The Bicycle Infrastructure and Housing Thread

[Si1]

57 minutes ago, onlooker said:

Microcars have no crash protection. Much of the trend towards increasing car size (particularly width) is driven by the actual need to improve safety by side impact protection. Also the desire of parents not to be squashed on the road by ever bigger lorries and crazy Amazon and Ocado delivery drivers.

Interestingly, the Netherlands has both an outstanding driver experience and also brilliant pedestrian and cyclist safety with their world leading integrated transport infrastructure. Walkability helps motorists too by getting unnecessary car trips off the roads.

[Si1]

1 hour ago, cbathpc said:

This to me is a great point. The government claims to be green, but is so slow when it comes to genuine innovations. Those escooter things could solve so many problems, likewise microcars - however there is no push for them and most of them get banned from the road! 

I've heard off the record that Rishi hates anyone who isn't "successful" in his world view aka Range Rover drivers. So he is opposed to sustainable or mass transport. And that's it.

 

 

[yodigo]

6 hours ago, ftb_fml said:

That's because, as per my last post most cycle lanes are unfit for purpose and it's safer to ride on the road... while the second statement is just a massive, unconstructive generalisation, isn't it?

1st I've seen them ignore the cycle lane which is basically a separate "road" for them. But these are the "Tour de France" wannabes in full lycra out on the weekend.

2nd I've seen it happen plenty of times.

[yodigo]

3 hours ago, regprentice said:

Assuming you mean primary school age kids I disagree with that, like playing in the street, walking to school without a parent is very rare now. seems to have happened in this past generation, post 2000.

My kids primary school expects kids up to Primary 4 (about 10 years old) to walk to school with a parent , and at the end of P4 they have a 2 week period where kids are expected to start walking to school themselves. Staff stand in the streets around the school for those 2 weeks making sure kids dont get lost. 

That's in Scotland, seems the same in England from this random schools website - There is no set age when children are ready to walk to school or home on their own. It very much depends upon their maturity and confidence. As a school we follow what we believe to be good practise that pupils in Years 3 and 4 are still brought to and collected from school link

People took their primary school age kids to school by car in the 70s. There was a sense of danger, and children were warned about it, "don't get into a strangers car". As for the rest, yes, it's true in many places. But then I had a nose around a town recently re buying there, and there were groups of young kids out on their own - surprising, good to see it hasn't changed everywhere

[Si1]

10 minutes ago, yodigo said:

People took their primary school age kids to school by car in the 70s. There was a sense of danger, and children were warned about it, "don't get into a strangers car". As for the rest, yes, it's true in many places. But then I had a nose around a town recently re buying there, and there were groups of young kids out on their own - surprising, good to see it hasn't changed everywhere

Yeah. I live in one of the despised "15 minute neighbourhoods" and our kids play out all the time with neighbour's kids. And my eldest, 11 walks home from primary school sometimes.. admittedly an airtag helps with our anxiety around this!

[Si1]

24 minutes ago, yodigo said:

1st I've seen them ignore the cycle lane which is basically a separate "road" for them. But these are the "Tour de France" wannabes in full lycra out on the weekend.

There's no law requiring cyclists to use cycle lanes when available. And a good road cyclist on a lightweight drop handled bike in urban traffic will be cycling closer to traffic speeds than other cyclists speeds

24 minutes ago, yodigo said:

2nd I've seen it happen plenty of times.

 

[Locke]

13 hours ago, PeanutButter said:

The key issue IMO is bike security. When the vast majority of city dwellers don’t have a secure bike storage, and every time you park up there’s a risk of never seeing the bike again, it becomes pointless.

In my area we have cars broken into every few days, which leaves glass on pavement and roadside - meaning punctures (also from the general glass bottles people enjoy smashing). 

Again, makes it pointless to switch.

So road cleaning needs to step up, and bike theft needs to be seriously cut down. 

If we abolished planning permission and gave up city planning, people would build the buildings they actually needed and/or wanted. This would probably result in pedestrian cities with major arteries which somehow supplied just the right amount of access, seemingly by magic.

Peddling (pun intended) towards cars is a cancer which is entirely state-enforced.

[yodigo]

13 minutes ago, Si1 said:

Yeah. I live in one of the despised "15 minute neighbourhoods" and our kids play out all the time with neighbour's kids. And my eldest, 11 walks home from primary school sometimes.. admittedly an airtag helps with our anxiety around this!

The hate for them is the idea that they're "WEF virtual prisons" - cars will be banned etc.

[Si1]

2 minutes ago, yodigo said:

The hate for them is the idea that they're "WEF virtual prisons" - cars will be banned etc.

It works really well for cars too. I don't get this.

[Si1]

9 minutes ago, Locke said:

If we abolished planning permission and gave up city planning, people would build the buildings they actually needed and/or wanted. This would probably result in pedestrian cities with major arteries which somehow supplied just the right amount of access, seemingly by magic.

Peddling (pun intended) towards cars is a cancer which is entirely state-enforced.

