The new Liverpool Street pedestrian and cycle lane in Salford has opened for use – revitalising one of the main routes in and out of the city.
Existing roadside cycle lanes and traditional footpaths have been replaced by a £2.5million segregated corridor to help improve Active Travel, the government’s policy supporting journeys by physically-active means.
The opening comes with news that Greater Manchester Combined Authority has been awarded £1.07billion from the government to boost the wider transport network across the region.
Liverpool Street has a commercial / industrial heritage – including Salford Fire Station, EMR Salford scrap metal yard and two motor dealerships – meaning transporters and lorries regularly contribute to the flow of traffic.
Tom, a 37-year-old firefighter from Irlams o’ th’ Height, two miles away, normally runs in for his shifts at the Salford Fire Station but was seen riding to work on the lane. He said: “[The lane is] better than how it was, safer.”
A new CYCLOPS style of roundabout, as seen in the Royce Road / Chorlton Road intersection in Hulme, is expected where Liverpool Street crosses Oldfield Road linking Ordsall to Chapel Street in Salford.
The Victory Outreach Church is based at this junction and Theresa John, the grocery manager at its community store, said: “The road’s become a lot clearer because you can see defined lanes between who should be where.
“The problem is going to be whether people actually pay attention to those things.”
The church is opposite a new sign identifying a Red Route Clearway – where stopping for any purpose is prohibited at all times, except in marked lay-bys.
They have space off the road for deliveries but Theresa is often asked by strangers if they can use that area to park.
Sabine Springfeld owns the Little Gem food van on Brunel Avenue near the Arnold Clark motor showroom.
She comes from Leipzig in Germany where infrastructure like this has been embedded for years.
Comparing the longer term cycling strategy of her home city to the new lane here, Sabine said: “Generally it’s the way forward, but then they have to change the whole area.
“They need to take all of these businesses out, really.”
Apartment complexes are regenerating the area, including the new five block Regent Plaza and the 5.1 acre site of the former gasworks opposite Sabine’s business is currently up for sale.
She said: “Things might change now, with all the prices going up but then it’s going towards electric cars.
“But where are all of these people in apartments going to put their cars?”
Diego Gabete, 34, is a violinist at the Hallé Symphony Orchestra in Manchester and lives near Chimney Pot park in Salford.
He was using the lane to come home from work and said: “This cycle lane, in particular, is amazing because it’s not part of the road with the other vehicles.
“It feels much safer. This particular one is one, I think, of the best I’ve seen.”
As this area undergoes regeneration and sees new apartment blocks, the proximity to Manchester and MediaCity in Salford means one aim is to create attractive alternatives to using motor vehicles.
The hire-bike Bee Network which we reported on here, has docking stations in the village next to the old docks and hopes to attract riders along this corridor.
Diego said that he used to spend a lot of time in his car to get to the city centre.
Campaigning for travel by physical means is 26-year-old Harry Gray, who runs Walk Ride Central Salford.
This network and forum organises events to promote Active Travel and is under the umbrella of Walk Ride GM, supporting groups across the region with the same aim.
On the lane he stopped and talked about his experiences as a rider in the city and on the new facility.
He said: “I’m moving my business out to a unit in Old Trafford and there is quite a few, maybe not 50 percent of the way there, there’s a decent cycle network.
“If you’re traversing across Salford in five years time to commute and see friends and whatnot, there is a high percentage chance that most of your route will be on fairly decent cycle infrastructure.”
The road surface for motorists is improved by the changes – the segregated section is kerbed mostly and accounts for bus stops and crossing pedestrians – as the design helps to slow cyclists down approaching pinch points.
Harry said: “They’ve improved the landscape too, they’ve added a lot of greenery, before it was just a tarmac road, it was pretty disgusting really.
“If you’re an industrial unit here, you’re hoping it’s making the area more attractive.
“What we’ve got to remember here that the amount of traffic capacity hasn’t been reduced.”
