APPENDIX 7
Memorandum submitted by Pedals (Nottingham
Cycling Campaign)
EXPERIENCE WITH CYCLE LOCKERS AT NOTTINGHAM
STATION
INTRODUCTION
The cycle lockers in place to the south of Platform
6 at Nottingham Station were installed in 2001 by Central Trains
with financial assistance from Nottingham City Council. Although
Pedals has been well aware of much pent-up demand for such a secure
longer-term cycle parking facility, they have however suffered
from a series of problems, particularly poor signing and poor
management. The recent decision to suspend operation of the lockers,
on security grounds, has just added one more problem to what was
anyway a very unsatisfactory situation regarding cycle parking
at this station.
It should be emphasised that the lack of managed
and secure cycle parking is a serious problem—cycles in
the Porte Cochere area at the front of the station are vandalised
and the presence of apparently abandoned bikes and damaged stands
for long periods shows that there is poor surveillance and concern
from the station management. Faced with this situation many cyclists
will make informal parking arrangements which will not be welcome
at a location where good site management is a major element in
providing robust security.
The saga of lockers and the station management's
continuing failure to do anything positive in respect of the promotion
and effective operation of these lockers and open access cycle
stands seems surprising, given the supposed high risk status of
Nottingham Station in Transec's rating scheme. Most high risk
stations, we are aware, have clear signage and a management regime
to warn against leaving luggage on cycles and to keep the cycle
parking clear of damaged and abandoned bikes and damaged parking
stands. Nottingham does not have such signs.
We are, furthermore, aware of other high ranked
stations where, cycle lockers and parking are in place, and used
in compliance with the Transec guidelines, but as the section
below on the background history shows, the delivery of this much
needed facility, which could be achieved, has been obstructed
by the continuing obfuscation of the station management regimes
at Nottingham station over the years.
We therefore call for much greater effort to
deliver the needed cycle parking in a more consistent and robust
way to meet both security requirements and government policy on
sustainable and integrated transport, so that the term "Transec
requirements" is not used as a pretext for inaction and incompetence
of the station management. The term "transport security"
should take account of the security of parked bikes (and other
station users' vehicles), and preventing their theft and vandalism,
not just security in terms of reducing the risk of terrorist bomb
attacks.
BACKGROUND HISTORY
The current lockers replaced two earlier well-used
batches of cycle lockers installed at Nottingham Station. The
first of these (three lockers) was installed on the southern side
of the overbridge (between the concourse and the steps down to
the platforms) by the then British Railways in the mid-1980s and
were replaced a few years later by a circular block of eight wedge-shaped
lockers. These were installed near the northern end of the same
overbridge, also in a prominent position, and were also well-used.
However, there were problems with the coin-operated mechanism
and BR apparently found it difficult to get replacement parts.
Another problem was that a new Station Manager became concerned
about the possible danger to staff leaving the ticket office from
possible assailants waiting behind the lockers. As a result of
these problems the lockers were taken out of service by BR at
the end of the 1980s, without any consultation, either with Nottinghamshire
County Council (at that time the Local Highway Authority for Nottingham),
who had paid for the installation of the lockers, or with Pedals
who had campaigned for their installation.
A period of several years then followed in which
Pedals tried to get either these lockers brought back into service,
or new ones installed. In the early 1990s, following the installation
of new luggage lockers, BR got the company responsible for managing
these to agree to considering providing cycle lockers. However,
the cost they proposed charging would have amounted to substantially
more than the cost of parking a car at the station and the proposal
therefore got nowhere.
The matter was left pending until an initiative
by Nottingham City Council in the late 1980s, following their
becoming a Unitary Authority in April 1998, and therefore taking
over from the County Council responsibility for transport matters
in Nottingham. The City Council indicated to Central Trains, who
had by then taken over the main responsibility for managing Nottingham
Station, that they would be prepared to subsidise the cost of
new lockers. The discussions on these plans, in which Pedals was
again involved, spent some time discussing the best location for
these since by then concerns about security had grown. Pedals
was again keen that the lockers should be as convenient as possible
for users but Central Trains insisted that, for security and other
operational reasons, the only practical at all convenient site
that could be allocated was a bit to the south of Platform 6,
on the south side of the Station.
