Work on temporary Crawley cycle route to begin

The investment in the town is the third of seven schemes West Sussex County Council secured money for in the first tranche of the government’s emergency active travel fund.

This is part of the new 21km stretch of new temporary cycle lanes across the county, with the aim of encouraging people to use more sustainable travel choices.

The works in Crawley will take around three weeks to complete and involve a combination of traffic segregation ‘wands’, road markings and signage.

The cycle scheme will consist of:

A2220 Haslett Avenue: The scheme will provide continuity and protect the existing cycleway, linking the residential areas of Pound Hill, Three Bridges and Burley’s Wood to the town centre. This work is starting this week.

Hazelwick Avenue: Provision of protected on-carriageway cycle lanes connecting with the existing National Cycle Network 21 route. This will provide an alternative travel link to the Manor Royal Business District, Crawley and Gatwick. Work here will start in the week commencing Monday August 31.

Road users are encouraged to leave extra time for their journeys or where possible seek alternate routes as delays are likely while the works are taking place.

A county council spokesman said: “We apologise for any inconvenience caused during the works but our contractor will do all it can to minimise this as much as possible.

“The seven temporary cycleway schemes are trials, totalling 21km of new and improved cycle lanes paid for by the Government, that aim to redistribute road space and put cycling on a par with car traffic. This is an important step to encourage more active travel and less reliance on the car.

“Once built, the temporary cycleways will be closely monitored to ensure they are having a positive impact on local travel: this will include how well used they are by cyclists and any positive or negative impact on congestion, safety and air quality.

“Adjustments will be considered and, if the schemes do not work, then some or all may be removed.”

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