Improvements to the cycling infrastructure in St Albans are being made, but more could be done. We are firm believers in the benefits associated with the use of active transport, and the St Albans Cycle Campaign (STACC) are doing a great job in making this easier for residents. Rona Wightman from STACC put together this blog below as an update for what is going on with our cycling infrastructure in St Albans.
Greetings from the St Albans Cycle Campaign (STACC). Although our members are mostly active cyclists, we are not so much campaigning for existing cyclists, we are campaigning for people who ‘want to cycle but….’ So although our efforts are for existing cyclists too, our main aim is to make walking and cycling an attractive and viable choice for getting around. The health benefits of active travel are for everyone, with personal and public health improvements and of course environmental improvements too. If more people choose walking and cycling over driving, congestion reduces which benefits drivers too. We have been campaigning for twenty five years, so it is a bit disappointing that St Albans District is not yet a cycling paradise, in spite of our efforts. However, increasingly things are getting better for walking, wheeling and cycling.
A recent success has been the removal of the barriers in the middle of the link between Jennings Road and Lemsford Road. These barriers were installed in 2020 and did not comply with design standards, thereby excluding users of non-standard cycles such as tandems and box-bikes – cycles typically used by people with mobility impairments or young children – and making life harder for everyone else, especially those pushing double buggies.
Another very visible recent improvement has been the resurfacing of extensive sections of the A1081 NCN6 shared footway between Harpenden and St Albans. The mudbath near Hawkswick, which STACC and others have been reporting for years, has been replaced with smooth tarmac. While the renewal falls short of modern design standards for shared use routes, it is a very welcome improvement.
If you would like to find out more about STACC, and perhaps subscribe and receive our regular bulletins and actively join in, our website is www.stacc.org.uk.  If you would ‘like to cycle but… are not confident cycling’, we recommend the St Albans Cycle Hub, which is running Bikeability ‘learn to ride’ courses and also cycle maintenance basics courses.  Their website is Home | St Albans Cycle Hub | Sales | Service | Repair | Training | Rides |
Not quite St Albans; The road from Hemel to St Albans past Prae wood is only useable in the summer for what might be an easy cycle commute. No lights and narrow lanes make it risky atthe best of times. Might we/you campaign for a cycle track there? There’s no facility for even pedestrians that might need to go to houses, golf courses etc. along the way.
I have asked the council and they said no. Probably because it takes more than moving away from a keyboard and screen.