“The church is under threat”: Vicar fears cycle lane outside church car park will drive away the congregation

The vicar of a church in Altrincham, Greater Manchester claims the very existence of the 170-year-old institution has been put in doubt by the construction of a new walking and cycling lane outside its car park. 

St Margaret's Church has stood beside the A56, on Dunham Road, in Altrincham, Cheshire, since 1854. However, Vicar Reverend David Murray doesn't have faith in a new 20-metre cycle lane that he believes goes nowhere, but will force the people driving to the church to take a circular detour.

The 'walking and riding lane' was installed on Gorsey Lane to make crossing the Dunham Road easier for both pedestrians and cyclists. However, the entrance to the church car park is also situated on Gorsey Lane, meaning that parishioners and churchgoers can no longer access it from the main Dunham Road, and instead have to drive down a narrow one-way system around to get to the car park, reports the Daily Mail.

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Reverend Murray said that many of his congregation had already been put off attending services since the cycle lane was installed and he now fears his historic church could close unless the local council reconsiders the plans.

"The church is under threat for a 20m stretch of cycle lane," he said. "We had a carol concert last week and were down by about half the usual numbers."

"Our bells have been ringing out since the mid-1800s and we've served this community through two world wars. Now we face extinction simply because of a crazy traffic system that closes access from the A56."

He added: "This plan pushes church traffic to a dangerous turn on a bend further up the A56 one way or indeed past a school the other way – that area is already very busy at school drop off and pick up times.

"It's madness. All for the sake of a 20m cycle lane that goes nowhere and actually takes cyclists straight into the headlights of oncoming traffic."

> Enforcing cycle lane would prevent drivers from parking (illegally) outside Presbyterian church, claims Dublin elder

St Margaret's Church, Altrincham (Google Maps)

Ironically, the construction of the new walking and cycling route was spurred on by the actions of the church. Rev Murray and his congregation were among the many locals who had signed a petition calling for changes to the A56, after a young schoolgirl launched a campaign for a pedestrian crossing there.

However, the plan originally submitted by the Reverend didn't include a dedicated cycle lane, but only traffic lights which would have kept Gorsey Lane open both ways. He said that this alternative scheme was passed by Transport for Greater Manchester and the local council, but then blocked by the Green Party.

He added that he has repeatedly asked for an explanation as to why have they "persisted with this awful plan" but has heard nothing.

"I can't get an answer," he said. "We have elderly and disabled parishioners who can't walk or cycle and many of them are now choosing not to come. It's discriminating against them."

Now, the Reverend believes that the scheme being implemented is not just damaging to church services, but also impacting local youth groups and food banks that the church supports.

> “A flagrant act of vandalism”: Council agrees to move “ugly” bike rack after churchgoers say it will “block access for hearses”

Richard Nickson, Programme Director for Active Travel at Transport for Greater Manchester, told road.cc: "The Dunham Road scheme is being delivered by TfGM and is funded through the Bee Network Crossing scheme, as approved by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority. A consultation was carried out in November 2021 and the scheme was approved by Trafford Council in September 2022.

"TfGM has been speaking regularly to representatives from Trafford Council and St Margaret’s Church to address the concerns raised and following a site visit, we have agreed to make some minor modifications to the scheme design to ensure that the church is accessible.

"The new crossing on Dunham Road will enable people to safely cross a busy road, while the new signalised junction with Gorsey Lane will make it easier for vehicles to leave the vicinity of the church. The crossing scheme is part of a wider ambition to build the Bee Network, a fully-integrated London-style transport system that will make travel safer for all road users."

Dunham Road, A56, Altrincham (Google Maps)

However, Rev Murray said that a few inches had been cut off a traffic island which separated the cycle lane from the road following his complaints but "the work hadn't solved the problem".

road.cc reported on a similar incident two years ago, when a Presbyterian church in Dublin criticised plans to segregate an existing cycle lane from traffic, claiming that it would prevent worshippers from continuing to park – illegally – outside the church.

Church elder Michael Sparksman said that the proposed bollards would mean that "the right to worship is being overtaken by the right to cycle." He added: "The council suggested people walk, cycle or take public transport but that is really not viable given our age profile and the distances people come from."

However, the scheme was praised by town councillor Laurence Plant, who argued that the new route would encourage cyclists who lacked confidence on the road or young families to ride their bikes safely.

"Henley is quite difficult to navigate not using the main arterial routes", he said. "This is a good attempt to make Henley safer and easier to navigate."

And just last year, a church in Bristol became the site of Armageddon between cyclists and churchgoers, after the council agreed to move the planned location of a cycle rack – originally intended to be positioned outside a city centre church – after churchgoers and opposition councillors branded it a "flagrant act of vandalism" and claimed the bike rack would "block access for hearses".

Jonathan Price, the Master of Music at Christ Church with St Ewen, said that the installation of an "ugly" bike rack would "spoil the view" of the building and restrict accessibility to the church.