Dear <<First Name>> 

Cycle Colchester, part of Colchester city council, this week got its hands on a new city cycling map, fresh from the printers.

In full colour and folded A3 format, the map shows the cycling network (east to west, north to south) from University Quays to Tollgate and from Northern Gateway to Friday Wood.

Handily it labels busy roads such as Bergholt Road and warns that the path in the ancient Grymes Dyke is a "seasonal route".

The map also shows places of interest as well as bike crossings, subways and traffic-light crossings. It contains a host of information including "bikes on trains", looking for Cycle Colchester route markers, and "how long will my journey take?".

The campaign has to say that it particularly likes the artwork by Dan Smith, below, and EventMaps is to be commended for the overall design. 

Mike Polom of Cycle Colchester  ...

... said: "This is our first paper map in a long time. Despite our best efforts I'm sure we'll find some issues to correct. If anyone spots anything we'll look to make changes in our 2027 update.

"A sincere thank you to the local cyclists who helped with the mapping, look and feel and feedback sessions we had last summer. All of that contributed to what we've put together.

"Please let me know if you think of anywhere local that may wish to stock the maps or if you would like to volunteer to help distribute them."

The first distribution points will include the town hall, Visit Colchester (in the Hollytrees Museum, Castle Park), Colchester Bike Kitchen in Sir Isaac's Walk and various cycle stores. All should have stocks by midweek.

You can view a PDF version of the map, which is funded by Defra, here: https://cyclecolchester.co.uk/content/uploads/2025/07/Cycle-Colchester-Edition-1-July-2025-web.pdf

Essex County Council has started a second phase of consultation on the new  transport strategy: A Better Connected Essex.

The cycling campaign will be putting together a response via a shared Google Docs paper. At the moment this is largely blank (!) and "view only" but if you would like commenting access so that you can add your ideas please email will@colchester-cycling.org.uk

The consultation runs until September 24 and we will be looking to have our response ready by September 17.

To view the strategy, visit https://consultations.essex.gov.uk/essex-highways/better-connected-essex/

You can of course comment as an individual.

The county council says: "Feedback is important and will help inform our future decisions and unlock future funding opportunities."

The new local transport plan is expected to be formally adopted by Essex this year, before local government reorganisation takes place. 

Jean Quinn, a campaign committee member, completed an epic ride from Colchester to Devon and raised more than £2,100 for the Prostate Cancer UK charity. Well done Jean!  Read more in the Gazette (though the proceeds have gone up since then).

Another group of Colchester cyclists will soon be setting out to do Lejog – Land's End to John O'Groats – to raise money for the city's St Helena Hospice. Details here.

Liverpool is testing vehicles for its rapid transit service and this BBC story gives a clue as to what they will look like when the east Colchester to Northern Gateway via the city centre route goes live. 

The campaign will be watching Liverpool closely. "Bendy buses" led to several casualties in London before they were withdrawn.

Colchester Cycling Campaign uses Email Octopus to create this newsletter. If you would like to do the same for your organisation please use this link https://emailoctopus.com/?urli=XN4MS. The campaign and the new group each get a "new joiner" benefit of 15 USD (about £12). 

Old Heath Community Bike Hub has a new electric box trike to loan out and it is offering half-price hires on all its cycles in August –  a bargain £5 a day. 

The £5,500 German-made Aitours family C can carry four children with a total weight of 100kg – just right for a day of exploring. The bike hub can advise on the best destinations and routes too!

The Aitours has the highest torque of any box trike so steep hills are no problem. The trike was funded by a grant from Active Essex. Visit this Facebook page for more information: https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1Wyfk4CZsW/

Members of the cycling campaign joined various other people to write to Nicole Wood, the chief executive of Essex County Council, to urge a review of the county's policy in light of the amazing results of area-wide 20mph in Wales and London.

We said that Essex was legally required to make the roads as safe as possible and that no one could deny the success of area-wide 20mph.

We extrapolated the Welsh results to show that Essex could expect between 380 and 470 fewer deaths and serious injuries a year if it followed the example set by Wales. This makes the current situation nothing short of a public health emergency.

At present Essex puts its faith largely in 20mph zones, which cover the areas outside some schools but make no allowance for children walking a distance to school, or during weekends and holidays. Elderly people also benefit from area-wide 20mph and there are fewer car on car crashes and cheaper motoring insurance.

With all this in mind, Ms Wood's response was disappointing. We are currently working on a reply.

