At our last Blue House Working Group Meeting in December 2016, the representatives from the various groups were asked to discuss and consult with their respective memberships on the potential impact of people taking short cuts (aka "rat running") through residential streets to avoid the junction and stay on the main roads. SPACE are aware of other residential streets around Gosforth that are known "rat runs" however, as requested, we are considering residential streets that are likely to be impacted
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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 [...] 
In this post we look at the City Centre Air Quality Management Area (AQMA), including equivalent figures from the air quality monitor sited at Jesmond Road, 150m west of the Osborne Avenue traffic lights, to see how this compares to Salters Road and whether the recent increase in air pollution is replicated there. 
Since Black Friday, 25 November 2016, readings from the new air quality monitor at the Salters Road car park say the average level of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) has been 50.3 micrograms per cubic metre (μg/m3) or 26% above the legal limit. The legal limit is 40 μg/m3 averaged over a year. It was high levels of nitrogen dioxide that led to the creation of the South Gosforth Air Quality Management Area in 2008.
While air pollution is damaging to health, personal exposure travelling further 
The Blue House and Jesmond Dene Road Working group met on Monday 12th December. The notes from the meeting have been uploaded to the working group's website.
As with all our meetings, there has been 100% attendance from all of the groups invited, which highlights the importance and acceptance of the process that Newcastle City Council has adopted. Not forgetting that everyone is also volunteering their time and clearly cares about the outcome.
At our sixth meeting we covered the following:
When the Evening Chronicle's recent coverage of the new John Dobson Street said 'It's Newcastle, not Amsterdam', we thought how similar are the two cities? 
In our second article covering the 'Measures of Success' for the Blue House junction and Jesmond Dene Road we examine criteria to enable People Movement, specifically:
Quality of provision for walking
Quality of provision for cycling
Quality of provision for buses
We have focused on these three areas as they conform with Newcastle City Council's policy regarding hierarchy of users discussed in our previous article on 'Compliance with Adopted Policies'. SPACE will discuss vehicle 
In this post we want to look at the new street layout on John Dobson Street, and whether it has improved the experience of those who use this street. The improvements are a flagship project for Newcastle upon Tyne City Council, with a new traffic-free cycle lane that links Newcastle Civic Centre at St. Mary's Place and the Blue Carpet in front of the Laing Art Gallery and the Journey (Newcastle's healthy travel centre) on New Bridge Street West.
1. Walking
The new cycle lane has 
Newcastle City Council is seeking feedback on a new pedestrian and cycle crossing over the Great North Road by the Three Mile Inn. This post explains why SPACE for Gosforth supports the proposed Toucan crossing.
You can add your comments on the Let's Talk Newcastle Website. Feedback must be provided by 9 November 2016.
The existing crossing by the Three Mile Inn is a pedestrian footbridge, accessed by a stepped ramp which can become icy in cold weather. While many people can use this footbridge,