A traffic-free path officially opened today (20 October) for residents and visitors looking to enjoy their trip from Greenford to Ealing along Ruislip Road East.
The Ruislip Road East path runs from Clifton Road to Argyle Road and will ultimately be part of Quietway 23. The one-mile route open to cyclists, pedestrians, and those on scooters, will have the final phase completed in 2018. It will connect all the way to Ealing Broadway station via quiet neighbourhood streets and greenspaces. A video has been produced showing a ride along part of the path.
To celebrate the launch, students from Brentside High School rode their bikes while pupils from Mayfield Primary School enjoyed the path on their scooters. In the picture above you can see council leader Julian Bell, Steve Pound MP and London’s walking and cycling commissioner Will Norman with the students from Mayfield and Brentside.
Last year the council set up a cycling commission to identify what should be done to encourage more people to cycle instead of driving, particularly for short journeys. Quietways and segregated cycle paths were identified as an important way to encourage people to cycle and the council wants to create a network of them across the borough.
Through a network of connecting cycle paths and footpaths, the route links together a number of parks, green spaces and even Hanwell Zoo. It also provides a convenient way to reach Horsenden Hill by foot or bike, and five schools are within 400m of the route.
Adding to this, 13 crosswalks were improved or created to help pedestrians and people on two wheels cross safely. Buses and passengers are also benefiting at key points of the quietway route, where bus stops have been improved as part of the changes.
Councillor Bassam Mahfouz, cabinet member for transport, environment and leisure, said: “A lot of people say one of the key barriers to cycling is their concern of sharing the road with drivers. This path, which will become part of Quietway 23, transforms this stretch – meaning that more people can feel safe when cycling along this popular route, including those who are cycling or scooting with children.
“The path is a fantastic way to get around and many journeys are actually quicker on bike or scooter. This new safe route is already encouraging people of all ages to cycle or scoot to school, to work, for leisure or to get to the facilities we have at Gurnell. Once complete the route will allow people to cycle, walk or scoot safely all the way to Ealing Broadway.”
Will Norman, London’s walking and cycling commissioner, said: “This new traffic-free route is an excellent way to encourage all ages to walk and cycle around Ealing. It’s vital that we encourage more people to walk and cycle for the good of our health and air quality, and I’m delighted that Ealing is helping both pedestrians and cyclists with their new network of paths. I particularly hope that local school children will be inspired to add active travel into their daily routines.”
For more information about cycling in the borough, visit www.ealing.gov.uk/cycling or visit the Get Moving page on this website – or the Ealing London Facebook page – for other ideas on how to ‘get moving’.
