Bike Hangars

Lewisham does not seem to have a policy for implementing bike hangers, but Ive noticed on my street (Como Road) that there are a number of bikes now being chained to lamp posts and some people putting little bike lockers in their front yard.

My lease does not allow a front yard bike locker, but I have a couple of bikes that would certainly get more use if they were in a bike hanger.

If anyone feels that getting a bike hanger might be a good idea, here are some instructions as to how to go about requesting it (pretty much just sending an email).

http://lewishamcyclists.co.uk/lewisham-new-cycle-parking-requests/

Ive done this a couple of times over the past few years, and never received a response, but with the recent increase in cycling around London - its worth trying again.

Hi Comoed- this sounds a great idea! As a fellow Como Road-er have emailed them too! (This is my first post too- been a lurker for a while!!)

@comoed would you be able to install a ground anchor? The other option if that is a no go is to install the anchor into a bucket filled with concrete. It won’t stop people stealing bits of bike but will stop them stealing the whole bike.

Thanks for the hints @Londondrz but Im afraid because we’re the top floor of a maisonette we arent allowed to do anything with our front yard as it belongs to our downstairs neighbour. Have to lug the bike down the stairs if I want to use it

Astonishingly I got a reply from the council already, sadly it is not very promising-

'Thank you for your email. I am sorry for the delay in replying.

At present we are only installing bike hangers on housing estate roads. There are a number of issues that need to be resolved, including the availability of finding, before we can develop a programme for installing bike hangers or cycle hoops on the public highway.

I hope this is helpful.

regards’

I just got the same reply, word for word. It is strange because if you venture over the border into Lambeth, they are everywhere.

I guess this means “funding”.

I assume so! I could ‘find’ several locations very suitable! And yes, I have a friend who lived in Brixton until recently- they had them bloomin’ everywhere!

Oh, that is a pain. I hope you are able to sort something out.

What Ive been doing for the past five years or so is just leaving my bike at the bottom of the stairs after getting home from work each day, ready to use the next morning. With young kids we never leave the house in the evening anyway - however it does mean problems if anyone comes round or we get groceries delivered.

In my email to them, I suggested the little bit of Como Road at the bottom (opposite #2) which is not outside anyone’s house and is away from traffic

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.4388957,-0.043641,20.25z

I received the same reply a year ago! It’s also ironic that there is so little provision of bike hangers within Lewisham, yet cycle hoop who provide them are based on Perry Vale!

Strangely enough that is almost exactly the same place I suggested!

This website http://www.cyclehoop.rentals/ shows the locations currently installed- shows the massive number in Lambeth compared to the almost none in Forest Hill/Lewisham in general!

Ive just emailed them again to see if I can get them to point me in the direction of the current policy so I can see what I should be asking for, how and where. Its not as though these things are free to rent, we will still have to pay rental for them, and it appears that there already are some (although very few) in Lewisham - so we just need to know what to do next to move this forward.

Something like this http://winerides.co.uk/bromley-how-to-get-a-bike-hangar-on-your-street/#.V_9sQ_krJpg might be a way forward?

I like this. I’ve pasted the conclusion at the bottom of the article below. In Como Road, who is the councillor that we could contact about this?

Key things to remember:
• This is not the first one, there are loads in Lambeth. This is nothing new.
• Where they exist they are VERY popular.
• They are no uglier than any other piece of street furniture. There is no problem installing them in conservation areas.
• They will ask why you can’t have it on your property: You need an answer for that.

Finally: If you do want one of these then Fairness is fundamental.
Without whingeing and always being seen to be reasonable: you have to
frame it in terms of what’s fair: 6 people get bike parking for half a
car parking space. It’s an accident of history that cars can park all
over the place, and that is “normal”. Cars spend 90% of their existence
parked, we only want bike hangars because our bikes are in constant use.
Once you have one there is no looking back: I love ours. We have even
repainted all the walls in our hallway. No longer do I need to lug a
wet bike up the stairs on my shoulder. I am getting to meet the other
cyclists on my street! Now I don’t know what I would do without it.

