I presume "buses, taxis &" is going to be covered up soon(?)
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Infrastructure
George Street Improvements
(1175 posts)-
Posted 9 years ago #
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tents for smokers on their crack pipes (vapour cigarettes, boy are they hooked)
year long trial, would be good to know what we could do to make it a success. I imagine we should write to the council as follows
As a driver in Edinburgh of many years standing can I congratulate you on the new development in George St which makes sense for everyone and should continue permanently.
We should do this as often as we can using as many different names as possible but always stressing that we drive cars but we love the new george st for everyone.
Posted 9 years ago # -
Hopefully they'll take further inspiration from the likes of Copenhagen and provide fleecy blankets in cooler weather for the outdoor drinkers/diners.
(One of my favourite memories from a visit to Copenhagen was standing in a queue at an outdoor bar, with everyone wrapped up in complimentary blankets. It was a lovely atmosphere.)
Posted 9 years ago # -
Meanwhile, (not) far away in another part of town -
Posted 9 years ago # -
A POPULAR pub has been ordered to rip up its outdoor terrace – built almost three years ago – days before the busy festival season begins.
Lebowskis was told its alfresco drinking area on Morrison Street was “unacceptable” after officials noticed the terrace after visiting the pub to inspect a separate beer garden earlier this year.
[Dude]That's a bummer, man.[/Dude]
Posted 9 years ago # -
Don't know how 'up to date' StreetView is, but looks a lot tidier than George St! (Looks fine in EN photo too).
Posted 9 years ago # -
So, assuming this trial is made permanent, the cycle lane will be closed *every summer* for the Edinburgh Festival?
Posted 9 years ago # -
They'll need to evaluate the experiment so it would be worth finding out the scope of the evaluation, how they intend to formally monitor and assess its success and what scope there might be for interested stakeholders to contribute to the evaluation. I'm sure they'd be keen to have constructive contributions.
Posted 9 years ago # -
I went along West-East last night.
Thoughts;
- the path will be tight for two-way running, given cyclists on the side of the decking have no option if there's an obstruction but to move right. Cyclists on the off-side of the decking can at least move over to left.
- cylists bimbling absent-mindedly along on the right hand side of the lane as if they were on the NEPN or wherever are something of a hazard. It's not that I've got anything against absent-minded bimbling, and I enjoy practicing it myself on occasion, but it's not going to work on this section.
- at each junction, some council genius has dumped a pair of two-tier planters, resplendent with trailing foliage. Of course what this means is that it's very difficult to see what's coming by way of vehicles and also any pedestrians who may be crossing if you intend to turn off. The same applies for cars - they will struggle to see a cyclist on George Street crossing their path of travel. These really need pulled back a bit so that cyclists at the line are visible and vice-versa.
- the swapover is just confusing, I didn't even realise it was about to change (there's a statue in the middle of the road at that point). There didn't seem anything by way of signage or paint on the road to indicate it (granted it's not quite "finished", but, you know. T.I.E.)
- personally I think there should be big "give way to cyclists" signs at all the junctions. With people now coming from all angles in both directions it's going to get messy at the junctions, and deference should be made to the more vulnerable.
Posted 9 years ago # -
At least here is one 'mystery' 'solved' -
"
The Famous Spiegeltent St Andrew Square, EH2 1AF
https://tickets.edfringe.com/venues/the-famous-spiegeltent
"
SO not in George St. this year.
Posted 9 years ago # -
"
Spokes CycleCampaign (@SpokesLothian)
23/07/2014 12:11
#GeorgeStreet Important: council says will modify during expt if good ideas http://www.spokes.org.uk/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/1404-Spokes-comments-George-St-TRO.pdf @CyclingEdin @EdinburghBelles @nora_eats"
Posted 9 years ago # -
Ithe near-identical pseudowingpig velodrone I keep for sending along not-officially-open-yet routes went all the way west along it this morning, including going around the statues where directed and switching sides. The bin lorry trundling around on the Frederick Street ¿roundabout? certainly heightened the tension -Iit already feltIit was looking around in every direction but because of the added sensation of being on the wrong side of the roadIit still felt there was more looking than ever needing to be done. The dotting of the lines across the junctions makes them a little less visible, especially if they're suggesting/directing something which feels weird. They might not be particularly visible for people not looking very closely for them to see which says what.Posted 9 years ago # -
Having just remembered to Clarence the glass on the cycle lane leading from Bristo Place to Lothian St, I wonder how the George Street lane will fare glasswise during the Festivals and Fringe, it being next to the extra restaurant-seating. Presumably the refined fashion-eateries of George Street will be less affected by the type of coarse louts dropping bottles after wandering past the dreadful purple cow but it'd be nice to think the council will be checking that restaurant and bar controllers are cleaning up around their outside decking things properly.
