Cabinet member for Traffic and Transportation, Cllr Jason Fazackarley, gave his support of two-way cycling in Charlotte Street, Landport at his decision meeting on 19 January.

The comment was made in response to a deputation from Portsmouth Cycle Forum where the experimental traffic regulation order changing the direction of traffic on this one-way street was made permanent.

Senior Traffic Engineer, Barry Rawlings, advised that a study should be carried out to ensure that two-way cycling would be safe. He said that the road is narrower than most roads in the city where two-way cycling is currently permitted.

Cycle Forum Chairman, John Holland said,

“We welcome the decision to consider two-way cycling in Charlotte Street. The road could form part of a vital east-west link for cyclists linking the city centre with Unicorn Gate and routes to Gunwharf Quays. Whilst we acknowledge that the road is narrow, parking is not permitted anywhere along its length. The available carriageway width is no different from most other one-way streets in Portsmouth with two-way cycling where vehicles are parked on both sides of the road.”

Cllr Fazackarley invited members of the Forum to participate in the study which will include a site meeting.

It is the City Council’s policy that two-way cycling should be established on one-way streets where it is safe and sensible to do so. Several one-way roads within the city now have two-way cycling and all have 20mph speed limits in force. A recent Government decision has relaxed the rules on signage for permitting two-way cycling.