The relevant councillors seem to be John Paschoud, Alan Till and Susan Wise (see http://councilmeetings.lewisham.gov.uk/mgMemberIndex.aspx?FN=WARD).
I’m not sure which of them would be the most appropriate but am happy to draft/ help draft a letter to them!

And possibly to leaflet as well- There is a useful leaflet here: http://www.cyclehoop.rentals/suggest-location/ that could be used for this?

@John_Paschoud is on the forum and may be able to advise?

Thanks @anon5422159 . Will your reply flag his name is in this thread? I’m not sure I know how/ have the right to send him a direct message?

Yes, he’s been notified by email about this thread.

Private messaging is a feature that’s automatically enabled for active and regular participants of SE23.life. Optionally, you can fast-track this process by getting your profile verified.

Having moved into Lewisham from Southwark in March, I am finding many things missing I took for granted in that other borough.

As an update @John_Paschoud contacted me via private message (and due to some technical incompetence on my part I accidentally posted my reply to him above) so I have forwarded on details of the kind of thing we are after and he said he will contact the highways team.

Here’s hoping we can move forward from here.

There was draft Cycle Strategy for Lewisham circulating during the summer. The Council was due to adopt this at some point but I don’t know where it’s gotten to. It might be worth checking on this as it should contain something covering cycle hangars.

It’s a shame that Lewisham Council are not more supportive of this. Not only is it super efficient (replacing one car parking space with up to 12 bike parking spaces), but they’re made right here in Forest Hill so it would be supporting local enterprise.

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Here are a couple of photos of Como Road yesterday. Four bikes parked next to lampposts. I haven’t yet had a reply from the council about whether the footpath constitutes public highway or not but I also note that cars park (and therefore drive) on the footpath for about half the length of the road.

I can clarify that generally speaking, yes the footway is part of the public highway.
Not sure if driving on the footway is illegal, I think it is, but as the footway is built to a much lower strength tolerance than the carriageway then driving on the FW will certainly wear it out quicker. Parking on the FW, or part on part off, is sometimes allowed in marked bays. Sometimes if you didn’t park on the FW on both sides you wouldn’t have room for another car able to drive down the road!

Thanks for the info on public highways, @Jon_Robinson. In terms of the ‘estate roads’ mentioned in the email from Lewisham highways

I wonder if that includes the cut through between Trilby and Sunderland Rds? I’ve got some time coming up to be able to spend on this, so will be starting a mini-campaign to get some action from Lewisham on this, but would like to have as many facts as possible before I start.

Hi @comoed - interesting question, that could be a place where one could go! Though how safe people would feel using it might be questionable? Willing to help out if there’s anything you’d like some help with!

Ive had a reply from cyclehoop about costs, so have forwarded on to @John_Paschoud regarding their cost details for a bike hanger. For everyone else, details are:

The cost of a Bikehangar is £2,850 plus £400 for installation and delivery.
Total = £3,250 ex. VAT
There is then a rentals cost which covers management and maintenance of the Bikehangars, in some boroughs this is part subsided by the council.
If there is no subsidy, the cost per user per year is £60+VAT.
Our contact at the council is Nick Harvey, Cycling Programme Manager, Nick.Harvey@lewisham.gov.uk.

Hi Lee - Ive been thinking about the best way forward, and have a number of ideas, some of which I’ve shared with the council (no reply just yet). I think perhaps doing leafleting with the cards you linked to above might be an idea, but delivering them in person on say, a Saturday afternoon might help a little more. Perhaps we could meet up to discuss? Anyone else interested?

Happy to have some of the cards at the shop to give to my customers that cycle if it helps

Thanks for your kind offer @Pauline but the idea of bike hangers is that they are used by people who live in the close vicinity. In our case its really only the people who live on our street or very nearby that would be affected. I’m hoping that by going door to door that we can meet a few more of our neighbours and get them behind this so that its easier to make the short trips by bike more viable and therefore take cars off the road = less pollution and friendlier streets etc etc.

