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Curious (unhelpful?) article by Alastair Dalton

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  1. chdot
    Admin

    Seems to be saying may soon be enough segregated cycle infrastructure to 'sacrifice' things like PfS.

    "

    Any form of special event which disrupts traffic, from motorcycle gatherings to walks over the Queensferry Crossing, raises the hackles of motorists.

    It is also impossible to hold a mass road cycling event without causing disruption and inconvenience.

    However, residents of places like Glenmavis, Slamannan, Maddiston and Whitecross may have seen the closures as being imposed on them, and felt as excluded as having a railway line built through with no station.

    But perhaps in the future, with continued enhanced spending on improvements like segregated cycle lanes where traffic is busiest, maybe such events will no longer be necessary?

    "

    http://www.scotsman.com/news/opinion/alastair-dalton-boosting-cycling-s-popularity-must-keep-everyone-on-side-1-4560532

    Posted 6 years ago #
  2. amir
    Member

    The benefit of mass events like pfs and the marathons is that they do promote sports for normal people. Given the health problems that this country has, that must be seen as a positive thing. And places with a more positive life balance are happy to shut streets to traffic on a weekly basis

    Posted 6 years ago #
  3. gembo
    Member

    He does list some dark places in falkirkshire where the lonely cyclist needs to pedal fast. Routing PfS through these spots may do little to encourage the populace to take to their bikes.

    Shame some nice descents

    Motorists may need to stop feeling hard done by and start thanking their lucky stars they can just drive where they like for the cost of a litre of petrol

    Posted 6 years ago #
  4. chdot
    Admin

    "Motorists may need to stop feeling hard done by and start thanking their lucky stars they can just drive where they like for the cost of a litre of petrol"

    Well we only have the frothers opinions that drivers feel "hard done by" or that there is a 'war on them'.

    Selfish and over privileged applies to many who imagine they are superior, have enhanced rights and law breaking is what 'others' do.

    Posted 6 years ago #
  5. gembo
    Member

    Yeah frothers but boy do they froth

    Posted 6 years ago #
  6. I were right about that saddle
    Member

    Rumour has it that the Guardian pays £90 for 1,000-word thought pieces. Johnson Press has much less money than them.

    If we read and reflect on these articles it's entirely possible we've put more time into them than the journalist who wrote them.

    What is a 'motorcycle gathering'? How does a walk over the not yet open Queensferry Crossing disrupt traffic?

    It's just a pile of words to fill some space on a sheet of paper.

    Posted 6 years ago #
  7. Morningsider
    Member

    This can't be right - the good burghers of Slamannan are used to road closures and the sight of people wearing outlandish clothes - as they have an annual Orange Walk.

    Posted 6 years ago #
  8. SRD
    Moderator

    Slamman was lovely - their church group does a bakesale as a fundraiser (just donations) and lots of folk roundabout there waving - even offering their own refueling stop. their tea was a lifesaver.

    Kirkliston felt much less welcoming. Big queues of traffic and grumpy, inefficient marshals.

    Posted 6 years ago #
  9. chdot
    Admin

    "What is a 'motorcycle gathering'?"

    http://www.welcometoscotland.com/things-to-do/events/aviemore-cairngorms/thunder-in-the-glens

    They are even WELCOME!

    Posted 6 years ago #
  10. I were right about that saddle
    Member

    Every single day in every single one of Scotland's cities is a 'car gathering' far larger than the Badenoch Bad Boys' Rothiemurcus Rumble.

    Posted 6 years ago #
  11. gibbo
    Member

    Any form of special event which disrupts traffic, from motorcycle gatherings to walks over the Queensferry Crossing, raises the hackles of motorists.

    So?

    Mosques raise the hackles of Islamphobes.

    Gay bars/cafes with rainboy flags raise the hackles of homophobes.

    People speaking Polish on British public transport raises the hackles of Xenophobes.

    Bigots going to be bigots. And self-important children and going to act like self-important children on the rare occasions the world isn't being organised specially for them.

    Posted 6 years ago #
  12. Rosie
    Member

    This kind of thing reminds me of rentiers howling about miners getting 40 hour weeks, or factory workers a week's holiday circa 1910. It's unthinking entitlement challenged and therefore resentful.

    Posted 6 years ago #
  13. chdot
    Admin

    This sort of thing MUST be banned.

    Riders don't even clean up the pollution created by their vehicles.

    http://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/our-region/edinburgh/old-town/thousands-expected-for-riding-of-the-marches-in-edinburgh-1-4561675

    Posted 6 years ago #
  14. Rosie
    Member

    If anyone wants to clean up with a shovel and buckets, I'll take the pollution for my rhubarb and roses.

    Posted 6 years ago #

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