Mare Street, London Lane & St Thomas’s Square Junction - Proposed Road Safety scheme

Overview

This consultation outlines proposals to relocate two bus stops on Mare Street at its junctions with London Lane and St Thomas’s Square. We are now seeking your views on the proposals.

Why are we proposing changes?

The Council is committed to making our roads safer for everyone living, working and visiting the borough.

We are proposing these changes, primarily to improve road safety at this junction and encourage residents and visitors to switch to cleaner and greener transport options, particularly walking, cycling and public transport.

The alignment between St Thomas’s Square and London Lane across Mare Street forms part of Cycleway 27 (C27). The C27 route, formerly known as Quietway 2 (Q2), runs from Walthamstow in the east to Bloomsbury in the west. The section from Walthamstow to Hackney was opened in 2018 attracting a high number of cyclists.

C27 is a key cycle network which links with a number of main cycleways across the Capital. C27 joins Cycleway 1 formerly known as Cycle Superhighway 1 (CS1) in De Beauvoir Town, Cycleway 6 in Bloomsbury, Cycleway 11 at Angel and Cycleway 13 at London Fields.

The junction also attracts a high number of pedestrians who use the central island as a refuge while crossing Mare Street.

Nine collisions were recorded at this junction in a five year period up to July 2023. One of these collisions involved a pedestrian being seriously injured by a car while crossing Mare Street in front of a stationary bus. Three collisions involved cyclists, two involved motorcyclists and three involved other vehicles.

The proposed changes are aimed at improving visibility from St Thomas’s Square and London Lane into Mare Street, making it safer to cross Mare Street. Currently the visibility from the side roads is often blocked by buses waiting at the bus stop to the north of St Thomas’s Square and to the south of London Lane.

Encouraging the use of cleaner transport options and reducing non-essential private car journeys are key long-term objectives for the Council due to the wide range of benefits these transport options can bring, including:

• Reducing potential road accidents
• Creating safer, cleaner and quieter residential streets
• Improving personal mobility and health through the use of sustainable transport.

What are we proposing?

Please refer to the drawing here for details. The proposals include:

• Relocating the existing Mare Street bus stop from the south to the north side of London Lane. This new bus stop will continue to accommodate all the northbound bus routes. These changes would require the permanent removal of five pay & display parking bays.
• Retaining two pay & display parking bays to the north of London Lane to support residents and businesses.
• Removing the existing Mare Street bus stop currently located to the north of St Thomas’s Square.
• Merging all the existing southbound bus routes (55, 106, 236, N253, 254, 277 and N277) to the existing bus stop currently located to the south of St Thomas’s Square.
• Introducing an uncontrolled pedestrian crossing with dropped kerbs between the two bus stops, using the existing central island. The existing tree would be relocated and two new trees would be planted.

What happens next?

Your views will also be taken into account as part of the detailed design process. We will publish the consultation responses as well as the decisions made at consultation.hackney.gov.uk/streetscene/mare-street-bus-2

Permanent works

If the scheme goes ahead following consultation, we expect construction works to start around January 2025 with completion in about six weeks. Further information regarding the works will be sent out closer to the time.

Information

For further information on these proposals, please contact the Hackney Service Centre by calling: 020 8356 2897 or emailing: streetscene.consultations@hackney.gov.uk

Accessibility statement

If you need any information on this consultation in a different format please email consultation@hackney.gov.uk.

We’ll consider your request and get back to you in five working days.

Frequently asked questions

Q. Where can I load/unload if I receive deliveries?

Delivery vehicles will still be able to get to your home or business. Additionally, active loading and unloading can take place on all single and double yellow lines where there are no loading restrictions as well as within parking bays. For any specific requests, such as removals, you can request a dispensation or a bay suspension. Please visit our website for more information: hackney.gov.uk/parking

Q. Will I be able to access my home / business?

Yes. During construction we would aim to keep the roads open, however, some lane closures may be necessary. If you are a resident or business owner in the area and you have a motor vehicle, you would still be able to drive to your home or business. Sections of footway closures may be required to allow for bus stop accessibility works and installation of the bus shelter and bus stop flag. Access to private homes will be maintained at all times.