Hartlepool cycling and walking hub (Image Credit: Tees Valley Walking and Cycling Hubs)However, the Middlesbrough Walking and Cycling Hub, based in Cleveland Shopping Centre, will be shut permanently, as will the bike parking facilities at the Stockton hub, a move described by Stockton North MP Chris McDonald branded the “wrong decision for Teesside”. The Middlesbrough cycle hub was originally due to be closed earlier this year, before it and the other hubs, including two more in Redcar and Darlington, were given a stay of execution until the end of July. Linthorpe Road, Middlesbrough (Image Credit: Kevin Marks Twitter)However, backlash followed almost immediately, with business owners complaining that the redesign reduced parking and drop-off access, with some claiming it hurt footfall. But between 2022 and 2024, after the cycle lane was added, just 12 per cent (three) of the 26 injuries recorded were people on bikes. “The Linthorpe cycle lane was a disaster, causing congestion, hammering local businesses and making life harder for the people who actually use the town centre every day,” Houchen said in May following the lane’s removal.