West Berkshire Council’s plans to improve cycle path in Lower Way welcomed by Thatcham Town Council
Plans have been made to improve a cycle path in Thatcham.
This comes after a resident complained to West Berkshire Council.
The cycle route is on the south side of Lower Way (marked in green in the diagram).
And cyclists are then required to cross to a shared route on the northern side (marked in blue) of the footway via an existing uncontrolled crossing point.
But many cyclists are staying on the south side which turns into a pedestrian-only footway (marked in red) between the Moors and 16 Lower Way.
A resident complaint said this causes conflicts with cyclists.
A resident – who lives on this stretch of road – said they have had near misses with cyclists using this section of footway without authorisation, when driving out of their driveway.
West Berkshire Council carried out a site visit and noticed the same issues raised by the resident.
It reported the unauthorised use of a section of the pedestrian-only footway by cyclists three times in 25 minutes.
In a second site visit, it noticed one further unauthorised use in a visit of 50 minutes.
As a part of the Lower Way planning development, a toucan crossing is to be installed.
But it is uncertain when this work will be carried out.
So, the council has decided that interim improvements and fixes are needed.
It has planned to refresh and paint new white road markings, cut back hedging that is blocking visibility, install cycle lane bollards and install signs onto lamp columns.
A Thatcham Town Council planning and highways committee unanimously supported the plans earlier this month.
Justin Pemberton (Lib Dem, Thatcham West) said he “wholeheartedly supports” the proposal.
He added: “What frustrates me the most is that it has got to the stage where the signage has become so worn that cyclists, in some cases, don’t know what to do.
“It is really, really frustrating that it has got to the stage where a resident has got to complain.
“But I welcome this.”
The town council also sought to inform West Berkshire Council of a similar situation on the A4 between Lower Way and Henwick Lane.