"As a driver in Edinburgh of many years standing can I congratulate you on the new development in George St which makes sense for everyone and should continue permanently."
Pretend to be purveyors of assorted vital fashionable business requisites and that you're so impressed with the idea of a people-friendly retail zone that you pledge to convert half your delivery fleet of 7.5T box vans to Caddies, Berlingoes and Urban Arrows for more human-friendly city-centre use and recommend they recommend (if not compel) all other affected urban deliverymongers to do likewise.
Posted 9 years ago # -
There appears to be decking areas outside White & Co. (housewares?) and Waterstones (books and tat). Not sure what these businesses intend to do with that space, if anything at all?
Posted 9 years ago # -
Waterstones has a Costa concession, so it's probably for them.
Posted 9 years ago # -
Posted 9 years ago # -
If you're heading east, using the cycle lane, crossing Hanover, where are your traffic lights? The same ones allowing straight-on traffic from the north side of the street, whose path you're supposed to dip into to cross?
Posted 9 years ago # -
I *think* we have to *assume* it's not yet *finished*.
Posted 9 years ago # -
Probably illegal, dangerous if any other traffic, don't know if 'deliberate'.
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Posted 9 years ago # -
Work in progress -
Posted 9 years ago # -
You are on QUEEN STREET.
>Turn left.
I do not understand LEFT.
>Go south.
You are on NORTH SAINT DAVID STREET.
>Go west.
GO WEST is ILLEGAL MANOEUVRE.
>Go west ALONG GEORGE STREET.
You are on GEORGE STREET.
>Go west.
There is a PLANTER.
>Go around planter.
There is a BIG WOODEN THING WITH A PICTURE ON.
>Go around wooden thing, watching in case any pedestrians emerge unexpectedly from between it and the adjacent wooden thing with a picture on.
There is a ANGLE GRINDER and a TOOLBOX.
>Go between angle grinder and toolbox.
You are approaching JUNCTION with HANOVER STREET.
You are approaching RED TRAFFIC LIGHTS.
>Stop at the stop line.
You are STOPPED at STOP LINE.
You can no longer see TRAFFIC LIGHTS.
>What?
TRAFFIC LIGHTS are BEHIND STOP LINE.
>What are those in front of me? Are they not a repeater?
Those are TRAFFIC LIGHTS for ENTER GEORGE STREET FROM ROUNDABOUT.
TRAFFIC LIGHTS for CROSS HANOVER STREET are BEHIND STOP LINE.
>Er...
YOU ARE TRAPPED.
YOUR JOURNEY ENDS HERE.Posted 9 years ago # -
:-D
Earlier in the game:
You are in TOLLCROSS. There is a CLOCK to the east and a FLIGHT OF STEPS to the north.
> Go north.
You are at the top of the STEPS. To the north is a MAN with a BICYCLE.
> Greet the man.
The MAN says HELLO. The MAN is HOLDING a HUB.
> Give man money.
You are now holding the HUB.
> Discuss infrastructure.Posted 9 years ago # -
Still a week to go to the "Festival" though.
Posted 9 years ago # -
I went past the Festival Compromise outside the Assembly Rooms this morning. I don't think it's finished at the west extremity as it has those water-filled plastic interlocking barriers instead of the planters at the east. A wee break in the barriers there would be useful to allow you to go straight to the junction with Frederick St without having to dismount and go around the edge of the barrier on the footway.
Posted 9 years ago # -
"the Festival Compromise outside the Assembly Rooms"
I was slightly surprised to see this yesterday.
I *thought* the re-location of the Spiegeltent to St. Andrew Square meant that the idea was to keep GS 'free'.
But clearly Festivalgoers have to eat, drink and be merry (spend money).
I was a bit surprised at how empty the outside seating areas on the temp 'staging' were at about 3:15 (I know it was on/off showery, but there are umbrellas).
I couldn't see inside the AR kraal so I don't know how busy that was.
Posted 9 years ago # -
Just noticed the map (above) seems to imply that there is a cycle lane in front of AR??
Posted 9 years ago # -
"Just noticed the map (above) seems to imply that there is a cycle lane in front of AR??"
Hmm. That would mean the woman who trundled off the footway onto the pedestrian crossing might only have been half-wrong.
Posted 9 years ago # -
It's the Fetival. Unless you are:
a. - Going to see something in the Festival
b - working in the city centreThen best best to avoid central Edinburgh if at all possible until September. That goes for bikes, motor vehicles, public transport. Pedestrians probably okay (ish).
Festival goers don't generally make it onto the NEPN so I can see that being an atrractive alternative for cyclists.
Posted 9 years ago # -
...or:
c: testing the George Street arrangement in order to be able to provide informed feedback to the council.
Posted 9 years ago # -
@Wingpig/@Arrelcat That is hilarious. Please write more.
Posted 9 years ago #
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