Update 31 01 2026 - CYCLEWight

Please find our January briefing.

We attended the Local Access Forum this week. There were several matters of interest to CycleWight including speeding on rural roads. This has become an important topic and the LAF is raising it as a point with Isle of Wight Council. Part of the issue is the Council is finding it difficult to recruit a suitable person to work on the speed limit review announced a year ago. There was mention of an increase of fly tipping on paths etc. You are advised not to approach people carrying out such an offence but try to remember as many details as possible before contacting the Police

Since the last briefing you may have noticed that there has been significant rain. We have been lucky enough to recruit some members who are keeping an eye on what is happening at Alverstone and we are now  beginning to collect the ‘data’ needed to ask for an improvement. The work done closer to Langbridge will obviously have an effect but we are guessing that it is too early to know quite what. There are several articles in the local media this week about the success of the work on the marsh at Alverstone.

We have written to the Council about the Elenors Grove closure. The official diversion is over the Downs. We are sure many people will use the popular cycling route Firestone Copse Road as a rat run.. After the issues with the Cowes diversion of excessive speeding we have requested a 30 mph speed limit should be put in place as well as on Newnham Lane. With so many roads subject to closures and traffic controls we suggest you remind your non-cycling friends that it is now a great time to get that bike out of the shed.

We have been contacted by Marion Perrott who is trying to raise a debate  in Parliament about making all single track roads in England to have a default speed limit of 30 mph. This seems eminently sensible and relates to other topics in this briefing. The link is here to sign. Please share it to as many people as possible. https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/748359

You may well have seen a variety of press releases about the path at Wootton is to be upgraded to provide a better surface and for the flooding issues to be mitigated This is the first part of the Island Green Link grant to be spent. The work will go beyond the crematorium to Mews Lane where there will be an improvement to the descent to the road. In the long term it is planned that the bridge will be repaired and the track will continue to Newport. We have spoken to the Officer in overall charge of the grant and he has said that a project manager has been appointed, which we hope will speed things along. He said drawings of various other elements of the link are being drawn up.

The Island Transport Plan has gone before the Economy, Regeneration, Transport and Infrastructure Committee for their views. You can read some comments on the meeting here. Some Councillors wanted more specifics in the plan but this is not its purpose; that is later. Its next stage is to go to the Policy, Finance and Resources Committee before the full Council. There were over 400 comments on the plan and that is reflected in what was put before members. If passed it will provide a good basis for the Island as transport and other policy areas become the responsibility of the new Mayoral Combined County Authority for the Solent. In the minutes there is a link to the briefing papers that went to the committee.

The Welsh Government has just released road casualty stats for Jul-Sep 2025. For urban/village 20/30mph casualties are 33% lower (420) than the same period in 2023 (627) before the default 20mph limit was set.  More evidence that default 20mph is a life-enhancing and life-saving initiative. Come on IWC.

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To end on an extra good note is Keert’s annual report. Here. As we know it is the Island's very own sustainable transport group and as ever they have done a good job.

Please find attached the minutes of the last committee meeting.