The section at Buccleuch Street is being used as carpark already. There were 4 cars plus an advertising van blocking it today at lunchtime as I passed on the bus :( http://t.co/AXqSNXE9D6
*edit, not sure how to link to Twitter photo,
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Infrastructure
Meadows-Innocent consultation (and subsequent building & use)
(485 posts)-
Posted 9 years ago #
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Ah, you beat me to it...
I'd noticed the same issue - hopefully when it's operational it will be "policed", however I suspect it won't be, as the parking enforcement officers will consider it pavement parking (and thus not their concern) and the police will have more important
things to docoffee to drink (in Snax).Robert
Posted 9 years ago # -
It an offence to park on a cycle track (Roads (Scotland) Act 1984, Section 129(6)).
Does the new segregated lane meet the definition of a cycle track - i.e. a road where passage is limited to bikes or bikes and foot? I reckon it probably does, but it will ultimately depend on the Traffic Regulation Order used to give give legal weight to the scheme.
I find this all very depressing though - why do people have to park on a short section of cycle track.
Posted 9 years ago # -
Presumably when the route is finished (it surely isn't yet if people are able to park there with such flagrant disregard?) it will be more obvious that it is a cycle lane and drivers will realise that they shouldn't park? I would agree that it is depressing to see that though.
Posted 9 years ago # -
It'll be routinely parked on, regardless of how clear it is that it's a cycle lane. If you challenge the drivers concerned, they will scream abuse at you - they might even get out of their cars and grab hold of you to stop you leaving while they scream. If there are bollards, they will deliberately knock them down. This is very much the experience of using Glasgow's segregated lanes.
Posted 9 years ago # -
I saw a tweet from Lesley Hinds yesterday saying that there will be bollards. How solid they will be remains to be seen...
Posted 9 years ago # -
I doubt that the 4x4, lorry and van entered at the end. I suspect they simply bumped over the kerb...
Robert
Posted 9 years ago # -
Oh for heaven's sake - some peoples' attitudes are ridiculous.
If they were to be ticketed, pretty sure it would not be that effective a deterrent. If I were to block the road by somehow parking my bike in the middle of it, it would not be long before it is removed or damaged.
So I say, bring on the tow trucks...
Used to think cycle campaigners were overly negative and cynical; after less than a year I think I may have picked up the cynicism bug!
Posted 9 years ago # -
"Used to think cycle campaigners were overly negative and cynical; after less than a year I think I may have picked up the cynicism bug!"
It is a problem...
My *optimism* on this one is that once path is open/in use, most drivers will have more sense.
Otherwise CEC will have to spend unplanned money on a row of bollards by the kerb.
If that happens I would not blame The Council for 'unreasonable optimism' - that is valid for the Haymarket taxi rank and many aspects of George Street!
Posted 9 years ago # -
I think this is one of the reasons some people campaign against segregated infra in this country. It costs
a lot ofsome money and motorists just park/drive in it anyway.Ridiculous situation.
Posted 9 years ago # -
They wouldn't have to spend money on bollards if they used the tow-trucks they already have to take these idiots to the pound they already have and collect the fines they already can.
I don't know if the fines cover the costs of the tow-away operation (somehow I doubt it) but why spend money which will probably come out the cycling budget on unneccessary bollards.
Posted 9 years ago # -
It's worth bearing in mind that while the new few yards of segregation are ostensibly open for use, it's of little value until the crossing is installed because you're then unable to get to NMW until both lanes of vehicles give a gap.
I discovered this yesterday.
I also discovered to my surprise that the tight 90 degree turn is in fact just* navigable by torpedo.
* Only just, by cutting the corner, using all of the available tarmac and exiting at an angle towards NMW.
Posted 9 years ago # -
Posted 9 years ago # -
It's nice to see they aren't relying on motorist-height signals for this. The ones on George Street are nearly invisible to cyclists if you sit at the stop line as they have clearly been installed by someone used to installing signals for motor vehicles on roads.
Posted 9 years ago # -
They have little cyclist-height traffic lights at Bow Roundabout in That London:
Posted 9 years ago # -
If it does get permanently blocked by cars, a few parked bikes just happening to block the road at rush hour might be an effective way to make the point that enforcement (+ bollards) would be a good idea...
There was a cycle track put in somewhere recently (possibly Toronto?) with no bollards to stop parking in it. They ended up with one police officer permanently patrolling it and issuing tickets all day long (the economics of that would be interesting depending on who gets the fines...). You'd think the drivers would learn, but after about a week of that, they broke down and put in bollards.
Posted 9 years ago # -
Related - wheelchair parking protest http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-news-from-elsewhere-30144669
Posted 9 years ago # -
If it does get permanently blocked by cars, a few bikes being squeezed through the remaining gaps so that their pedals 'accidentally' scratch the bodywork of the cars may help too or could that constitute criminal damage?
Posted 9 years ago # -
Large windscreen stickers... Not that I'm having any made or anything...
Posted 9 years ago # -
Whilst tempting, sounds like it may be criminal damage to me!
I'm sure that these would be a good start though... http://www.theguardian.com/environment/bike-blog/2014/sep/29/bike-lane-sticker-campaign-canada-uk
Posted 9 years ago # -
Large windscreen stickers... Not that I'm having any made or anything...
I'm increasingly tempted to get some postcard-sized cards printed up with a cheery set of messages ranging from "You park like a *****" up to the full "You park like a ****", perhaps with a list of tick-boxed reasons - in a cycle lane, on double yellows, on a corner, double-parked, on the pavement, etc - to be inserted under the windscreen wipers of offending vehicles. The actual cards will be uncensored.
Posted 9 years ago # -
As found on my work colleague's windscreen:
You park like a fanny!
Posted 9 years ago # -
or perhaps something un-gendered?
Posted 9 years ago # -
Stickers sound like the way to go, particularly if they are difficult to remove (but perhaps not when stuck onto driver's side windows). "20's Plenty" and "Cyclists Stay Awesome" stickers may be particularly satisfying to use.
Posted 9 years ago # -
or perhaps something un-gendered?
You make a good point, SRD. It's quite challenging to find a word that conveys the appropriate level of scorn that is not gendered (either male or female) or genitalled for that matter. Such is the English language.
I'd be happy to develop a pack with a 50:50 mix of M/F gendered abuse-words.
Posted 9 years ago # -
"muppet" gets used a lot at my work. Often towards me.....
Posted 9 years ago # -
I like the idea of actual asterisks. That way the recipient can decide what the offensive word is for themselves, and can choose one that's appropriate and that makes them feel suitably chastened. Also it means that there's no risk of generating a backlash from an inappropriate choice of actual word ("I know that I parked on a yellow zig zag outside the school at 0840 while I went to buy some fags, but I was only going ot be a minute and there's nowhere else to park and the really important point here is that you used that word on a sticker, and children might have seen it. Think of the children").
Unfortunately, in response to SRDs point, I don't think there are any un-gendered words that are rude enough. The nature of most really offensive words is that they are "obscenely biological", as Douglas Adams put it.
Posted 9 years ago # -
'arse' is presumably ungendered. But I'd agree that it needs to be something that doesn't let someone take the moral high ground (then again I'm someone who hates t-shirts with swearing on them and the like - no prude, just think there's a time and place).
Posted 9 years ago # -
Had considered similar in the past.
***ker works
Prefaced by inconsiderate or similar.
Posted 9 years ago # -
- a plank
- a donkey
- George Osbourne?
Posted 9 years ago #
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