Thursday, 5 November 2009

With a few simple adjustments...

Back to Leamington. I have just ridden into town, about 1 mile each way, ideal bike distance!
On my journey I encounter a number of obstacles that could so easily be overcome with simple adaptations.
This is not to say that a comprehensive bike network would be the ideal way forward but just to ease the journey you could -

put a cycle path through this blocked off road. This is just round the corner and the road has been blocked off to stop through traffic, this of course makes it an ideal cycle route as there is no traffic; but the only way through is onto the pavement (illegal) and dodge any pedestrians to reach the main road.

the same happens at the end of the road opposite -

So why not do it? Well I suspect that the residents would object - bringing undesirable cyclists etc, and you would have to cross the pavement so a " cyclists dismount sign would be needed! apparently no such sign exists in the netherlands.
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3 comments:

  1. Frits B5 November 2009 at 09:20

    "apparently no such sign exists in the Netherlands". Oh yes they do, I meet four of them when going into town (Assen). No regular sign, but a rectangular text saying Fietsers afstappen. It's usually placed near building sites. The main problem is it might as well be invisible ...

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  2. David Hembrow5 November 2009 at 10:42

    Frits, the temporary signs at road works are annoying enough, but I've yet to see a permanent one made as part of a cycling route anywhere in the Netherlands. Permanent dismount signs are commonplace in the UK. This photo shows perhaps the most famous example.

    Also, here in NL we often get what are to British eyes quite extraordinary efforts to make sure that cyclists journeys are not interrupted by works. Things like temporary bridges, bus lanes being given to cyclists, road lanes being given to cyclists, even half a dual carriageway being given to cyclists, all of which I saw within a few months here, and none of which I'd ever seen happen in years in Britain.

    Back in 2006 I organised a tour in the Netherlands and as we got off the ferry I told the people I was riding with that I'd give them ten euros if they spotted a "fietsers afstappen" sign. We cycled up the coast, through Den Haag, in Utrecht, around Eindhoven, down to the Belgian border and back, much of the journey through places I'd never been before, so had not vetted for lack of signs. I kept my ten euros. It would not have been such a safe bet in Britain.

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  3. Neil12 November 2009 at 07:08

    As I understand it the "Cyclists Dismount" in UK is meaningless. I mean it has no legal document that describes its use or meaning. So it not advising or demanding you to do anything. Combine that with the fact that councils seem to put them when what they seem to mean is "caution", or "don't sue us if you fall over" they are completely meaningless. Unfortunately, there are also used where a no cycling or end of cycle path should have been used.

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