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IT’S TRUE!
CCE is 14years old!
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RULES No personal insults. No swearing.
"A cycling grandad has been clearing a three-mile stretch of dirt-caked pavement by hand to make it safe for other bike fans.
Peter Hawkins, 77, has spent dozens of hours shovelling earth and debris from a section between Edinburgh and West Lothian."
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/bike-daft-grandad-clears-dirt-12409174
Thoughts?
Thoughts: "I think I recognise him" and "That's a nice looking bike"
Further thoughts on this bit:
“It’s very public spirited of Mr Hawkins to clear the pavement, however cycling on pavements poses a real danger to pedestrians – and, as a result, it’s against the law.
“We would strongly encourage cyclists to use one of the excellent off-road routes, such as the National Cycle Network route 75 or the shared path along the Union Canal.”
The council Transport convener can go jump in the canal.
Badass grandad.
It's unclear from the article whether the path is shared use or not. And Lesley McInnes saying it's a footpath doesn't necessarily mean that's the case.
My first thought is "good on him", my second is "sad state of affairs councils can't afford to send a couple of lads out with shovels to do this work" and my third is "all rural pavements should be designated shared use and signposted."
Check his shovel in the photo. That ain't the first bid of shoveling this dude has done.
And Ms Macinnes of Gyratory fame really can get in the sea with that chat.
It's unclear from the article whether the path is shared use or not.
It's not.
Incidentally, Midlothian Council are considering designating some of their rural footways as Core Paths, which would make cycling legal on them.
Council Transport convener finally concedes that shared paths have built-in conflict? And yet there are no alternatives are there...? Apart from the road.
"And Ms Macinnes of Gyratory fame really can get in the sea with that chat"
Yes, indeed. Worst transport convenor for a generation?
It may not be officially shared-use but if it was that caked then I'd say it had been effectively abandoned by the council. If it were an oft-used footway there would have been multiple complaints about the surface and it would have been shoveled quicker. Now Mr Hawkins has adopted it so we can all enjoy it. The council can get stuffed.
I don't know if the pavement from Flotterstone to Fairmilehead is shared use or not but that's where I cycle. The road is not safe and I've never seen a pedestrian on it.
It needs shoveled too. Maybe we should clear it and deliver the mud to City Chambers?
Maybe we should clear it and deliver the mud to City Chambers?
Transport Scotland/Amey for the A702 mud.
Chapeau sir - excellent work!
I am also intrigued by Cllr MacIness' suggestion that I use the off-road National Cycle Network route 75 between Edinburgh and West Lothian - because I'm pretty sure the bit between Balerno and Kirknewton is on road.
I also like the idea that bikes pose a danger to pedestrians on this little-used pavement, but not on the canal towpath.
I don't know if the pavement from Flotterstone to Fairmilehead is shared use or not but that's where I cycle. The road is not safe and I've never seen a pedestrian on it
I've walked it once when the last bus never turned up at Flotterstone. It's absolutely horrible to walk along.
For years he was the organiser of the Spokes Path Group and actually made/surfaced new paths/routes including the path to Brunstane Mill and parts of NEPN inc from Trinity High past Sculpture Workshop.
These have subsequently been tarmacced.
He also clips back vegetation on various paths and previously drained a lot of puddles on the Canal towpath.
(Younger readers won’t remember that without tarmac and landing lights!)
That comment about using the canal really ilustrates that the speaker doesn't see cycling as a way to get from A to B but just as a thing that you go out and "do". But wasn't she the person that got a new electric bike recently? Or was that someone else?
NCN75 from Balerno goes down Ravelrig Hill. Steep and in bad state of repair (no pavement). There is then a stretch where you can go off road a little in the direction of Kirknewton but you come back on the road after a mile or so (I have never done this as road is quicker).
The pavement he has cleared between Curriehill Road and the turn to Ratho at Dalmahoy Hotel has never had any pedestrian action. I say never but 0.00001% of walkers in the area have used the pavement. Most will be on the canal towpath. When I was first back into cycling in Edinburgh I did use this pavement as Peter is correct that the road is brutal.
