CityCyclingEdinburgh was launched on the 27th of October 2009 as "an experiment".
IT’S TRUE!
CCE is 15years old!
Well done to ALL posters
It soon became useful and entertaining. There are regular posters, people who add useful info occasionally and plenty more who drop by to watch. That's fine. If you want to add news/comments it's easy to register and become a member.
RULES No personal insults. No swearing.
@Frenchy @nedd1e_h That's great news but agreed, some enforced yellow lines or similar will also be required.
The Stenhouse Drive bit has got me scratching my head (see sheet4 of this) - lovely that the cycle path will extend east by another 200 yards, but a massive missed opportunity to tackle the problem for bikes arriving from the south-east on Stenhouse Drive having to play frogger to get to that cycle path in the first place. No effective change, and probably lots of money spent. Boo.
@Frenchy Agree with your Dumbiedykes ones. I've added a marker on cyclescape for the ramped access to the park needed.
Also added that the crossing by the Meadows on Buccleuch St takes a long time to change.
Crossings at all points of the Meadows and Innocent*, should have detector loops added in advance so that the crossing phase has a good likelihood of triggering just as the cyclist arrives.
Treating cyclists as pedestrians who must stop at every junction is a major small barrier.
*and many more but I won't write a full list right now
@Kokomo - Thanks. Worth noting that those ones are already on the active travel team's radar - "with a view to including them, if applicable, in our minor improvements project that is due to be rolled out later this year."
Fingers crossed.
I always wonder why is there no cycling on the western approach road when can cycle on far more dangerous roads like Livi duelly is it just legacy that in the western approach was put in place in the period when cycling was out of fashion and the decision has not been re visted?
"put in place in the period when cycling was out of fashion and the decision has not been re visted?"
Probably
Used to be higher speed, so when it was planned to reduce would have been a good time to revise.
The 'branch' to Roseburn is narrower - and no real room to build a segregated path.
Of course a path on the verge east from Telfer is too easy for CEC to get round to building.
Of course a path on the verge east from Telfer is too easy for CEC to get round to building.
This part of the fabled Roseburn-Canal route, isn't it?
How are we getting on with CycleScape?
Do joiner tables sitting in cycle lanes two days in a row at rush hour peak traffic count as a "small barrier"?
This is at Angle Park Terrace and was still there when I cycled along there again this morning. At least it's tidier and they've put the drills mostly away this morning.
You can plonk this under the general headline of "cycle lanes blocked but no real action or repercussions follow".
The only small consolation here is they're not blocking the pavement, which is usually the case.
Regarding the overall topic of this thread, there are just so many small barriers to cycling in Edinburgh that I struggle to think of any particular instances. It's just too overwhelming I'm afraid: literally every time I ride a bike I encounter some barriers somewhere.
I happened to be on the NEPN yesterday and was accosted by a chap from Sustrans trying to sign me up as a member. He also asked me how I found cycling in Edinburgh. On reflection, I responded it was not bad relative to most of Scotland, but that's not saying much. It could be so much better, but I'm resigned to the fact I'll be drawing my pension before there's any significant improvement in cycling conditions in this city.
Overall, the main thing that would improve cycling in Edinburgh would be the provision of more traffic-free routes, with good surfaces, that actually connect together instead of disappearing when needed most. Failing that, significant restrictions on on-street parking and motor vehicles in general, especially in the city centre. These of course are not "small barriers" but then fixing the small things really is just tinkering at the edges of the real issue: the utter dominance of motor traffic.
How are we getting on with CycleScape?
Not bad, site has a couple of quirks that took a bit of getting used to, but I got there. I see a few other people have got stuck in too.
The key points for Cllr Macinnes are not only to try and get as many of these fixed as possible, but to try and figure out how to prevent similar barriers occurring in the future. Fixing them retrospectively is a much bigger (and presumably more expensive) pain than preventing them from happening in the first place.
I saw that table yesterday, at same time as spotted daisy daisy could not say hello as needed to avoid the obstacle. I feel this should be moved if it is still there, quite dangerous, the trades holidays do result in such things and then als massive hgvs delivering massive bits of buildings and total traffic mayhem
This affects cyclists and pedestrians (even more).
Generally there needs to be a complete review of traffic light sequences - and why they prioritise "traffic flow" and aren't even smart enough to change when there's no (motor) traffic!
