5 major city roads could be ripped up in £7m cycle lane plan
Five major Hull roads face dramatic alterations
A major upgrade is planned for Hull's cycle lanes (Image: PA)
Hull's roads are about to go green in a bid to encourage more people to get on their bike more often.
All of the city's cycle lanes will be painted bright green as part of a new 10-year plan aimed at making them safer to use.
According to the latest road casualty figures, 231 cyclists were involved in collisions in Hull in 2017.
Some cycle lanes are already painted green, but the rest will soon match them as part of a concerted effort by Hull City Council to boost cycling in the city.
As part of the facelift, routes will also be branded and given their own individual numbers much like roads, making them easier to follow.
Council officials are also looking at options to physically separate some cycle lanes from cars and lorries using raised kerbs or other barriers instead of simply painting white lines on a road.
Rush hour traffic in Spring Bank is not easy to negotiate on a bike (Image: Peter Harbour)
The authority has earmarked nearly £7m to be spent over the next three years on improving the city's cycling network in the first phase of the plan.
So-called 'quick win' projects will see overgrown vegetation and existing obstructions being removed along with re-surfacing work being carried out at some sections.
Long-term proposals include more radical steps including developing fully segregated cycle lanes on sections of major routes such as Beverley Road, Anlaby Road, Hessle Road, Holderness Road and Preston Road.
There are also proposals to re-design more junctions where cyclists will be given priority ahead of cars.
The council is also looking to create a new continuous route between the city centre and Kingswood retail park, taking in much of the existing Foredyke cycle route followed by a similar route between the city centre and Cottingham.
New enforcement action could also be taken in the future against drivers who park across cycle lanes.
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Garry Taylor, the council's director of major projects, said: "We are looking to separate and segregate cycling lanes from the main highway wherever possible.
"There will be some places where this will not be possible because of the physical constraints of some roads, particularly older ones where there just isn't the space.
"However, we are already factoring in new cycling routes as part of existing schemes such as as the Stoneferry Corridor where just under £1m is being spent on improving the cycling insfrastructure."
Hull has one of the highest cycling rates of any city in the UK for people using their bikes to get to work.
Cycling in Hull city centre's pedestrianised streets is now encouraged (Image: Richard Williams/WalesOnline)
Overall, 8.2 percent of all journeys to work in Hull are made by bike compared to the national average of just three per cxent.
However latest Census data from 2011 showed a 3.5 per cent drop in the proportion of people traveling to work in Hull by bike compared to 2001.
Over the same period there was a 5.6 per cent increase in those those travelling to work by driving a car or van and the next Census due to be carried out next year is expected to confirm that trend.
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Officials believe it will be one way of tackling health issues by encouraging more physical activity while, at the same time, help lay the groundwork towards reaching the target of Hull becoming a carbon neutral city by 2030.
The council recently scrapped a ban on cycling in pedestrian areas in the city centre while the looming £355m upgrade of Castle Street will include a new shared footpath and cycleway on the northern side of the A63.
Adam Fowler, chief executive of the Hull and Humber Environment Forum charity, welcomed the measures.
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He said: "Cycling not only reduces congestion it improves air quality and physical well being' as well as helping to combat climate change.
"This announcement is about ensuring cycling is a realistic alternative should and when people choose to use this form of
travel.".