Good man.
Last Friday, a volunteer from Sustrans stopped me at 5-ways (NEPN) to raise awareness about Sustrans' work...
She claimed that Sustrans had built these (NEPN) paths and it was nothing to do with the council. She was unaware that the council were currently spending £900,000 on works literally 100 yards from where she was standing.
Er, no. It wasn't Sustrans who built these paths. It was volunteers like Peter Hawkins who cleared the old railway paths and made them cyclable back in the 80s...
Sustrans may have contributed some government money at some point in the future, but they certainly didn't build them.
She also showed me 2 misleading maps of Scotland, one from 1995 and the other from today, both showing the Sustrans network. Strangely the canal towpath didn't exist in 1995, nor did the thousands of country roads that form the most part of the Sustrans "network"!
“Er, no. It wasn't Sustrans who built these paths. It was volunteers like Peter Hawkins who cleared the old railway paths and made them cyclable back in the 80s...”
Sustrans was involved (with Spokes) in building the “Pilton Path” (Red Bridge to Granton) nice little route - not so nice now it’s a dual carriageway with a path at the side!
I don't know if the pavement from Flotterstone to Fairmilehead is shared use or not but that's where I cycle. The road is not safe and I've never seen a pedestrian on it.
It isn't and I choose to break the rules because I don't want to die.
I would be up for some DIY crud clearing too...
@Stickman - horrible to cycle too, but as per the above the road is actually terrifying.
@IWRATS You're brave. I cycled that way only once (on the pavement) and it was terrifying, with HGVs hurtling past at 40mph about 18 inches from my elbow. Never again.
Fantastic work by Mr Hawkins. CEC and McInnes, hang your heads in shame.
@Snowy
I only do it if I can't be bothered going down to the Esk path to get home quietly. Can't say I liked it, but I didn't find it frightening, whereas the road itself is simply not a tenable place to be on a bicycle to my mind.
the road itself is simply not a tenable place to be on a bicycle to my mind.
Posted this here before, but it's relevant:
Police officer literally shrugged his shoulders and asked what the problem was when I reported it.
I've never been along the A701, but I find it easy to believe that similar occurs there.
@Frenchy, clearly Cllr Macinnes would admonish you for cycling on the A702 when there are traffic free old drove roads through the Pentlands to be used by cyclists.
When I've cycled out that way I've taken the A701 from Straiton to Penicuik then the A766 to Nine Mile Burn. There's the option of skipping Straiton junction too and going via Lasswade Road and Loanhead. Only time I bashed down the A702 was on the way back from the Ride To The Sun if I recall correctly. In the wee small hours the road was empty except for me and a few other cyclists in the distance.
Oh and Peter Hawkins: respect!
Sorry, my post was meant to say "A71", not "A701". I have been on the A701 and, whilst it's not as bad as the A702, it's not fun either.
The A71 is terrifying. Only done a short stretch of it to get to Curriehill Road / the quarry road that links to Long Dalmahoy a few times. Not nice at all.
Definitely preferable to go via Long Dalmahoy Road whenever possible. Even then it's a detour via West Lothian if you want to avoid A71 entirely!
The A71 is terrible from currie road until wikieston I have cycled it a couple of times off peak. Peak I have pavement cycled the bits that are being cleaned. If going to ratho then pavement cycle from burnwynd till ratho junction. From wikieston to Livingston the A71 is quite ok as has can ride at the edge of the road on the inside of the white lane. If the council did not leave suicide section in the middle of the road for motorcyclists then would be wide enough for cycle lanes.
I have cycled the A702 off peak not a road to be cycled peak. I have cycled over the pentlands with slick tyres but had to dismount a few times.
Peter H has been building and clearing paths for decades. If you want to see a pictorial history, check out from slide 71.
https://www.slideshare.net/MartinMcDonnell7/spokes-40th-anniversary-presentation-151017
& to be personal, it shows how fit cycling & path clearing can keep you.
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