Huntingdon ring road changes planned in response to death

Cambridgeshire County Council (CCC) carried out a review of the ring road following Auriol Grey's manslaughter conviction this year after she was found guilty of causing Mrs Ward's death on the Nursery Road in 2020.

During the trial, Police and CCC could not "categorically" state whether the pavement was a shared cycleway.

The shared-use path used by Mrs Ward was only 2.4 metres wide, 0.6 metres smaller than the minimum required for cycle/pedestrian paths. (Image: John Morris)

CCC said that some "gaps" were identified during the review of the signage on the shared-use path around the ring road and that funding is being sought to provide the missing signage.

READ MORE: Pedestrian jailed for causing cyclist's death in Huntingdon

Further planned changes were highlighted in an Audit and Options paper published in July 2023, which includes the installation of clearer signage and the printing and distributing updated cycle maps on the council's website and in public buildings.

'End of Route' signs have already been installed on Ambury Road, and in the long term, the status of the whole ring road as an active travel route will be reviewed.

READ MORE: Where are the worst cycle and pedestrian routes in Huntingdonshire?

The report added: "Following the recent incident on Nursery Road, the county has, and will continue to, reaffirm the importance of all users taking care and being considerate to each other."

'They have my full support in this'

Huntingdon MP Jonathan Djanogly welcomed the changes proposed by CCC and said: "The tragic incident that took place in October 2020 on Nursery Road should never have happened, and my thoughts remain with Mrs Ward's family and friends.

"Both cyclists and pedestrians rightfully expect to be able to navigate the area safely, and, having spoken with a number of constituents about this matter since, I know how widely concerns about it are felt.

Mr Djanogly has welcomed CCC's proposed changes with a view to improving cyclist and pedestrian safety. (Image: Archant)

"I am very pleased the county council has now outlined changes that are being considered, including better signage around the area in question, and they have my full support in this.

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"We will, of course, want to see action on these proposals, most of which are yet to happen, and I shall be following developments closely."

Full list of planned changes:

Short term:

• 'End of Route' signs installed on Ambury Road (July 2023)
• Uploading of updated cycle maps to the County's website and circulation of the printed maps to libraries, community centres and bike shops (by September 2023).
• Installation of additional signs to ensure clear and consistent signage of the cycle route around the ring road (timing dependent on funding availability).
• Officers will continue to work with the County Council's communications team and Vision Zero partners to identify and utilise the most effective and appropriate channels and messaging on user behaviour.

Longer term:

• As part of prioritised routes within the Cambridgeshire Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan, options for improving the cycling and walking provision on some sections of the ring road, such as Walden Rd and Castle Moat Road, are being considered.
• The status of the whole ring road as an active travel route will be reviewed as part of ongoing work on the Active Travel Strategy and Huntingdonshire Transport Strategy. The potential for further improvements to the ring road and links to the surrounding cycle network in Huntingdon (including, for example, the links to Godmanchester, Brampton, Houghton, and through the town centre) will be looked at. In some areas, the width available is likely to make significant improvements difficult without changes to traffic management or reallocation of road space from motor vehicle traffic to active travel use.