In view of the decision to use this rather more
out of the way site, Pedals emphasised the extra importance of
good signing and other publicity to encourage usage of the lockers,
as well as for hours of operation to be as long as possible (and
including the length of time reasonably required by someone wanting
to use them when away from Nottingham for a whole working day,
and allowing time for travelling (outward and return journeys,
eg to and from London). This was now all the more important because
the previous lockers (coin-operated) had been available 24 hours
round the clock.
With regard to signing Central Trains said that
it was likely to take some time to provide permanent signs but
they did agree meanwhile to provide temporary ones. However, even
the provision of these has proved very problematic and, about
four years later, the only sign to the lockers that has been provided
is a small one adjoining the bay of Sheffield cycle stands in
the Porte Cochere (forecourt) area informing users of those stands
that "Cycle lockers are also available in this Station"!
No other signs to show the lockers have ever been provided and
it is Pedals impression that most station users therefore have
no idea that they exist, let alone where they are to be found
or how to use them!
When agreeing to the idea of temporary signs,
as an initial step, Pedals emphasised that the only satisfactory
permanent solution was to ensure that the directions to the lockers
was included in future comprehensive signing. Many changes to
the permanent signs were made, to prepare for the introduction
of the NET Line One tram services in March 2004 (whose Station
Street stop can be accessed from the mid-platform overbridge).
However, despite Pedals many reminders about the need for signing,
this opportunity to include references to the cycle lockers was
not taken.
Fairly soon after the lockers were installed
Nottingham City Council, in cooperation with Central Trains and
Pedals, did issue a leaflet to publicise the lockers which had
some impact but only limited because this was not followed up
by proper signing within the Station. Pedals has helped to distribute
copies of this leaflet.
A further problem discouraging usage was the
difficulty that would-be users had in getting information on how
to use the lockers. In theory information could be obtained from
the information kiosk at the north end of the overbridge but in
practice, feedback to Pedals suggested, the kiosk was often unmanned
and, when it was, staff on duty often did not appear to know anything
about the lockers let alone have the ability to give cyclists
confident advice on how to use them. This was not very encouraging
for people turning up, and wanting to leave their bikes easily,
efficiently and quickly, and then catch their trains!
All these problems were pointed out on various
occasions to Central Trains, including a meeting in July 2005
with Sharon Smith of Central Trains (Route Manager, Nottingham
and Robin Hood) but still no action has been taken to improve
the situation! The problems have also been raised on numerous
occasions with Nottingham City Council staff responsible for liaising
with Central Trains and for cycling, ie Richard Wood and Steve
Brewer of City Development.
No attempt was made by Central Trains to learn
from the experience of managing cycle lockers elsewhere, eg to
reduce security risks by schemes that allowed the operator to
keep an exact record of who was using them. After all this long
saga of problems and a prolonged failure, after many attempts
to resolve them, it was very disappointing recently to learn that
the lockers had now, for security reasons, been taken out of service
at the Station. This has been all the more disappointing when,
we understand from the CTC Public Transport Campaigner, Dave Holladay,
that not all cycle lockers at Category A stations have in face
been taken out of service, in distinct contrast to the information
from Central Trains that the decision for Nottingham Station was
"non-negotiable while the current security rating was in
position".
Since many local cyclists are reluctant to leave
their bikes in the Porte Cochere area because of fears about theft
and vandalism, the provision of more secure forms of cycle parking,
especially for longer-term use, remains essential, and the present
situation is most unsatisfactory. We would much welcome any help
that the Committee's report can give, directly or indirectly,
in getting these problems resolved.
FUTURE PLANS
AT NOTTINGHAM
STATION AFFECTING
CYCLE PARKING
DEMAND AND
PROVISION
There are plans for a major redevelopment of
Nottingham Station in the next few years and Pedals has made detailed
comments about the importance of taking this opportunity both
to improve and extend short- and longer-term cycle parking at
the station and also to make further improvements in cycle access,
to help reduce the need for station users to access the station
by motor vehicle.
Cycle access has already improved with the series
of measures in recent years by Nottingham City Council and British
Waterways to improve the towpath of the Beeston and Nottingham
canal which runs less than 100 metres north of the station, forming
a very useful east-west traffic-free route to the south of the
City Centre.
Overcoming the present security problems affecting
the provision of good secure long-term bike parking will become
even more vital in future once these major changes are implemented
and the number of passengers using the Station grows even more
rapidly than in the last few years.
October 2005
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