There’s still time to suggest an alternative - where would you take the route instead?
Vestris or Farren are slightly less steep.
What’s the proposal for cyclists using the alley from Trilby/Shipman to Sunderland Road? It’s not suitable for a shared pedestrian/cycle path so would they be expected to dismount?
The route to avoid the top end of Perry Vale and the subway under the railway is bizarre - it must be treble the distance: Dacres Road, over the footbridge near the German church, and along the alley next to the railway line.
Church Vale and the subway would be more practical, although Church Vale is one-way for traffic, which is a problem coming towards FH.
There are already cycle signs at the junction of Sunderland/South Road and Westbourne Drive/South Road but I don’t know where cyclists are expected to have come from, in order to need those directions.
Thank you for answering! You are right in saying Vestris and Farren are less steep - I guess we avoided using them because it requires a full righthand turn into Shipman, rather than simply going into the cut-through.
The cut-through: the idea is to make it work as a shared space - maybe the Methodist Church could be persuaded to give Lewisham a bit of its land to make the entrance/exit to the cut-through bigger?! But in any case, cyclists would simply be expected to expect pedestrians and give way to them when they are there - as required by the ‘hierarchy of vehicles’ bit of the Highway Code. It’s not a route for adrenaline-fuelled speed merchants, obviously - but equally not necessary to dismount.
The route over the railway bridge is already a recognised bike route - hence those signs - I can’t remember its number - takes you to Crystal Palace. Obviously the fact the bridge is inaccessible to many cyclists is a problem - and definitely to those using a wheelchair or pushing a buggy - but the bridge wasn’t in the remit of the feasibility study. For cyclists, the underpass is, if anything, less usable than the bridge - but possibly that could be put right sooner than the bridge, if Network Rail and the rail companies decide to redevelop the station.
The reason the route goes over the bridge - besides the fact it is already a recognised route - is that it takes Perry Vale residents pretty much directly to the library and swimming pool, without having to negotiate the south circular or Dartmouth Road.