The 20mph letter to Nicole Wood: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1b4Te5cQ2lNDiUQgdYD3pE4oyCMDFfzSekoXAGzl4cBs/edit?usp=sharing

Nicole Wood's reply:

If you support 20mph for Essex, please follow the campaign on Facebook: Join the 20mph page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1288593105963445 

Chris Blomeley writes: I've always loved the idea of a cycle school bus but never had the chance to develop it until I met Clare O'Connel. 

Clare is a parent of children who attend Millfields primary school and she was very interested in the idea. We soon hatched a plan and launched the Wivenhoe Cycle Bus. 

The Wivenhoe Bike Kitchen often supports the Friday event to and from school. We have as many as 30 children on the bus plus parents. For 15 minutes on a Friday, the road is ours...one observer commented: "Wow! What a joyful sight! It's like a carnival!". 

Wivenhoe Town Council supported the launch with a donation of £150 to buy hi-vis jackets. Roll on September when we will be riding again. If you would like more information, ring me on 07799 494 797 or email repairreuse@gmail.com

Find out more at greenwaynorthessex.org.

New cycle lockers are now available to book at Colchester Town railway station at St Botolph's. See  https://www.gazette-news.co.uk/news/25073048.colchester-town-station-welcomes-new-cycle-storage-lockers/

They are operated by Spokesafe, the same company that looks after the secure bike park in the city centre.

You may not believe it but the Northern Approach road cycleway is finally open ... or at least we've been told officially that it should be by midweek. 

For this month's Bike Meet on Tuesday August 19 we will meet at 7.30pm (note the earlier time) on the northeastern side of the railway bridge to ride en masse up Bruff Close and the NAR before going down Mile End Road for a drink at the Bricklayers Arms in Mile End Road. 

Everyone welcome. If you have any questions please email stuart@colchester-cycling.org.uk

There's no movement to report on bridge repairs/replacement but at least there is a diversion if you're happy to try some rough riding. 

This route cuts out Gun Hill and/or the A134 at Nayland by making use of Langham Mill Lane (a track on OS maps) which leaves the B1068 just east of Thorrington Street and crosses the River Stour at Langham Mill waterworks. Here's a visual of the B1068 end of the path. You have to lift your bike up a few steps to cross the bridges over the river ...

... at the southern end. Will Bramhill, the campaign secretary, says he's cycled it a few times since spring and the dry weather meant it was easily passable, especially if you stick to the centre of the track. 

He said: "I can offer no guarantees on what the route will be like after rain/flooding. Even in July I chickened out of using the ford and took my bike over the adjacent bridge."

Will adds: "Langham Mill dated to the 1270s and in the 1920s it was a beauty spot sought out by many cyclists and recorded by Frank Patterson, the cycling artist. 

"Sadly the mill closed in 1924 and the waterworks and new bridges are not as picturesque. The 55 million litres of water extracted and treated here each day are piped to Danbury and then on to London." 

If you have lived in Colchester for 50 years or more you may know where Pages Garage used to be ... although the signpost to Maldon is a clue too.

This is Crouch Street looking west, roughly where the subway is now. The building on the right still exists (note the double bay) and in the picture below it is immediately next to Balkerne Hill.

We wish we could go back in time to interview the cyclist and ask what he would think of the current layout. We suspect they'd be along the lines of "a subway I can't cycle through? Tha's crazy, bor!" ... or perhaps his views would be too blue to print here. 

The road then was so wide. What happened to it? (Hint: see previous story)

If you want to try leisure rides, Colchester Cycling Campaign recommends both Cycling For Pleasure and Happy Handlebars. Both clubs run a variety of events for people of different abilities. 

Cycling for Pleasure: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1594722180845186

Happy Handlebars: https://www.facebook.com/HappyHandlebarsColch

Other clubs and local routes to try: https://www.colchester-cycling.org.uk/maps-rides-clubs.html 

Colchester Cycling Campaign has lots of LOCAL cycling advice on its website. If you have a question, make our advice page your first port of call.

Visit https://www.colchester-cycling.org.uk/advice.html

... but at least work is well under way.

Have you signed the Colchester Cycling Charter yet? If not, please do. If you work or volunteer, please ask your organisation to sign too. The more people on bikes, the fewer traffic jams will snarl up our city.

Feel free to pass on this newsletter via email and social media by using the link at the very top ... and encourage your friends to join the campaign so they receive their own copy every month.

Chairman: Stuart Johnson
Vice-secretary: Will Bramhill
Treasurer: Catherine Johnson
Your committee: Alex Hooper, Chris Stevenson, Jean Quinn, Nathaniel Catchpole, Alan Spence, Kristin Bradley and Paul Byrne