This is one of the worst (WAR by the stupid v tight zigzag).
The crossing at the top of Dublin Street is also bad for cycle/ped waiting times.
The crossings seem to be uniformly awful. E.g. my local crossing at Polwarth Church has ridiculously long cycles all day long even though it only handles traffic that even approaches that need for maybe 20 minutes either end of the working day. It could easily be immediately responsive for 23 hours a day without holding anyone up but no.
You mean Polwarth T/Gillsland R?
I find Gillsland to Harrison the best junction in Edinburgh. Changes almost instantly (usually) on approach even if it hasn't been red for long.
Not too bad in reverse too.
That's the one. It's not too bad for cyclists (though the badly deteriorated drain in the ASZ on Polwarth Terrace e/b sometimes makes for awkward interactions with cars) and yes both the Gray's Loan and Gillsland lights switch for you if it's empty, but it's terrible for pedestrians. It's the usual 'if you've pressed the button too late into the current cycle you have to wait for the next cycle to end' MO. With the cycles so long you don't really get traffic held up most of the time. Notably this also applies at school run time when you often have people waiting to cross empty roads.
"but it's terrible for pedestrians"
Ok, very rarely been on foot.
The fact that the vehicle detector works unusually well and the ped buttons don't reinforces the need for a holistic look at traffic light controls.
Hankcheif, have you submitted a list yet? I've been away so just catching up. I've added the timing of Dechmont Road and Barnton Junction pedestrian lights along with the negligently small crossing island on Queensferry Road just east of Barnton Junction. (The barnton crossings are obviously only affect pedestrians, although I would at times like to be able to dismount and walk across withough having to reschedule my day).
I'm sure there's more I could add from my council chasing list if required.
AC - not sent in yet as holiday cottage's Wi-Fi isn't working...
Will do it at the weekend and label it barriers to Active Travel so include walking and cycling issues.
There's also this Flickr group: https://www.flickr.com/groups/barriers_to_cycling_in_edinburgh
(thread here: http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=18 )
I'll try and remember to scan through the photos and add particularly egregious examples to Cyclescape where they haven't already been added.
Thanks Hankchief. That explains why you didn't cycle home from the beach then.
Haha! I love that this pic of Keith Broon is posted in the 'Barriers to cycling' Flickr group. Hilarious. But true.
Transport Minister Keith Brown at PoP by Chris Hill, on Flickr
MONETISE YOUR EXPERIENCE
Enter your pet hates into the Spokes Competition and you could win vouchers from bike shops, free meals, travel.
2017 competition – Low Cost Ideas to Boost Bike Use [closes 3 September]
"Big change needs big schemes - but many little things could be done quickly to solve a local problem or to make cycling life better. For example, a flush kerb, an employer initiative, signs, landscaping, blocking a rat-run, allowing two-way cycling (without a cycle lane) in a quiet one-way street. Ideas likely to cost up to a few £1000s, so not a new cycleroute or a roundabout rebuild.
Your entry must be about a specific possibility, place or idea in Edinburgh or Lothian – for example, a specific kerb affecting you, not a general plea for flush kerbs. Importantly, you should also say why it's such a great idea"
http://www.spokes.org.uk/documents/odds-and-ends-may-be-exciting/competitions/
Presume you can enter more than once?!
Presume you can enter more than once?!
"Each person can submit 1 or 2 entries (not more) and only one idea per entry."
Oh well, priorities then...
I wish we could make the prize "top 10 winning entries get this impediment removed/improvement added" but alas no.
Okay, so this morning the Angle Park Terrace joiners workbench in the cycle lane was back.... But this time with two No Parking cones and builder's tape to make a wee barrier around it.
Presumably that's all fine then?! You couldn't make it up!
I wonder what counts as small. For instance is resurfacing Braepark Road worth including?
I have added it along with:
Dalmeny Park chicanes
Dalmeny railway line gate
Maybury Junction pedestrian island
Shell Garage dropped kerbs (very minor)
Chicanes onto Maybury Road at Barntongate and East Craig Rigg
Mabury Road Cycle lanes (not minor but I've added it to cyclescape anyway)
I'm sure there's plenty others I could add (eg chicanes) but not that I pass regularly and can think off of the top of my head.
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Cycling in Edinburgh Flickr group
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