metMarch2010
NOTES OF HFCYCLISTS MEETING
Held on Tuesday2 March 2010,
715 for 7.30pm
at the home of John Griffiths
122c Edith rd / West Kensington / W14 9AP
020 7371 1290 / 07789 095 748
PRESENT: Insp. Paul Bambro, Ayse Kardes, John Griffiths, Andrew Frederick, Susie Gretz, David Marsh
APOLOGIES: Sharon Norris, Petrina Beaufoy Helm, Julie Askins, Paul Saunderson, Gerry Berridge.
DATE OF NEXT MEETING
Tuesday 6 April, 715 for 7.30pm
at the home of John Griffiths
122c Edith rd / West Kensington / W14 9AP
020 7371 1290 / 07789 095 748
PLEASE COMMENT ON MANIFESTO BELOW, and register for Crime Summit if interested.
DISCUSSION WITH INSP PAUL BAMBRO
Paul Bambro explained that he is the Partnership and Crime Prevention Inspector for the Borough, and is based at Hammersmith Police Station. John had sent him some suggested topics and these and other things were discussed. Below is John's summary of Paul's answers and comments.
Stolen Bikes:
If the police recover a stolen bike they check the frame number. This
is put into the MET's Crime reporting Information System [CRIS]. This
covers all London Boroughs. If the frame number is known, and the bike
is reported stolen from any London borough and found in any London borough
then the bike should be returned to the owner. The police also check immobolise.com.
However the number of bikes returned to their rightful owner is surprisingly small. A colleague told Paul that he expected the number restored to owner from the Hammersmith local store was perhaps as little as 1 in 50.
Unclaimed bikes are stored
for a while. Some are then kept in the Borough and distributed to youth
groups for rebuilding via Terry See, Sports Development Manager, LBHF.
The rest are sent to the MET's storage depot in Mandela Way, SE1, off
the Old Kent road. Of these some are scrapped, the rest sent to one of
2 auction houses.
The London one is Frank G Bowen Ltd. 253 Joseph Ray Road, Leytonstone,
London, E11 4RA. Their website lists over 120 bikes for sale in its current
auction, but it is for an auction on which the hammer went down a week
ago. See www.frankgbowen.co.uk.
The other auction house is www.dnfa.com in Bristol. Under Bristol Commercial
auctions/ recovered police items/ 26 bikes are listed.
The money raised in these auctions is used to satisfy compensation claims from Central Property, ie if the police lose someone's recovered property or he like, and the rest goes to a charity.
Cycle theft:
This Borough has 2 tracker bikes, which are mainly used by Safer Neighbourhood
teams. Here the stolen bike transmits its GPS position to someone watching
on a computer. The bike has been stolen whenever it has been put out/deployed,
and it has been deployed about 6 times. Although this sounds simple it
can involve a lot of police time, perhaps getting a warrant to enter premises,
etc.
Cycle theft is not normally high on the SN Team's list of priorities, so the tracker is not used as often as it could be. The Ward Panel [local concerned residents in that Borough ward] determine what counts as a priority, and the crime summit is influential in deciding these priorities for the year.. Cycle theft only rates in the list of priorities in College Park and Old Oak, and Palace Riverside wards.
To find out the locally agreed priorities in your ward enter your postcode into the red box on the page http://www.met.police.uk/saferneighbourhoods/ . To influence priorities COME to the CRIME SUMMIT this Saturday - see below.
Cycle theft was on the MET's basket of ten crimes that Boroughs had targets on clearing up, but has dropped off this list. Paul has just been told that bike theft has gone up 18% on the borough in comparison to last year. A report is being completed recommending that consideration be given to including bicycle theft as a priority for next year.
Dead Bikes:
Bikes that are locked outside but are in a bad state of repair do not
help anyone. It also encourages the broken window approach, ie if it is
normal to strip or vandalise a bike, then it will happen to your bike
too. This is a Council matter. At the moment there is no policy on what
happens to these bikes, ie they are waiting for a policy to be written.
Barry Gough of Steetscene reports that 87 bikes have been picked up since
last November. To report a dead bike call 020 8753 2451 during office
hours.
A sense of victimisation:
At last month's hfcyclists meeting Julie reported that a young black neighbour
of hers, Raphael, who had once dropped into one of our meetings a year
ago, was often stopped by the police while cycling. John asked if targeting
black youths was accepted practice, and Paul said that it is not accepted
practice.
Paul said that he sees reports on the television which are said to show that a greater proportion of black males are stopped and searched by police in comparison to white males. - I don't know why that is, I do know that it causes a lot of ill-feeling amongst the lads being stopped.
