There are many places of interest in Lewisham or just outside, including Horniman museum in Forest Hill, the APT art gallery and Laban dance centre/theatre in Deptford, Greenwich for sightseeing and shopping, cinemas in Surrey Quays and Greenwich , the Woolwich Firepower museum – all places either on or very near cycle routes. The best green space in Lewisham for off-road riding is Beckenham Place Park (also on the Green Chain Walk which can be cycled). It is possible to do a forty mile loop which links the Green Chain Walk, Thames Path, Cray Riverway and Waterlink Way that is almost entirely off road and includes countless riverside paths and trails through woods. Good green spaces to ride in just outside Lewisham are Oxleas Woods and Eltham Common. Forster Memorial Park in Whitefoot Lane has a BMX track, appealing to young people in particular. Active cycling groups in Lewisham include the Catford Cycling Club and Lewisham Cyclists which both coordinate regular rides.

There is a lot you can do by bike in Lewisham or neighbouring boroughs – either on your own, in groups, or with the family. One of the ways to encourage cycling for future generations is to get more families, children and young people on to bikes. Lewisham need to do much more to promote and publicise cycling as a fun, healthy and recreational activity for families – by improving existing facilities, linking segmented off-road cycle routes, and by ensuring safe and secure cycle parking at places of interest. Lewisham needs to raise awareness that these facilities exist and to actively publicise this information to young people and families looking for new and exciting things to do in the Borough.

Consultation problems: up goes the brick wall

At present, Lewisham cyclists and the LCC are listed as ‘partners' and are supposed to be consulted regarding changes that impact on cyclists. There has been little communication from our lead cycle officer. Cycle planning in Lewisham is currently outsourced to privately (Mayer Brown plc). This moves us a step further away from the consultation process, and makes it difficult for our comments to be made available for planners prior to implementation. When proposals and plans are sent to us they are often too close to the final stage of development, so that our comments are unlikely to be taken into account. Local knowledge and experience of cycle routes and cyclist's needs are very important, and should be shared with planners to prevent costly mistakes and to reduce the potential for accidents.

In our experience, input and advice from Lewisham Cyclists is often ignored, and consultation is ineffective. For example, part of the Thames Cycle Way (National Cycle Route) in Prince Street , Deptford was recently converted to a one-way street without our prior notice. Cyclists using the route now have to make a long (unsigned) diversion. In another recent case, junction improvements at Stondon Park did not include the provision of Advanced Stop Lines. These are just two examples of thoughtless planning and poor communication that highlight the lack of consideration by the Council and planners towards cyclists' needs. A glimmer of hope emerged recently where planners actually took our comments into account by incorporating a contra flow cycle lane in Upper Brockley Road (when it is converted to one-way).

Lewisham Cyclists would like to be consulted on a statutory basis – so that where planning affects part of an existing LCN+ route or other cycle facilities are proposed, the Council has an obligation to inform us far enough in advance so our comments can be integrated effectively, and not treated as throwaway comments. At the recent ‘best value' audit of Lewisham's Transport Dept (April 17 th 2005), the most important issue was the need to develop a real dialogue and for improved consultation with the Transport dept. We would like to be valued in terms of our suggestions and to have a two-way dialogue between our group and the council.

Success stories - cycle training in Lambeth

A look at nearby Lambeth shows how a small amount of money can be used effectively to increase the number of cycle trips (13). Lambeth Cycling Officer Richard Ambler has secured funding for cycle training over the last few years. The introduction of free cycle training has helped adults and children to become more confident on the roads. This has led to a modal shift from car to cycle use for those who took part in the training. Over 400 people have so far benefited from the scheme, and the budget for cycle training is likely to increase in 2005/6 to build on this success. According to recent correspondence with Lewisham Cyclists from Gavin Moore and Pat Hayes, Lewisham is currently involved actively in cycle training within schools across the Borough, and has recently won funding to develop the cycle training initiative to include adults. Will it be free or affordable for everyone? Watch this space.

(12) To see whether a station has cycle parking, visit http://nrekb.nationalrail.co.uk/stations/ and type in the name of your station. Alternatively, to see a map of your station and the location of cycle facilities, visit the Southeastern Trains website: http://www.setrains.co.uk/SETrains/PlanYourJourney/StationFacilities/ . A version of the LCN map for Lewisham is not accurate, and many of the stations marked with red ‘P' signs are incorrect. Southeastern and South Central are the two companies operating stations in Lewisham. South Central is particularly poor when it comes to cycle parking.

(13) Transport 2000 - Good Practice. Cycle Training: London Borough of Lambeth