Beauty and the Bike

[wafflycat]

Flat-earther? Stupid? Don't be so insulting. You do yourself no favours. Fighting with traffic? I certainly don't. I have little hassle cycling on roads - except from idiots who delight in informing me that I should be on the cycle path... Cycling on road is not a hassle. It's level of danger is exaggerated by your terminology. And your attitude to those who do cycle on roads is patronising and insulting. I repeat - you do yourself no favours.

 

[Nipper]

Waffles, you seem to think because YOU don't have a problem on the road, that everyone will be the same. The truth, as is evident by most people in the UK not cycling, is that far more people don't like the idea of vehicular cycling. But hay ho, you carry on with your head in the sand, though you may not see the next left turning HGV with a driver on the phone and coat-hanger securing his load.

 

[jonesy]

Yawn. Let's ignore high levels of cycling in Oxford and Cambridge, let's ignore recent growth in cycling in London; let's ignore all the other things that the Netherlands does differently, all the other factors that affect cycling levels like land use planning, travel distances, use of public transport, legal liabilities, speed limits, culture, etc etc, let's ignore all the practical difficulties we face in trying to build segregated infrastructure in narrow British streets, let's chuck out all the awkward facts then you are quite right, the answer does look easy then, doesn't it...

 

[wafflycat]

Waffles, you seem to think because YOU don't have a problem on the road, that everyone will be the same. The truth, as is evident by most people in the UK not cycling, is that far more people don't like the idea of vehicular cycling. But hay ho, you carry on with your head in the sand, though you may not see the next left turning HGV with a driver on the phone and coat-hanger securing his load.

You are really very insulting and coming across as a nasty bit of work. So I suggest you read Jonsey's response and I'll add this - re-read - I refer not just to me in my post, but people I know. And as for HGV drivers - there's lots in my neck of the woods, and they are the most courteous drivers I meet, so much so I have been known to write to the relevant companies to acknowledge this fact. Now - back to your spot under the bridge, troll.

 

[wafflycat]

Yawn. Let's ignore high levels of cycling in Oxford and Cambridge, let's ignore recent growth in cycling in London; let's ignore all the other things that the Netherlands does differently, all the other factors that affect cycling levels like land use planning, travel distances, use of public transport, legal liabilities, speed limits, culture, etc etc, let's ignore all the practical difficulties we face in trying to build segregated infrastructure in narrow British streets, let's chuck out all the awkward facts then you are quite right, the answer does look easy then, doesn't it...

Quite.

 

[Nipper]

And Jonesy let's forget that this thread was about the Darlington Bike project to get NEW PEOPLE CYCLING and that those new people don't want to share the road with nutters in cars and that the only way to get them on bikes is to make cycling seem safe and attractive.

READ David Hembrow's blog and Copenhagenize and you will find all your points against cycle paths are answered. For example the streets that need cycle paths, big main roads are more than wide enough to take new infrastructure. There would also be far more room if we removed on road parking. The travel distances thing, oh yes that's right all those long distance commuting cyclists on this board they are typical, yes you are right... oh no hold on 80% of car journeys are less than 5 miles. So in Holland they choose to have a 30kmph speed limit in urban areas and so we couldn't do that here... oh hang on we could if we wanted too... As I said before it will take a politician with balls to really do it.

 

[Nipper]

And as for HGV drivers - there's lots in my neck of the woods, and they are the most courteous drivers I meet, so much so I have been known to write to the relevant companies to acknowledge this fact.

This was taken yesterday in Bristol, courteous driving?

 

[wafflycat]

Yes, an example of bad driving. Tell you what, people die in bed. Whatever you do, do NOT, I repeat, DO NOT ever go to bed. You may DIE! And people get injured by electric toasters! Do not ever go near one!

 

[wafflycat]

And by the way - my son fell off his bike last week. On a cycle path. One of those special safe facilities needed to make cycling safe.

 

[jonesy]

Well, actually it is more like 55% of car trips are under 5 miles- see the National Travel Survey- but let's not let facts get in the way of a good rant hey?

And if 'big main roads' are all wide enough for segregated paths, perhaps you can explain how they could be fitted on Cowley Road in Oxford, the main cycle commuter route into the city centre and probably the busiest cycling corridor in the country. A narrow carriageway that wasn't wide enough for standard width cycle lanes, certainly not if you wanted to allow enough space for buses to pass safely, narrow pavements and a busy street with lots of shops and cafes. And no alternative route, because there are so few crossings of the river. Which buildings would you knock down? There was no ideal solution, but segregation was out of the question, so the effort had to go into making it safer for everyone to share the road. I'm sure many things could have been done better, and there is a lot of campaigning to get far more 20mph zones, but your Dalek like repetition of "segregate segregate segregate" is entirely unhelpful to those who are trying to find workable solutions to problems like these.

 

[marinyork]

There is indeed a great deal of campaigning for 20mph zones , it just doesn't hit the news. I'm not that convinced it'll make that much difference but it could be pretty interesting in a few areas where there are known conflicts. As for this segregation business it's an awful lot of money. For example one could try and get local by-laws on no cycling in certain areas reverted and instantly convert some places for say children to cycle on overnight on the cheap or say concentrate on schemes that are in LTPs and represent value for money for both commuters and leisure . Crazy stuff.

 

[Nipper]

And by the way - my son fell off his bike last week. On a cycle path. One of those special safe facilities needed to make cycling safe.

I hope your son was not hurt. What if he had fell in front of a bus or a lorry? The cycle path means he didn't.

Let's just look at that picture again

Jonesy sorry got my % who never cycle and less than 5 miles figures mixed up. You have to admit that is still a massive number of twunts clogging up the roads. As to your one road in Cambridge, I suppose if you can't get a workable solution there, well the same must be true everywhere. You could always get rid of the cars, or do you sometimes drive...

 

[summerdays]

So in Holland they choose to have a 30kmph speed limit in urban areas and so we couldn't do that here... oh hang on we could if we wanted too... As I said before it will take a politician with balls to really do it.

Some towns and cities have introduced 20 mph areas. Bristol has just had a consultation about 2 reasonable sized areas which are going to be trial location. As a result of the consultation some of the main roads (not all) that were to be excluded from the 20 mph limit are now to be included. During the consultation there were other areas of the city that also wanted to be included, so hopefully it will be rolled out across the city.

This was taken yesterday in Bristol, courteous driving?

As I said knowing that area, I really doubt the lorry could have been travelling in any way more than crawling... trying to make that turn. The cyclist was probably a student and being honest you have to say that they don't always make sensible decisions. Would you pass a lorry on a very narrow road whether it was turning or not? (Ignore which side of the lorry she was on and the fact it was manoeuvring).

 

[dellzeqq]

Simon you seem wedded to the idea that everyone will be fine fighting with traffic in bus lanes, truth is you are a bit strange and most people prefere the subjective safty offered by separated paths. I suspect you are in fact a car supremacist, any cyclist who advocates vehicular cycling and then thinks there is nothing wrong with an 83 foot lorry is either very foolish or is actually a petrol head. I wonder do you think you could get many non cycling mums to take their 3 and 4 year old kids by bike along a main road with those lorries hurtling past?

if you think that's going to get you anywhere, you're mistaken. When you've succeeded in getting cycle paths built in Taunton, let us know.

 

[wafflycat]

I hope your son was not hurt. What if he had fell in front of a bus or a lorry? The cycle path means he didn't.must be true everywhere.

What if he had been hit on the head by a meteorite...