A CYCLE safety lane temporarily introduced during the Covid-19 pandemic is set to be made permanent.

A consultation on the Bayswater Road Cycle Movement Strategy – which included improved pedestrian crossing and a segregated lane – is ending on February 4.

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The lane would run east from Palace Court to Lancaster Terrace and west from Lancaster Terrace to the Broadwalk.

The scheme will link up two cycleways, C3 and C27, creating a direct east-west route along the north side of Hyde Park.

Conservatives including the former Kensington MP Felicity Buchan are campaigning against the changes but the Labour administration at Westminster say urgent action is needed to protect cyclists.

The Bayswater Residents Association has alerted its members to the consultation, in a bulletin that said: “Displaced traffic is likely to seek alternative routes through currently quiet residential streets. Sunday parking on Bayswater Road will be lost, increasing parking pressure on nearby residential streets.

“The large number of crossing points which pierce the proposed west-east track may pose accident risks to pedestrians, vehicles and cyclists themselves.”

Representatives for the visually impaired and elderly have criticised cycle lane designs that run alongside bus stops, arguing cyclists often do not yield at designated crossings.

The government had reviewed its position but this week came out with new guidance than ultimately recommended “bus stop bypasses – where the cycle lane is routed away from where the bus pulls in – is still the most safe redesign solution in high traffic routes”.

Hyde Park Labour councillor Max Sullivan (above), the cabinet member for road changes, said: “Don’t miss your chance to have your say on our plans to make Bayswater Road safer to walk and cycle on for people of all ages and abilities.

Protected lanes for cycling will have little or no impact on motor journey times, because traffic on Bayswater Road already operates in single-file due to parking and loading.

“Cyclists are the most commonly injured road user across Westminster, including on Bayswater Road, and the new protection will significantly reduce casualty risk and enable more people to get on their bike.”

He added: “One of the ways that protection is provided is by routing the cycle track behind the bus stops so that they don’t get hit by buses and other traffic. I understand that ‘floating bus stops’ are a cause of concern for some people, and in other parts of London some have not been designed well. In Westminster we will only install them where they are necessary and we will always include a zebra crossing which cyclists are legally obliged to stop at.

“As part of this scheme people walking and wheeling will benefit from simpler, faster straight-across green-man crossings over Bayswater Road, upgraded tactile paving for people with visual impairments, and safer side road crossings.”