This sort of thing feels so sensible. A programme in France to retrofit rural roads so there is a bike path running alongside them. In this case to the local hospital - ThreadSky

mrdannyw.bsky.social • 26 days ago

This sort of thing feels so sensible. A programme in France to retrofit rural roads so there is a bike path running alongside them. In this case to the local hospital

Reposted from EmmanuelSPV

Before (2019) / After (2022) the bike lane along the departmental road to reach the hospital in Trévenans. The hospital was built in 2017, and the 1.5-kilometer bike lane was constructed in 2020.

Comments

humantravl.bsky.social•26 days ago

The British Labour government keeps announcing road schemes, but no evidence that they will also implement adjacent cycle lanes

invercoffee.bsky.social•25 days ago

Meanwhile in the far North of the Highlands we cannot even maintain roads or pavements at all either for cars, pedestrians or cyclists (Castletown and Thurso in Caithness)

ashbycloudtrail.bsky.social•26 days ago

Some of our lanes have narrow verges then big hedges. As important wildlife habitat any path would have to be behind the hedges which then gets more complicated depending on the land use.

emma-worthington.bsky.social•25 days ago

A lot of small lanes round us (North Hants) could be made access only as there are other, bigger roads that cars can use.

Then you could have a network of quietways where bikes and pedestrians have priority. It’ll never happen of course.

ashbycloudtrail.bsky.social•25 days ago

We can dream … or actively campaign! 🤷🏼‍♀️
I am trying to get a dismantled industrial railway made into a cycle path (near village of Worthington! 😄)

emma-worthington.bsky.social•25 days ago

Oh good luck! I’m trying to find resources for rural cycling campaigning, everything tends to be urban.

yourmindfire.bsky.social•25 days ago

I’m experiencing this too. I’m campaigning in the part of rural Essex l live in. Not find much UK precedent work. The ‘rothar road’ concept in Ireland is interesting (but doesn’t map well on my area)

https://leitrimcyclingfestival.com/rothar-roads/

ashbycloudtrail.bsky.social•25 days ago

Part of the Cloud Trail extension project would include making brand new paths through woodland. If you can prove people have walked a route for over 20 years unhindered you can register it as a footpath on the definitive map. It can take 10 years! I’m 4 yrs in. That’s just the bit I can prove.

emma-worthington.bsky.social•25 days ago

Had a look at your bio & I have Huguenot ancestors from Spitalfields too. Different names though, mine were Clainchaut/Clainchant which became Clenshaw.

emma-worthington.bsky.social•25 days ago

Thanks James, that’s really interesting.

lnr.bsky.social•25 days ago

There's an example of that between Cambridge and Anglesey Abbey, and it's absolutely lovely! Though it does mean if you miss the way onto the bike path at the start it's almost impossible to join further along.

cyclesam.uk•26 days ago

I'll never know why we don't do it. The cost of CPOing a tiny strip of the unproductive edge of a field must be minimal. Indeed lots of rural roads already have the space if centre hatching and lane widths were reigned in.

rantyhighwayman.bsky.social•26 days ago

These sort of paths should be as basic a level of service as broadband. The problem is the benefit to cost ratios don't stack up under the investment rules, plus we're still to wed to investing in new roads.

cyclesam.uk•26 days ago

The worst part is when they open a "bypass" and leave the old road fully open to all traffic. At least when they opened the A556 in Cheshire, the old main road (4 lane single carriageway 😬) was made access only and repurposed to have a cycle track. This almost NEVER happens.

rantyhighwayman.bsky.social•26 days ago

💯

mihe2000.bsky.social•25 days ago

Would love to see this happen and much more can and should be done, but so many of our roads look like this.
We need to be honest about the challenge of the mature trees, hedgerows, ditches and houses/gardens that are next to our roads.

cyclesam.uk•25 days ago

True, but a lot of roads that look like that aren't necessarily the *main* road in an area. Often many are, but a lot of these are additional routes that are used for rat running. They could be made access only, or use deliberately slow two way lights around pinch points to dissuade thru traffic etc

andydrummond.bsky.social•26 days ago

Aye, problem there is if they don’t do something to restrict traffic through the thing that was bypassed, you get #InducedDemand.

andydrummond.bsky.social•26 days ago

An example where a council is trying to do something is the traffic changes in #Heywood after building the Pilsworth relief road - but people who should know better are using the usual arguments about buying their granny a fridge to fight changes to the town centre road layout.

martinhwheatley.bsky.social•26 days ago

Similar network taking shape radiating out from Cambridge. Pace is just ridiculously slow, though, extension to one in picture first consulted on in 2019, no firm build date for it nearly 6 years on. Also sadly much ill-informed push-back from loud minority (I firmly believe) of local residents.

cyclopsdave.bsky.social•26 days ago

The pace in Cambridge is simultaneously ridiculously slow, and faster than anywhere else in the country.

drtobydriver.bsky.social•25 days ago

Looks like they still have EU funding for a range of essential infrastructure projects 😉

gazza-d.bsky.social•25 days ago

Unsure about elsewhere but here in north east England a lot of rural roads have badly maintained and hence unused footways alongside. Would be great if these could be upgraded for multi use. This example, a 70mph DC with a narrow path would be perfect for upgrading

alr1970.bsky.social•25 days ago

Something like this? This is the East Lancs Road near Leigh. Built like this I believe, it has a very decent cycleway along the south side. Junctions could be better, but it is used quite a bit. With the speed limit at 60 here, this is the right amount of space between bikes and motor traffic.

