
00:00 News Roundup and welcome
00:13 Claire Poulton, Sustrans’ Head of Network Development for England South talks about the Sustrans barrier removal project, and how they're redesigning to balance equality of access with prevention of crime.
00:44 Michael Adler, from Tipping Points (Bonn), on Campaigning for a Different City – helping politicians and local authority officers persuade people to change behaviours.
01:18 Our very own Active Travel Cafe Jingle! Thank you to David.
Extract from slides:
- Barrier-free paths do not mean unsafe paths
- Evidence from a detailed research project in London - Key findings from user counts and perception studies included:
- The removal of barriers resulted in a 42% increase in cyclists, a 51% increase in buggy users, and a 10% increase in pedestrians
- 100% of respondents stated that the removal of the barrier made the space more accessible for all users
- 67% of respondents stated that the removal has had a positive impact on the local area.
- None stated it had a negative impact
- 16% of all people surveyed and 27% of residents stated that a there had been a positive impact on anti-social behaviour.
- Some possible "reasonable" interventions
- Improved 'no motorbike' signage at all access points
- Natural surveillance from increased legitimate use
- Vegetation management so route is more visible and overlooked
- Police enforcement - especially immediately after barrier redesign/removal
- CCTV as a deterrent and to aid enforcement
- Provide alternative venues for dirt bike riding etc.
- Using the law: The test - as ever - will be to demonstrate that actions are evidenced based and 'reasonable'. This will involve balancing:
- 2010: Equality Act - barriers likely to be discriminatory
- 1974: Health and Safety - duty of care, including to trespassers where there is a reasonable expectation of trespass
- 1980: Highways Act - tackling obstructions (no barriers on the carriageway!)
- 1998: Crime and Disorder Act - duty to tackle crime and ASB
- Planning obligations - if the barrier is a planning obligation then it may need to be renegotiated
- Ask for an Equality Impact Assessment
- Key points to consider
- Equal access to routes is required under LTN1/20 and the Equality Act 2010
- Creation of fully accessible 'end to end' routes, not cherry-picking individual barriers
- No one size fits all approach - each barrier needs to be locally focussed and responsive
- Use the right language - 'redesign' rather than 'remove'
- Engagement with local community very important
- Monitoring impact is helpful - questionaries/counters/community & police feedback
- Possible need to build in resources for rapid police response in early days