Thought Fort Kinnaird would be more popular I suppose there's not many other stations near by. Probably could do with more coverage out that side of town - maybe dot a few more stations out towards Musselburgh direction
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Infrastructure
Edinburgh Cycle Hire Scheme
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Posted 4 years ago #
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The cycle path link from the Jewel/Innocent to Kinnaird is generally a carpet of ned glass (certainly was a couple of weeks ago - I pushed/carried my bike through it) and the surrounding roads are cyclist mincers - I can see why just plonking down a hire station there isn't going to move the active travel dial. Bit more joined up thinking required.
Posted 4 years ago # -
Three days isn't long enough to give people a chance to see them and factor them into their future journey plans. I assume there was extensive vandalism to prompt such a quick closure. The reason the dock's brief presence had registered with me is it was a more appealing option than tethering my own bike there for any length of time so peak ned-ism would make sense, sadly.
Posted 4 years ago # -
Ooof, if Fort Kinnaird only lasted 3 days, that's not a good sign!
That's a shame, it has a surprisingly mediocre level of bus service provision (and the train is even worse (there should really be 15 minute service frequency out as far as Gorebridge), and even less convenient (and not integrated into TfE ticketing)), but it (un)fortunately has a few useful shops which have substantially less restricted opening hours than their city centre equivalents (facepalm).
The cycleway linking Fort Kinnaird and the Jewel is useful in theory, and the Jewel end isn't bad, but the FK end is horrid, hemmed between high fences with no overlook and feeling very unsafe, let alone broken glass.
Given how often FK seem to redesign their car park, the council should have leant on them so that the cycleway could come into the site properly from the northwest and then past the front of the cinema, etc. This would give it better overlook and greater safety, and, shock, horror, might actually encourage people to come to the cinema or shops by bike. But that would be far too sensible.
Posted 4 years ago # -
@davecykl
agree fort Kinnaird a mess. Agree the car park there is nuts. But not sure how council could lean on them? Unless they were expanding the area of the car park, then yes I think the council could tack on cycle access.
Obviously, cycle access should be part of any planning not tacked on. tho my experience of the Fort Kinnaird car parking suggests No Planning
Posted 4 years ago # -
I don't know whether the recentish rebuilding of the Fort Kinnaird car parks would have required planning permission, or whether it would just count as an "internal rearrangement" of the already existing development, but in an ideal world it would be nice if the council and major land managers could sit down around a table and discuss those sorts of redevelopment works so that improvements that they had not thought of could at least be suggested to them; I'd guess they might also have been more amenable had a proposal to reroute the cycleway also released some funding that would have covered some of the tarmaccing costs?
Fort Kinnaird is such congested place to get to, that you would think that they might be open to "quick wins" that would allow people to get there and spend their money more easily (ie, better cycling access) rather than avoid it unless necessary as such as horrendous place to get to...
Posted 4 years ago # -
Beasted by an electric burger bike on the Minto Street drag. Looked smart. Guy had an Endura jacket and a SixSixOne helmet so not your average Burger Biker.
Me and he same speed through town though.
Posted 4 years ago # -
Update on vandalism: https://medium.com/@justeatcycles/vandalism-theft-how-you-can-help-95febd635bd
Asks people to report any stolen bikes on 101. (Make police stats look worse so they do something?)
Apparently they've had security patrols out at night.
Posted 4 years ago # -
How long does it take the Polis to answer 101 these days?
Last time I tried, it was over 20mins. Which is a bit useless really
Posted 4 years ago # -
I've never got so much as a word of thanks for the bikes I've rescued for them.
I'm excluded from the scheme by virtue of my choice of telephone. Can't see myself calling Poileas na h'Alba or trying to film youtz on their bikes.
Posted 4 years ago # -
Only took a couple of minutes when I last called (few weeks ago) - weekday evening though
Posted 4 years ago # -
I got through pretty quickly at rush hour recently when reporting a erratically driven SUV with very recognisable number plates. No follow up but felt that it was good to get it over to them.
There are a LOT of questions about who YOU are rather than the crime you're reporting, but I don't mind that so much. Maybe if we're going to report more they can set me up with an account and some sort of "memorable word" to log my crime reports.
"Hello 101 can I ask who's calling"
"batman"
"Hi Alex - report away"Posted 4 years ago # -
It's unclear if you can use it to report crime but if you are unable/willing to call 101 then you could submit a report here:
https://www.scotland.police.uk/contact-us/contact-us-formPosted 4 years ago # -
Just seen that they've rolled out some new hire points:
https://twitter.com/cyclehire_edi/status/1195004653211193346
We have installed new hire points at the following locations:Dean Park Street
Corstorphine Road
Colinton Road
Constitution St (this hire point has been moved across the road due to impending tram works)Get #cycling today!
I really don't understand the Corstorphine Road one. It's only 150m away from the Zoo hire point which looks to be one of the least used hire points in Edinburgh.
Posted 4 years ago # -
I’ll have you know there’s been a whopping eight journeys to/from Edinburgh Zoo so far this month!
