A NEW cycle lane is only being used once every five minutes and adding to the congestion on one of Colchester’s busiest roads, it has been claimed.

Colchester High Steward Sir Bob Russell has hit out at Essex Highways’ installation of the new cycle lane, in Station Way, Colchester, which has replaced a bus lane towards town from North Station roundabout.

Sir Bob conducted a traffic survey in the area, between 7am and 7pm in sessions spread over seven days.

During that time he saw 153 cyclists using the cycle lane. That is about one every five minutes.

During this time Sir Bob said 348 buses and 385 taxis were forced into the main lanes of traffic.

Sir Bob said: “It was only five years ago the cycle lane was provided from just before the railway bridge for cyclists travelling towards the town, at a cost running into several hundred thousands of pounds, in order to prioritise buses.

“The strategy of five years ago to give a boost to public transport has been abandoned in order to convert the bus lane to a cycle lane even though my survey confirms what has been obvious since it was introduced, namely that very few cyclists are using it.

“It has, however, significantly added to traffic congestion because buses and taxis, in my survey a total of 733, plus a couple of dozen motorcyclists, are forced into using the same area of road as cars and other vehicles.”

Whilst conducting the survey Sir Bob also spotted 26 cyclists still riding on the road and 14 on the pavement.

“Cyclists were always allowed to use the bus lane and it seemed to work,” he said.

“The conversion into a cycle lane has seen thousands of pounds squandered on bulky blocks to show the separation of the highway, along with other works. It has been a huge waste of taxpayers’ money.

“What we have is not greener, it is not safer, it is not healthier despite what the promoters claim.”

He added: “It is time for a reality check and it is obvious to all, but the blinkered the rhetoric is a falsehood.”

Kevin Bentley, Essex County Council’s infrastructure boss, said: “It is important we have an informed debate about how we are going to travel around in the future.

“With so many houses built and new ones planned in Colchester, we all need to play our part in helping to reduce congestion and clean up air quality that will lead to us all, and our families, being healthier.

“This is not a subject that we can ignore and it should have been dealt with many years before.

“Colchester will choke under the strain of fumes and vehicles if nothing is done.

“We can all make a difference and make Colchester a brighter and healthier place. This is not a war on cars and I know for many people it is the only option and they should continue to use them.

“For many more of us it is not and if we change our habits slightly by reducing the number of times we drive, or on really short journeys we walk or cycle, then we shall start to see a major difference.

“I welcome Sir Bob’s counting cycles vs cars, but I would prefer it more if he joined in with cleaning up Colchester’s air and reducing congestion.”