Worthing Revolutions

The snow hit Worthing this morning and I got quite excited as I had a snowbound commute to Brighton ahead of me. Cycling in snow is never dull and one of Winters rewards for commuting through the seasons, provided you're prepared.

For what it's worth, here are some of my tips:

1 Make sure you are warm enough - Sounds obvious I know but although you may be warm and toasty on the bike pedalling away, it's probably an idea to take an additional layer in case you need to stop to mend a puncture, for example.

If you are looking for a second hand bike or would like to sell your trusted 2 wheels, Worthing Borough Council and NSL Services’ are holding a second hand bike sale on Sunday 29 November 2009 from 9am to 12pm at Worthing Leisure Centre. Whether you are looking for a kiddie’s tricycle or bike, a sophisticated tourer, or a road or mountain bike or just want to sell a bike your children have outgrown, they may have just what you are looking for.

A superb Cycle Forum was held on 4th November at Worthing Town Hall. Craft:pegg Landscape Architects came down to canvass cyclists opinion on their plans for Splash Point. If you go the the Links section of this site you can visit the website that they have specifically set up for the scheme and have a look at their plans. I'll be touching on all the discussion points in due course but for the moment I attach the excellent and thoght provoking presentation given by Duncan Kay on the concept of 20's Plenty.

The 20mph speed limit for all roads in Portsmouth is proving to be both popular with local residents and a major improvement to the environment and road safety. Articles about the scheme, with data from the first year of operation, have been posted to the WorldStreets website: http://www.worldstreets.org/

I have just sent this question to the leader of WSCC using the Leader's Online Hotseat - I'll post the answer here, if I get one.

So many cyclists are making use of National Cycle Network route 2 along the coast that local residents and beach hut owners in Lancing have raised a petition calling for the route to be closed.

They are particularly worried about cyclists failing to dismount at Lancing Sailing club, and the shared-use section in front of the beach huts just to the east. Some serious accidents were mentioned, but no evidence of serious problems on the route has yet emerged.

Please note that cycling will not be allowed on the prom until the necessary changes have been made (signs, tactile paving etc.). We ask for your patience during this time! Having waited so long to get approval for prom cycling, let us wait just a little while longer.

For our Bike Week celebration (which was a huge success, read about it here) we printed out a huge map of Worthing, took along a stack of post-its, and asked the good cycling public:

'How can we make Worthing a better place to cycle?'

Good News - The Secretary of State has formally approved the new byelaws which will allow cycling along the promenade!

Thank you to all those of you who wrote to the Department of Communities and Local Government to express your support for this.

At the recent annual All Party Parliamentary Cycling Group bike ride in London, MP Tim Loughton was riding his bike. He's the furthest left in this group photo.

More photos from the ride can be found at http://www.flickr.com/photos/allpartycycling/sets/72157619470943381/

It is good to see our MP's getting involved with cycling: Peter and Virginia Bottomley came along to the Big Bike Meet at Steyne Gardens, Worthing, on 14 June. Sadly they didn't ride with us to the picnic at Widewater, and so missed out on a pleasant ride.