By the way, I rode down to B&Q at Bell Green yesterday to get a few DIY odds and ends, it only took 4 mins by bike and you get to park right out the front of the shop. It nearly took longer to lock my bike up than actually ride it there. I was amazed, and this from someone who cycles a lot.

It took me a long time to work out that this thread was about bike hangars (which I’ve never heard of before) rather than bike hangers (hadn’t heard of them either, but they’re hooks for hanging bikes off walls, apparently).

I have amended the thread’s title to avoid others being similarly confused.

Well I’m afraid, for the time being the thread will have to stop here. I finally got a reply from the council and they have informed me that they are still creating a policy. Contractors have to be chosen for implementation and a programme needs to be devised.

They are expecting to have a method for residents being able to request a bike hangar by Feb 2017. (sigh)

In the meantime other boroughs are forging ahead

Hi,

Sorry for the slow response, just back from holiday! I am happy to help with leafleting etc- although seeing your most recent post it seems that there might not be much point until February?!

Well, I have followed this up with the highways department at Lewisham council and they’ve replied saying that they will now do a consultation in April rather than by the end of February. I think I’m being fobbed off - as its the same amount of time since I last started asking questions of them in October/November last year. I also inquired at the same time about a policy document, but all I got was literally a one liner in reply. I replied again only to get an “this email wont be checked for 2 weeks” auto reply.

Does anyone know how to find out this stuff from the council? I asked if there was a place on their website, if I could do a call or meet in person and I know they are underfunded etc etc, but this is pretty unprofessional behaviour.

If it’s anything like Hackney Council they are probably vastly over subscribed. In three years they’ve had over 5000 requests, and the waiting list is ‘several years’ as there is so little funding, plus each one has to replace either road linings, or a parking space, so they have to consultation on every one!

It sounds like Hackney Council has a policy then, I am only trying to find out if there is actually a policy in Lewisham, as I have been told so far that there isn’t - I’m not even trying to request a bike hanger (although that’s where I started).

That’s cool! Where are they made?

They’re made in one of the industrial units adjacent to Perry Vale car park.

Wouldn’t a Brommie save all these problems from under the stairs at home to under the desk at work and converts to a shopping trolley on the way home?

IMHO the major drawback is getting the initial grand investment together. But there isn’t a sounder cycling investment. I could probably get near to what I paid for mine 11 years ago.

FYI: Lewisham does not give a f*** about cycle hangars. Hackney, Lambeth and Southwark council all have departments, employees and budgets set aside for it. Lewisham does not. Looking at the (supposedly) incoming council tax increase and service cuts I doubt that will change either.

If enough people contact the council asking what provision there is, they will change their minds.
try things like asking your local councillor to raise the question at a council meeting, or submitting FOI requests asking how many requests there have been for cycle hangars in the past twelve months, or ask the council to provide you with a map of where all their cycle parking facilities are. Try to find out the number of cyclist KSIs (Killed or Seriously Injured) accidents in the borough, or the number of reports of stolen bicycles.
a lot of the funding that other councils have for cycle provisions (cycle quietways, hangars, cycle stands, permiability issues, etc is actually TfL funding for Local Implementation Plans - not directly funded through local council tax.

I have a 50km round trip to work. There is no way that I’m doing that on 16" wheels!! However good a Brompton might be for a commute into the city, it wont do a lot of the things that I need a bike to be able to do eg tow my son’s trailer bike, go fast etc

@anon86223367 sadly I think you’re right. I just wish they would say so instead of telling me that they are going to make a decision on it in three months time every three months

I have included my local councillor in the correspondence I’ve had with Lewisham but to no avail as yet. I’ll start ramping up my emailing campaign then.

Hi Comoed,

That’s what a lot of people say who haven’t done it. It would have included me some time ago. I got my Brommie in 2006 to go in the boot for getting from the out of town car park to the meeting.

Then, by accident, I couldn’t use my road bike for an unsupported London to Paris ride. Not doing it was out of the question. Doing it on only three gears was a revelation and the start of seeing it as rather more than a commuter bike. Since then it has gone up Welsh mountains, dipped its front wheel in the Med, done Imperial tons and done over 40 mph downhill on, yes, 16" wheels. The faster you go the more stable it is. It’s done everything and even more than my road bike (like converting to a shopping trolley around the Co-op).