gazza-d.bsky.social•25 days ago

Exactly like that. Unclear how wide that is, but yea.
There are lots of roads like that with paths that "just" need tidying up with resurfacing and dropped kerbs. The space is already there. It would make such a difference.

gazza-d.bsky.social•25 days ago

The A167 between Durham and Chester le Street is a good example where the path is now multi use. Plenty use it for commuting etc. The road is a v busy dual carriageway and hardly anyone would cycle if the road was the only option.

malcolmwilson01.bsky.social•26 days ago

(so long as they’ve moved that drainage ditch further into the field to the right)

cyclopsdave.bsky.social•26 days ago

Do you know that @bradfordcouncil.bsky.social @westyorkshireca.bsky.social @tracybrabinmayorwy.bsky.social
Are proposing a new bridge (on route to Airedale Hospital & the train station)
not quite a Hovenring, but close @rantyhighwayman.bsky.social

https://www.yourvoice.westyorks-ca.gov.uk/steeton-silsden-bridge

cyclesam.uk•26 days ago

I use that station frequently, will be interesting to see it.

ppushbike.bsky.social•26 days ago

They seem to be putting the bridge on the western (Skipton) side because of land ownership, but then need Toucan crossings to link up with access to the station and to link with the cycle way into Silsden. Which will be an almighty faff.

ppushbike.bsky.social•26 days ago

Also they're saying the bends will help slow people down, but that's not attractive for a lone woman at night. I'd rather have good sight lines.

cyclopsdave.bsky.social•26 days ago

That is a very good point.

Bradford has two existing ped/cycle bridges, the Britannia Bridge in Bingley and the Big Red Bridge. Both of these have good sight lines.

cyclopsdave.bsky.social•26 days ago

They have gone for clear parapets.

cyclopsdave.bsky.social•26 days ago

If they put detectors in the path the toucan could be ready and waiting… (this is very good feedback for the consultation) cue Sam’s video of the junction in Trafford.

The onward route to Steeton is unavoidably on road.

cyclesam.uk•26 days ago

Can toucans work off sensors for demand? I dont think I've ever seen that

cyclopsdave.bsky.social•26 days ago

In this situation you have a rare example of where they could be used sensibly almost all cyclists coming down hill on the bridge are going to need to cross over.

ppushbike.bsky.social•26 days ago

Yes, if detectors work then it'll be okay. If not, then it'll be pants.

cyclopsdave.bsky.social•26 days ago

They’re wanting to land on the side of the road with the existing wide footway over the river to get the path to Silsden.

(Arguably if that’s going to be a shared use path, why go to the expense of segregating the bridge…)

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@53.9028528,-1.9431416,3a,75y,206.21h,79.72t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sWRM4xLf_uIWy25dNJePkHQ!2e0!6shttps:%2F%2Fstreetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com%2Fv1%2Fthumbnail%3Fcb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile%26w%3D900%26h%3D600%26pitch%3D10.28261163257082%26panoid%3DWRM4xLf_uIWy25dNJePkHQ%26yaw%3D206.21051039209587!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI1MDIwNS4xIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D

cyclopsdave.bsky.social•26 days ago

You are YorksCycleSam and I claim my £200

rantyhighwayman.bsky.social•26 days ago

The problem with bridges is to get the clearance over the road, you end up with really long ramps and so the active modes route is much longer than for drivers. The Hovenring avoids it to some extent by dropping the road down too.

cyclopsdave.bsky.social•26 days ago

Agreed, but you don’t want to be crossing the A629 at grade.
You don’t want an underpass (especially not on a flood plain) and… if they’ve got it right, the bridge actually makes the hill easier…

rantyhighwayman.bsky.social•26 days ago

Well local context leads the design; it also needs to be unequivocally framed as a motoring improvement too!

aleedscyclist.bsky.social•26 days ago

Bring on the bridge! 👏

aleedscyclist.bsky.social•26 days ago

Lordy!

First time I rode through that must be 20 years ago, with a 12 (?) year old on his first wild camping trip?

[Checks notes ...

*LAST* time I rode through that must be 20 years ago, with a 12 (?) year old on his first wild camping trip. It was that bad 😥.]

rebelraising.bsky.social•25 days ago

Bit concerning that in an era of climate change induced flooding they've tarmacked over a ditch though.

garygaz.bsky.social•26 days ago

Should be the default along all new roads and any roads that are being upgraded - the increased cost would be minimal compared to doing it separately.

jillcollier16.bsky.social•25 days ago

There’s a lovely one alongside the very busy A27 in East Sussex.
https://www.komoot.com/highlight/4551166

yeovilyokel.bsky.social•25 days ago

More to the point, a new hospital?! Thank God we British don't waste money on such fripparies.

tessie-reynolds.bsky.social•25 days ago

We need this on all A roads please, and with a buffer to reduce noise and air pressure from passing vehicles.

traviata.bsky.social•26 days ago

We desperately need this kind of thing in Cornwall, where 4WDs thunder down lanes that were designed for carts.

nickkingsley.bsky.social•25 days ago

To me, it represents horrifying suburbanization of the countryside.

carolinerussell.bsky.social•25 days ago

Surely the road enabling huge numbers of cars to drive at speed represents the “horrifying suburbanisation”, making it work so people can safely walk or cycle is just humanising?

nickkingsley.bsky.social•24 days ago

A country lane like that shown in the photo is hardly ‘enabling huge numbers of cars to drive at speed’. We constantly and thoughtlessly sacrifice the visual appearance of our surroundings to theoretical threats and need a more balanced assessment of risk.

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