Message for them wot make them cycling signs

[Mile195]

I cycled up to Bedford from London once. an NCN route took me up a path where the wet mud was so deep it was barely traversable by foot. To avoid it I had to walk across a slightly less muddy field, up a hill, into a housing estate and then find where the muddy path ended.
Later on I checked the map. To avoid the muddy path I simply had to walk two minutes down another path which would have taken me to a main road. There's no reason that the NCN sign sending cyclists down the muddy path could not include an "alternative route for road tyres".
I've cycled to Bedford many times since. I stick to the roads now.

 

[mjr]

I cycled up to Bedford from London once. an NCN route took me up a path where the wet mud was so deep it was barely traversable by foot. To avoid it I had to walk across a slightly less muddy field, up a hill, into a housing estate and then find where the muddy path ended.
Later on I checked the map. To avoid the muddy path I simply had to walk two minutes down another path which would have taken me to a main road. There's no reason that the NCN sign sending cyclists down the muddy path could not include an "alternative route for road tyres".
I've cycled to Bedford many times since. I stick to the roads now.

Did you report it? The muddy path needs its drains fixing or the route rerouting. NCN is meant to be for 8-80 or similar, not a hardcore MTB network.

 

[Mile195]

Did you report it? The muddy path needs its drains fixing or the route rerouting. NCN is meant to be for 8-80 or similar, not a hardcore MTB network.

No. I wouldn't have thought to to be honest. I think it was probably my first attempt at using NCN routes. I've generally avoided them since unless I can be absolutely sure they're on tarmac (or that any gravel paths are short).
It's not sustrans's fault I suppose. They don't get a lot of funding and I know that all they can do is lobby councils to improve routes, so it's a losing battle really. I imagine much of the time councils are either unwilling or unable to spend money surfacing a footpath for cyclists that are probably just passing through, when they could resurface a road that more local council tax payers will notice.

 

[mjr]

No. I wouldn't have thought to to be honest. I think it was probably my first attempt at using NCN routes. I've generally avoided them since unless I can be absolutely sure they're on tarmac (or that any gravel paths are short).
It's not sustrans's fault I suppose. They don't get a lot of funding and I know that all they can do is lobby councils to improve routes, so it's a losing battle really. I imagine much of the time councils are either unwilling or unable to spend money surfacing a footpath for cyclists that are probably just passing through, when they could resurface a road that more local council tax payers will notice.

Councils don't do such things to get noticed, generally. They do them because they've legal duties to keep highways maintained, especially once faults are reported. Some cycleways are highways, some are other things, but one reason fixes are slow is that cyclists don't report faults as much so it waits until the next routine officer inspection which could be almost a year away.

In other words, if we don't ask, we don't get, so please ask/report.

And it's almost always unwilling. When they can't build new quasi motorways, I'll believe they may be unable.