Oh and in case you are thinking I’m some sort of superman - I’m 68 and no stronger than years of doing a 18 miles round trip commute to Euston in my younger years can make.

Would you like me to post the videos of Brommies pulling trailers and worse? Go on, give in and get one. Actually you can hire them from £2.50 a day making them ideal to pack on the plane, boat or train to somewhere exotic. Its like cocaine. You know you shouldn’t but if you do …

Meanwhile OT the USP I found most useful was not having to worry about parking the Brommie and wondering if it would be there on my return. You simply keep it with you. Goes under the table in a restaurant, Sits nicely in a small out of sight gap in the house …

Ah, but which set of 16" wheels do you buy?

So after I queried the council why they were going to take three more months to appoint a contractor to carry out installation of potential bike hangars around Lewisham and if they could point me in the direction of an official policy document, they informed me that there is no official policy document and all they can do is assure me that that is the time frame.

Frustration.

Another possible solution, spotted amongst @BlancheCameron’s tweets:

These look great, but until Lewisham Council come up with a policy and appoint a contractor for installation it doesn’t matter what kind of public bike storage options are out there, there wont be any installed in the borough.

Voice your opinions to highways@lewisham.gov.uk

Hi also campaigning for a cycle locker near Honor oak park parade as no room in my flat. Anyone else need one here? If so please request via this link

http://www.cyclehoop.rentals/suggest-location/

Also emailing the council . …

Hello

I also live in Lewisham and desperately want bike parking! I’ve been in touch with Imogen Payami at Lewisham Highways. She told me on 3 March that they were on track to appoint a contractor to install the bikehangers by the end of March… so progress is being made?

Great to hear, and welcome to SE23.life, @Leanne_Meredith

Hi @leanne_meredith I was told by Imogen around that time a contractor would be appointed by the end of April - but then she also told me “by the end of Feb” back in November. I don’t have a high level of trust in her word…

“The end of March”, which year I wonder?

I’m moving to Honor Oak Park next month, first thing i did was email Lewisham council to ask about bikehangers.

They said 1 month ago that they would appoint a contractor to provide hangers by the end of March.

I’m chasing them on it now to see if it’s happening.

Yes Highways said to me working on a joint tender with Southwark Council to appoint a contractor in mid march. Again by march. Just asked for an update too.

Hi @comoed

Can I suggest you contact Cllr Mark Ingleby. He is our “bike champion” for the whole borough. He will be in the know and would be the best person to drive a policy detail.

His details:
Bus. phone: 0208 698 8562

Email: Cllr_mark.ingleby@lewisham.gov.uk

Star! I’ll call and email after the Easter weekend

Highways say the decision to appoint a contractor has been delayed till June

Well, we’re in June now. Let’s all try again and see if we can get this moving!!

highways@lewisham.gov.uk

I’ve just emailed highways again, this time cc-ing Cllr Mark Ingleby to see if getting it on his radar will help.

BTW, last I checked on https://www.cyclehoop.rentals/ I don’t remember seeing these hangars in Crofton Park. Are they new?

I have just got a response from the email that I sent at the beginning of June (with the chain going all the way back to Sept last year), copying in Mark Ingleby and John Paschaud. It basically said that there is a joint consultation taking place with Southwark and they expect (again!!) to have some kind of policy by October this year.

Anyway - feeling deflated from the above, I sighed and carried on. However, today I got an email saying that because I have requested a bike hangar in the past, I could could now use a new facility on the Lewisham website to do just that. So in order to keep everything equal - as I don’t believe I deserve special treatment, I thought I’d post the link here:

http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/myservices/transport/cycling/pages/bike-storage-for-hire.aspx

Request away people! The more people on bikes, the better life is for everyone.

Thanks for this! Request done!

I had an e mail also regarding requesting a hanger as they are moving closer to installing them. Application returned

Discussion continues here: Bike Hangers (Secure Cycle Storage)