Some traffic problems highlighted:
John reported that the junction of Talgarth rd and North End rd presented
problems and dangers. Vehicles often passed the lights after they had
turned red, particularly on the right hand filter going into North End
rd. For pedestrians it is a nightmare. The time for cars to pass on the
Talgarth rd has increased so that more people collect to cross on the
pedestrian phase. Crossing on the eastern arm going south towards West
Kensington station is so time consuming many pedestrians take their chances
and run with the traffic flow in the North End rd. Paul will look into
this.
David reported that since the cycle stands were put in many years ago near Barons Court station in Margavine Gardens it is very difficult for vehicles to get past this point. And this presents a problems for cyclists.
Cycling Policy:
Paul said the present policy on cycling on the pavement came after John
and Ian Jack approached Detective Superintendent Stephen Cassidy at the
end of last years Crime Summit. Paul said that anyone found cycling in
a dangerous manner on the pavement will be stopped and given a ticket.
Paul stated however that the Borough Commander Kevin Hurley has some sympathy
for those cycling with due consideration on the pavement. There have been
no serious injuries to pedestrians on the pavement from cyclists, but
there have several cases of cyclists crushed under lorries on the road.
John feels that the sentiment of many pedestrians is anti-cyclist. At the last crime summit antisocial cycling came high on the agenda. Andrew reported he has had problems recently trying to deal with a youth cycling dangerously. He just received abuse.
Pedestrians and cyclists have
a common cause:
John reported that in Hammersmith and Fulham there is no active Living
Streets group, which was once the Pedestrian Association. We actually
have a lot of common cause, and our space is being squeezed out by the
amount of motorised traffic, and policies which favour motorised traffic
at the expense of pedestrians and cyclists. We should present a unified
front. John said we should be promoting the Active Travel Strategy - see
below.
CRIME SUMMIT:
Saturday 6 March,9am to 2.30pm,
lunch provided.
see http://tinyurl.com/ydsxkhe
If you would like to attend
the Crime Summits please email your details to: crime.summit@lbhf.gov.uk,
or call 020 8753 2816, and provide the following information:
contact details (telephone, full address and email)
any special requirements (dietary, mobility, etc )
A POSSIBLE MANIFESTO FOR USE AT THE CRIME SUMMIT / ELECTIONS
We could use a manifesto at the Crime Summit and in forthcoming elections. Please reply [not reply all] to this email with any comments on this.
Hammersmith & Fulham Cyclists [hfcyclists] Draft Manifesto
Promote an Active Travel Strategy, encouraging walking and cycling for all journeys where appropriate and for leisure. Pedestrian Priority in any shared space.
Road space and signal time should be reviewed and reassigned to increase the safety and convenience of pedestrians and cyclists.
Encourage car clubs and reduce individual car ownership. Some car parking spaces should be converted to cycle parking where needed and appropriate.
20 mph speed limit on all residential roads, and enforced.
Note: DfT's Active Travel Strategy
is the Government's strategy for getting more people walking and cycling
more often and more safely. It can be found at
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/sustainable/cycling/activetravelstrategy/
BIKEWEEK / GREENFEST:
Not discussed at meeting. For GREENFEST on Sunday 20 June 2010 see
www.greenfest.org.uk. Anyone wishing to be involved please contact John.
RIDES, EVENTS, ETC?
WOMENS RIDE 7th March
LCC are organising the annual women's bike ride to mark International Women's Day. Female-focused, but not exclusively for women, the ride will lead you around some of London's best routes, encompassing landmarks which have particular significance to the fairer sex.
Meet outside the Shortwave
Cinema Bermonsey SE1 3UN . Map - http://www.shortwavefilms.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=28
Route - http://tinyurl.com/reclaimtheroad-route
To sign up and for more information, go to: http://tinyurl.com/reclaimtheroad
We have an unexpectedly high registration for the attached ride this weekend and are desperately looking for experienced female Marshalls to help out. Please get in touch with me if you are interested.
Thanks,
Lucy;
Lucy Cooper, Marketing & Income Generations Manager
Tel: 020 7234 9310 ext 202, www.lcc.org.uk
EALING RIDE TO GREENWICH Sunday7 March
Leaving Ealing Town Hall, Uxbridge
rd, 10am
Ride to Greenwich following the Grand Union Canal and then the Regents
Canal through to Limehouse then down to Isle of Dogs taking the foot tunnel
to Greenwich where we will stop for lunch. We will come back on the south
side of the river Thames and crossing Westminster Bridge alongside St
James Park, Buckingham Palace, Green Park, Marble Arch, Hyde Park, Kensington
Palace Gardens then onto Bayswater Road, Holland Park Avenue, Sheppard's
Bush and the Uxbridge Rd back to Ealing.
EXPENSES
John had expenses of £25.99 for tonight's refreshments.
John Griffiths [chair / co-ordinator]
020 7371 1290 / 07789 095 748
john@truefeelings.com
OUR WEBSITE www.hfcyclists.org.uk