Category Archives: Data

Pollution Update – February 2017

In previous posts we looked at air quality data on Gosforth High Street and on Jesmond Road in the run up to Christmas last year, which showed a marked increase in pollution after Black Friday, 25 November 2016. In this post we look at what has happened to air quality at these sites since then. Read more [...]

Important dates for East Gosforth – 13 July Ward Survey closes, 18 July Annual Priority Event

The East Gosforth online ward event survey closes this Wednesday and the East Gosforth Annual Ward Priority Event for all residents is on Monday 18 July. They will help determine how the East Gosforth ward budget of £5,630 is spent, and they're important ways to have your say for your area. Each ward in the city now has a survey and event rather than the previous system of four ward meetings per year. This new system results from recent changes to the council wards in Newcastle.  West Gosforth Read more [...]

Gosforth Speed Cameras Make the News

The Chronicle recently published a report on the region's speed cameras asking "where are you most likely to get caught? And how many drivers paid the price for breaking the speed limit in 2015?" The answer (according to the Chronicle) was "B1318 Great North Road Blue House" - the fixed speed camera at the south end of Gosforth High Street. This was activated by speeding vehicles 4,625 times in 2015 - more than any other speed enforcement camera in the entire north east region. It is worth Read more [...]

The Future of Transport – Reply by Friday 8 April

The North East Combined Authority (NECA)* is currently consulting on its "20 year Transport Manifesto for the North East". It should take no more than 15 minutes to complete and your reply will help ensure our streets are safe and our air is cleaner for our children, friends and neighbours.  The Manifesto: Our Journey -A 20 year Transport Manifesto for the North East The Survey: Key Themes and Guiding Principles Below we give a brief overview of the Manifesto and the survey with some suggestions Read more [...]

Can protected cycle lanes be good for business?

If you were asked to name one place that's more in thrall to the car than the UK, most people would say the USA. That's why, when American cities concerned about road safety, pollution and congestion have wanted to rebalance their roads to favour healthier and less polluting alternatives, they have had to make their case in very strong terms. This has resulted in studies that show the impact of pedestrian and cycling improvements on safety as well as on travel preferences, on house prices and on Read more [...]

1000 Speeding Drivers – A typical day on Gosforth’s back streets

Even at 20mph 17% of adults are killed or seriously injured when hit by a car. For children or older residents the figures will be worse. Why then do so many ignore the 20mph speed limits in place throughout Gosforth’s back streets? Walking to school should not be an extreme sport. This is the story of three of Gosforth’s back streets. One has a low volume of traffic mostly driving within the speed limit, somewhere we all might like to live and where children might reasonably be left to play Read more [...]

Billion Pound Issues on Gosforth High Street

We are all familiar with thinking about the environmental and health aspects of traffic - congestion, pollution, greenhouse gas emissions, noise, accidents, physical inactivity - but what about the economics, the actual costs of these things in pounds? And how do these negative impacts affect Gosforth High Street, as these are the issues that the soon-to-be-announced proposals for the High Street need to fix? In 2009 the UK government calculated the negative impact of transport on the UK economy Read more [...]

Pollution on Gosforth High Street – First Results

People in Gosforth are becoming more and more concerned about pollution near major roads and especially on Gosforth High Street. As we have a high proportion of older and younger residents – those most at risk from its debilitating effects – this is not surprising. On Saturday the 17th of October members of SPACE for Gosforth spent time on the High Street with a pollution monitor measuring very fine particles (PM2.5s), one of the most dangerous types of pollution. The monitor ran for over Read more [...]