A NATIONAL cycling charity is taking a council to court over an "irrational and unlawful" decision to remove a cycle lane introduced during the pandemic.
Cycling UK confirmed plans to take legal action against West Sussex County Council for the removal of the cycle lane in Upper Shoreham Road, Shoreham.
The charity applied for a judicial review into the council's decision yesterday, and has accused the local authority of failing to carry out an equality impact assessment and ignoring statutory guidance on management of highways network.
A cycle lane in Shoreham, West Sussex, popular with families and commuters, has been removed. We say the council's decision was "irrational and unlawful" and we're taking them to court.
— Cycling UK (@WeAreCyclingUK) February 25, 2021
Find out more and how to support our legal challenge at:
👉 https://t.co/NUSrnx5w5M pic.twitter.com/y1zLVEowzH
The Upper Shoreham Road cycle lane was one of several pop-up pathways put in place to encourage cycling and provide an alternative to public transport during Covid-19.
It was officially opened on September 25 last year, but the county council announced plans to remove all temporary cycle lanes on November 24, due to negative feedback regarding congestion.
Cycling UK says the Upper Shoreham Road lane, which featured in a government film to promote active travel, was a "complete success story" and more than 30,000 bike trips were made on the path.
The charity hit out at councillor Roger Elkins, cabinet member for highways and infrastructure.
READ MORE: Cycling UK threatens legal action after Shoreham lane scrapped
Duncan Dollimore, head of campaigns at the charity, said: “When the council introduced this cycle lane, people soon changed how they travelled locally.
"Children began cycling to school, pensioners felt safe to ride into town and commuters started swapping cars and public transport for their bikes.
“Councillor Roger Elkins’ decision to remove the lane five weeks later without considering the evidence showing the lane’s benefits is contrary to statutory guidance.
"It demonstrates a fundamentally flawed process, which Cycling UK would argue, is both irrational and unlawful.
The charity has alleged there was no evidence the lane had caused congestion or traffic delays, and says justification for the decision "appears to have been based on a small number of complaints", rather than data gathered by the council.
Mr Dollimore added: “Despite the public’s enthusiasm for having safer routes to walk and cycle along, it is frustrating to see the admirable ambitions of some councils wither away at the first sign of criticism.
“If councils decide to make baseless knee-jerk decisions with no evidence, then they need to realise there will be consequences. They should expect to be challenged, because such arbitrary and irrational decision making cannot be allowed to go unchecked.”
Karen Murphy said she used to take her two children, Silas and Audrey, to St Nicolas’ and St Mary's Church of England Primary School along the cycle path, but she has not since its removal.
The 48-year-old from Shoreham said: "I’m nervous about travelling along the Upper Shoreham Road without it and I'm not the only one.
"Parents are still taking their kids to school by bike but sometimes the children have to ride on the pavement as it is no longer safe without visible markings.
SEE ALSO: Shoreham could get permanent cycle lane after pop-up lane removed
"I don’t understand why the council removed what had swiftly become a valuable community asset and hope they rethink their position."
Last month the council secured £2.3 million from the government's Active Travel Fund to make improvements for cyclists and pedestrians across the county, including plans for a permanent cycle lane in Upper Shoreham Road.
Roger Elkins said the council recognised support shown by some for the Shoreham temporary cycleway and pledged to look at the idea of a permanent facility.
He said at the time: "We are committing £250,000 to design a scheme which would be for a high-quality cycleway that meets the new national standard for cycling infrastructure.
"Progression to build the permanent cycleway would be subject to full consultation with all stakeholders and a future, successful bid to the Active Travel Fund from the Department for Transport."
A council spokesman said: "West Sussex County Council has just been served with legal proceedings in relation to the temporary cycle scheme that was in situ on the Upper Shoreham Road during the autumn and winter of 2020/21.
"We are unable to comment further at this time.”
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