Middlesbrough Council has paid out more than £85,000 in compensation to people injured on Linthorpe Road’s long-derided cycle lane, new figures have revealed — the latest twist in one of the UK’s most protracted and politically charged active travel sagas, just weeks before the scheme is finally ripped out.
According to a Freedom of Information request by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the Labour-run authority has so far paid £85,728 for 15 injury claims linked to the lane’s controversial ridged markers, with a further six claims still being processed.
Both pedestrians and cyclists have been among those hurt since the £1.7 million scheme was installed in 2022, with incidents including trips, falls, and crashes.
The figures add another chapter to a story that has dominated Middlesbrough’s local politics for almost three years. As we reported last month, work to remove the protected cycle lane is due to begin on 26 August, funded by £2.17 million from the Tees Valley Combined Authority (TVCA).
The scheme, introduced under former independent mayor Andy Preston, was intended to create a “quick and safe” route into the town centre. Instead, it became a lightning rod for criticism from traders, councillors, and residents, and in its first months saw a string of high-profile injuries.
In August 2022, a 78-year-old woman was hospitalised with a broken wrist, black eye, and concussion after tripping on one of the low “Orca” separators used for light segregation.
Weeks later, cyclist Paul Harris was thrown over his handlebars and required stitches after hitting the same dividers, claiming the layout forced riders to “constantly” dodge parked cars, buses, and pedestrians. Another 27-year-old woman also fractured her elbow on a night out while crossing the lane.
Linthorpe Road, Middlesbrough (credit: Kevin Marks)
The Orcas were later replaced with plastic wands, and a planned extension of the route was shelved, but the project’s reputation never recovered. Shopkeepers blamed it for reduced footfall and loss of customer parking, with one even calling it a “clear getaway” route for shoplifters and drug dealers — a claim echoed earlier this month by Conservative Tees Valley mayor Ben Houchen, who told BBC Radio Tees the lane was “largely used” by drug dealers and children “causing problems”.
The BBC’s report this week, however, also highlighted data that paints a more complex picture. Between 2015 and 2021, before the lane was installed, there were 57 recorded injuries on Linthorpe Road, 23 per cent of which (14) involved cyclists.
Between 2022 and 2024, after installation, there were 26 recorded injuries — only three of them cyclists, representing 12 per cent of the total. The council also confirmed last year that the number of people cycling on Linthorpe Road rose by 70 per cent after the lane’s introduction.
Despite these apparent safety gains, Labour mayor Chris Cooke — who succeeded Preston in 2023 and made the lane’s removal a campaign pledge — has argued that future active travel schemes “have to be in the right place and learn the lessons from this saga”.
Together, Cooke and Houchen have spent much of the past two years in a public feud over who should fund and carry out the works, with accusations of political stalling and obstruction traded across social media and in open letters.
Labour mayor Chris Cooke and Conservative mayor Ben Houcham celebrate removal of Middlesbrough cycle lane, Linthorpe Road (credit: Tees Valley Combined Authority)
A rare moment of agreement came in early 2024, when the two mayors jointly declared the lane “unpopular” and something that had “simply not worked”. But the removal process still faced months of delays, with council officers at one point recommending it remain in place — a suggestion Cooke publicly vowed to overrule. In December, the council finally approved plans for its removal, with TVCA agreeing to cover the full cost.
When the diggers arrive later this month, the protected lane will disappear — but not every change it brought will go with it. Middlesbrough Council has confirmed that a 20mph speed limit, a new pedestrian crossing, narrowed junctions, and some side-street closures introduced as part of the scheme will remain in place in a bid to slow traffic and improve safety for people walking and cycling.
“It is about time, and we can finally turn the page on this sorry chapter for Middlesbrough. I said I’d sort it for the council, and it is going. Let’s get it ripped out, and let local businesses get back to their lives,” Houchen said.