It's weird that you're not allowed to build a bike shelter in your front garden but you can leave your car legally just sitting on the public road almost anywhere!

[Locke]

49 minutes ago, Si1 said:

It's weird that you're not allowed to build a bike shelter in your front garden but you can leave your car legally just sitting on the public road almost anywhere!

Even in other people's drives, and if they do ANYTHING, even block you in (say, they had a pallet of bricks delivered and had nowhere else to put them but behind your car), you can sic the cops on them and they can go to prison.

[miguel]

1 hour ago, Si1 said:

It's weird that you're not allowed to build a bike shelter in your front garden but you can leave your car legally just sitting on the public road almost anywhere!

On my street in a pss poor neighbourhood they are now parking on the pavement, car nose over the kerb. It's getting much worse. It started with a handful of cars doing it at the top of the street. It's now spreading further and further down the street. The place is clogged up with cars and everyone is complaining that they can't find a parking spot. Hardly surprising in rows of terraced housing where some households own a car. . or two. . . or even three!

[Stewy]

2 hours ago, Si1 said:

Yeah. I live in one of the despised "15 minute neighbourhoods" and our kids play out all the time with neighbour's kids. And my eldest, 11 walks home from primary school sometimes.. admittedly an airtag helps with our anxiety around this!

They are brilliant.

I've a cheap local Sainsbury's, gym, great pubs & restaurants all within 15 minutes' walk. Add on a nature reserve and riverside walks from leaving my front door ✓

[onlooker]

4 hours ago, Si1 said:

I've heard off the record that Rishi hates anyone who isn't "successful" in his world view aka Range Rover drivers. So he is opposed to sustainable or mass transport. And that's it.

 

 

I believe Sadie Khan only travels around London in a 3 car Landrover motorcade.

[Si1]

1 minute ago, onlooker said:

I believe Sadie Khan only travels around London in a 3 car Landrover motorcade.

Well he needs a slap then 

[smash]

4 hours ago, yodigo said:

1st I've seen them ignore the cycle lane which is basically a separate "road" for them. But these are the "Tour de France" wannabes in full lycra out on the weekend.

2nd I've seen it happen plenty of times.

Well, that will probably be because the cycle lane has been poorly implemented. I know of cycle lanes that have been built at enormous expense where the cyclists are expected to give way at all the adjoining streets. That might be OK for an old lady on a shopping bike but anyone who wants to keep a pace on isn't going to be using it. The additional problem though is that the existence of the cycle lane creates a perception in motorists that the cyclists are somehow invading "their" space by being on the road instead.

Edited April 22 by smash

[Dyson Fury]

4 hours ago, miguel said:

The place is clogged up with cars and everyone is complaining that they can't find a parking spot. Hardly surprising in rows of terraced housing where some households own a car. . or two. . . or even three!

Be thankful that you don't live in a district where half the houses have been converted to student HMOs.  Three-bedroom family homes converted into 6-bedroom HMOs, where one of the extra bedrooms has been converted from the former garage.  Four, five or six cars per property.

[PeanutButter]

11 hours ago, Si1 said:

Give the motoring lobby a fat pay rise, that is outstanding manipulation.

[Si1]

2 minutes ago, PeanutButter said:

Give the motoring lobby a fat pay rise, that is outstanding manipulation.

But what about the wAr oN MoToRiStS....?

[PeanutButter]

You see, we need bigger cars because of the risk of accidents from bigger cars.

 

 

 

[onlooker]

28 minutes ago, PeanutButter said:

You see, we need bigger cars because of the risk of accidents from bigger cars.

 

 

 

I know that is the traditional explanation, but most of the SUV's I see in my neighbourhood are driven by women, frequently mothers ferrying children around.

[Brendan110_0]

12 hours ago, Si1 said:

I've heard off the record that Rishi hates anyone who isn't "successful" in his world view aka Range Rover drivers. So he is opposed to sustainable or mass transport. And that's it.

 

 

Ha ha state of that, does he think he's President of the UK? That cuntwaffle is so far removed from the average man/woman/insert other gender here 😜

[Stewy]

7 hours ago, onlooker said:

I know that is the traditional explanation, but most of the SUV's I see in my neighbourhood are driven by women, frequently mothers ferrying children around.

I quite often see them tailgating me, seemingly wanting to do 37mph in a 30mph zone. Several quite often can barely see over the steering wheel 🙄 

Very aggressive driving and you know they'd act the victim if anything occurred. 

[debtlessmanc]

I’ve posted this before, but the new airport relief road and Poynton by pass opened in Manchester a few years ago. A beautiful cycle lane alongside it the whole way (8 miles). I drive the length of it every day. Must be one day a week I see a single cyclist. Dog walkers and joggers a plenty - but bikes none.

Edited April 23 by debtlessmanc

[Gbob]

Road users just need to have a bit more respect for each other and give each other room. That might mean being a tiny bit patient sometimes if someone needs to pass a cyclist but its not going to disrupt people's day very much in the grand scheme of things.