Brighton: Calls for council to change notorious bike lane

Footage showing a series of collisions involving cyclists and cars at the intersection of Church Street and Spring Gardens has sparked outrage at what some are calling the "worst designed junction" in Brighton.

Matt Trudgill standing in the cycle lane (Image: Andrew Gardner / The Argus)

Owner of Skinned Alive Tattoo, Matt Trudgill has spoken out alongside resident Kiyarn Taghan over the design of the juction, which has seen some even taken away in neck braces following nasty crashes.

The pair have lived and worked near the junction for almost ten years, and no changes have been made by the council.

Matt looking at the junction with Spring Gardens and Church Street (Image: Andrew Gardner / The Argus)

Matt told The Argus: "I have seen people stretchered off here, dozens with life changing injuries. There was a recent one where they ended up on the roof of the car and flying down Portland Street."

Church Street runs one way, from Valley Gardens towards the centre of Brighton. There is a contraflow cycle lane on the right-hand-side running down the length of the street in the opposite direction to cars.

Drivers reach a junction where they turn left into Portland Street, or right into Spring Gardens at the top of the road. They meet drivers at Spring Gardens who have the option of turning right or across to Portland Street.

The junction with Spring Gardens (Image: Andrew Gardner / The Argus)

The cycle lane crosses this junction, painted red to make it clearer for drivers. Matt added: "Drivers coming out of Spring Gardens do not expect to see a bike hurtling down the road.

"Cyclists enjoy the velocity they get going down the street, but it is dangerous. Many don't wear helmets or hi-vis, and lots don't even think about slowing down at the junction.

"And nor is a driver thinking about cyclists when there are so many blind spots to manage."

The crashes leave people underneath vans and cars (Image: Supplied)

The Argus approached Brighton and Hove City Council to see what action it plans on taking as a result of the incidents.

The chairman of the council’s transport and sustainability committee, Councillor Trevor Muten, said: “I’m shocked and disturbed by the contents of this video, and my thoughts go out to everyone who was affected by these collisions.

“I urge anyone involved in these collisions or who witnessed them to report them to Operation Crackdown so that the police can investigate."

“We analyse collision data in line with national best practice. This is based on collisions reported to the police that result in an injury.

“We believe it’s possible that we were not made aware of some of the incidents in the video as they may not have been reported to the police.

“Collision data is reviewed every year to determine which junctions or parts of the city are most important to focus our limited resources on. 

“As part of our strategy to improve road safety in the city, have also recently introduced a new process for prioritising safety-related improvements. This will take into account other factors beyond collision data alone. One of these is around the perceived risks to pedestrians and cyclists."

A sign warning drivers of cyclists in Spring Gardens (Image: Andrew Gardner / The Argus)

But Kiyarn disputed the council's message. He said: "There are always people placing the blame on someone, be it the bikes or the cars, but at the end of the day it is such a bizarre system.

“I first raised this with the council seven or eight  years ago and nothing has changed. One day, somebody is going to die.

“They say they are looking at the data, and in their eyes there is only a handful of accidents, but of course only the serious ones get reported.

"In a dream world, there is no bike lane here."