The Argus recently ran an article that said the proposed Valley Gardens remodelling of the Old Steine and grassed areas to the north would have pathways crossing the grass areas, supposedly for pedestrians but now to be shared with cyclists, see picture right.

Since there would be cycle lanes running north-south on each side of the gardens, I could not see why cyclists should claim more space.

I attended an interesting workshop-style event with the developers, and asked them about this.

I was told that I should not believe all I read in a local paper, before being given the same identical scenario.

This concept is apparently known as ‘shared space’.

This idea can be seen in New Road, which is shared with slow traffic, pedestrians and bikes. While that works well, it is not a good parallel with Valley Gardens since the green space there is not a highway, so these paths are not suitable for any kind of traffic.

The developers implied that, since they could not enforce restrictions, they should not make any. However, since their brief must be to create schemes that obey the Highway Code, I cannot see how they can let cyclists use these pathways.

Cyclists may have had a raw deal in the past but have become an excessively favoured group. Pedestrians, those in wheelchairs, parents with buggies or prams, dog walkers etc all deserve safe routes across Valley Gardens. If the idea is being sold as a park, how can anyone use it properly if every path becomes another arterial route?

Peter Poole,
Eastern Road,
Brighton