I think that location used to be a virtual dock for a short while back when they launched around Corstorphine.
Posted 4 years ago # -
There used to be three virtual spots within a few hundred yards. The one at Pinkhill was quickly removed due to vandalism.
The Corstorphine Road one isn’t new, just an upgrade to a physical dock. It’s in a good position outside the Silvan House office block and next to the Pinkhill path. I’d be pretty annoyed if they removed it! Very surprised the zoo one has been so little used.
Posted 4 years ago # -
To be fair usage has been a bit rubbish so far this month. Zoo got 20 trips in October and 40 in September. Corstorphine Road got 104/83 in Oct/Sep.
Posted 4 years ago # -
The Corstorphine one is also at the bottom of Kaimes Road. A key route for anyone looking to test the gears on the bikes.
Posted 4 years ago # -
@ARobComp
>111... ..reporting erratically driven SUV
I went with 999 for one of these earlier this year, as mine was a definite "people in danger" situation. Guy was struggling to do the corners, had crashed in front of me, was off again, stomping between clutch and accelerator.
The 999 guy did want to spend first 30 seconds talking about me, but I interrupted with the number plate, so it would be on tape. Felt like Gilou or Jim Rockford or one of those guys.
Posted 4 years ago # -
Spokes’s meeting on Friday night, New Cycling Solutions for Edinburgh. included Charles Graham from Cycle Hire. He was up-front about the teething problems the cycle hire scheme has had eg positioning bicycles near parks and schools was a mistake as it led to vandalism and theft, and dockless cycles in a windy city like Edinburgh do not work. He had some stats about the patterns of travel e.g. a lot of leisure trips, but now more commuting, more uptake in October when the Universities start. The uptake has been rising over the year.
They have seen a spike of theft and vandalism and they have asked the public to help.
“If you see one of the following things, please report it to the Police by calling 101:
· Someone stealing or vandalising a bike.
· Someone riding a bike with flashing blue and red front lights.
· Someone riding a bike with no lights on.Please take photos and/or videos as well as calling the Police via 101 in order to report the activity for what it is, a crime.
In addition if you see a bike that has been dumped or left somewhere inappropriate please contact us (support@edinburghcyclehire.com or 0131 278 3000) with the following information:
· Name & Number of Bike
· Picture of Bike
· Location
One of our team can then come and collect the bike, and return it to our workshop for some TLC.
https://medium.com/@justeatcycles/vandalism-theft-how-you-can-help-95febd635bdPosted 4 years ago # -
I did find a couple of Just Eats on the western end of Roseburn Park Friday, "Samantha" and "Elvis" and could email Cycle Hire to pick them up.
For some stats you can link to the ppt presentation from last week's meeting. Some interesting stuff on the popular journeys and the amount of use.
http://www.spokes.org.uk/2019/11/spokesmtg-bike-e-cargo-hire-storage/Posted 4 years ago # -
On Friday evening, amongst a general atmosphere of end-of-the-month-payday drunken revelry on the streets, I was walking home. A young radge was cycling west along Montgomery Street in charge of a stolen Burger Bike (lights flashing red/blue): no hands, arms outstretched as though balancing on a tightrope, whooping out loud excitedly.
Posted 4 years ago # -
This is the Joy of Bicycling.
Posted 4 years ago # -
A joy that seems to be spreading; see more young people who have obviously nicked them than anyone else on those bikes.
Posted 4 years ago # -
By contrast hardly any of the Glasgow e-bikes get to stand still at a hire point with over 2 hires/bike/dat & a healthy use of the regular fleet too, often see into double figures on the move during the day. £2 for 20 min with e-bikes
Bewegen report Falkirk scheme on track too - at £2 for 30 min.
Nothing yet from Dundee?
Posted 4 years ago # -
I'm not sure that a day has passed (on average) since the Spokes meeting during which I haven't seen either abandoned or stolen bikes. I'm afraid that I haven't reported any of them.
Posted 4 years ago # -
I reported five abandoned bikes over the course of about a week (this was a few weeks ago). Including the same bike twice, although in different locations. I've seen another couple abandoned over the last few weeks, but forgot to report them.
I no longer feel guilty about this as Serco don't appear to care. The locks can be bumped open. The physical docks are feeble - who makes street furniture liable to attack out of aluminium, with an obvious failure point where they are bolted to the pavement? Communication with subscribers is non-existent, with docking stations appearing and disappearing without notice.
I want the scheme to be a success, but a combination of doing it on the cheap and indifferent managers seems almost destined to run it into the ground.
Posted 4 years ago # -
@Morningsider
Same. I've even taken their bikes into the garden for safekeeping and never had a word of thanks.
They can clearly do without my help or custom.
Posted 4 years ago # -
Red and blue flashing on the deck at Esselmont Road last night but I've given up on that mob they can find it themselves.
Posted 4 years ago # -
What does red / blue flashing lights mean? I've seen them with no lights, which I thought means they've not been properly / legally hired, but never red / blue?
Posted 4 years ago #
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