Changes to Reading roads for buses and cyclists defended

The inbound bus lane along London Road in East Reading has been in place for almost a month, and has so far been hit with complaints that it is causing increased traffic queues.

However, there have been beneficiaries, as buses, pedal cyclists, and hackney carriage taxis are all allowed to use the new bus lane.

Susan Children, a member of the Reading Cycle Campaign, has defended the change in the road space. Notably, she is a cyclist, driver and bus passenger, and uses all of these modes of transport to get about.

Mrs Children defended the changes to the road network, and has rebuffed the narrative that road space is being 'taken away' from drivers.

She said: "It fuels a 'them vs us' mentality. There's a limit to how many more roads we can have and there will always be congestion.

"The more you build roads the more people will drive on those roads."

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The resident's argument is centred around the 'induced demand' theory of travel, which means that if more roads, bus and cycle lanes are constructed the more people will use them.

Mrs Children, who is a publicity officer for the Reading Cycling Campaign, said: "The IDR was constructed to relieve traffic in the town centre but it remains busy because more people are attracted to drive on it.

"If a lane is taken away in the short term there will be more congestion, but people will then change their views. People don't want to be stuck in traffic, and will start thinking 'maybe I could take the bus, cycle or walk?'

"In the short term, there will be more congestion but in the longer term, the congestion will go back to what it was before.

"No one likes to sit in a car for an hour."

However, decisions around changes to road space have been controversial. The southbound lane of Sidmouth Street was closed off to drivers and made available as a cycle lane in the summer of 2020. This closure was made permanent at a Reading Borough Council meeting in September 2022.

The cycle lane in Sidmouth Street, Reading. Barriers prevent cars from using the lane. Credit: James Aldridge, Local Democracy Reporting Service

Mrs Children said: "It's not joined up with other cycle paths, that's why it's not used as much.

"We hope that in the future cycle lanes will be linked."

Mrs Children is retired and lives in Burghfield Common. She typically uses her bike for recreational purposes, such as cycling along the Kennet Canal.

For getting to and from the town, she said her 'preferred method' is using Reading Buses services.

Returning to the changes in road space and the new bus lanes in particular, Mrs Children said: "The congestion will ease over time.

"Taking tarmac away from cars is not always a negative thing."

Changes to the road network in Reading are typically decided on by the borough council's traffic management sub-committee.