New Leisure Centre Planning Comments

A CGI of the new development. (Image: FaulknerBrowns)

Cycling UK Stevenage Responds to New Leisure Centre Plans

Cycling UK Stevenage has submitted a detailed response to the planning application for the new sports and leisure centre proposed to replace the existing Swimming Centre on St. Georges Way. While we welcome the investment in local facilities, we have raised several concerns about how the plans could impact people who cycle, both now and for decades to come.

What’s Good in the Plans?

There are some positive elements in the proposals:

Plenty of cycle parking: The number of cycle spaces is good, and the balance between car and cycle parking is better than in many recent developments.
Secure staff cycle parking: The plans include secure parking for staff who cycle.
Improvements for pedestrians: There’s clear attention to making the area more accessible on foot.

Our Main Concerns

However, our review found several significant gaps and issues that need to be addressed before the development goes ahead. Here’s what we’re worried about:

1. Missing Key Information

No forecast for cycling trips: The plans estimate how many cars will visit, but don’t do the same for people walking or cycling. This makes it impossible to know if the cycle facilities will be enough.
No proper analysis of how people will get there by bike: The documents often lump cycling and walking together, but cycling needs different infrastructure.
Lack of detail on cycle parking: We don’t know if the cycle parking will be properly covered, well-lit, or easy to use.

2. Poor Cycling Access

Barriers from the south and east: There’s no direct, safe cycling route from Bedwell and the south of Stevenage, areas where many people live. This is a missed opportunity to make the centre accessible for all.
Town Centre cycling ban: The leisure centre sits between two areas where cycling is currently banned. This makes it much harder to reach the centre by bike, especially from the train and bus stations.
Indirect routes: People cycling will have to take a longer, more complicated route to the cycle parking than those arriving by car.

3. Design Issues

Shared paths with pedestrians: The main route from Fairlands Way will force people cycling to share space with people walking, which is against government guidance except in special cases.
No buffer from busy roads: The cycle path runs right next to St. George’s Way, a busy road, with no separation from traffic. This feels unsafe, especially for children and less confident cyclists.

4. Policy Problems

Many of these issues go against national and local policies, including:

Government guidelines that say cycle routes should be safe, direct, and accessible for everyone “from 8 to 80 and beyond.”
Local plans that call for missing links in the cycling network to be filled, especially to help people in less well-off areas like Bedwell.
Advice from Active Travel England, the government’s expert body on walking and cycling.

What Needs to Change?

We’re calling for the following improvements before the plans are approved:

Proper analysis of how people will get to the centre by bike, including forecasts and maps.
Clear, direct, and safe cycling routes from all directions, especially from the south and east.
Cycle parking that is covered, secure, and easy to access.
Separate space for people cycling and walking, not shared paths.
A review of the cycling bans in the Town Centre and Town Gardens, so people can reach the leisure centre by bike.

Why This Matters

Stevenage’s new leisure centre will be a key destination for people of all ages and abilities. If we get the cycling infrastructure right now, we can make it easier for everyone to choose healthy, sustainable travel for years to come. If we get it wrong, we risk leaving whole parts of our community cut off from these new facilities.

We hope the council and developers will take these concerns seriously and work with us to make the new leisure centre a place everyone can reach safely and easily—by bike, on foot, or by public transport.

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