CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Infrastructure

Cyclist Down - Leith Walk/Balfour Street

(8 posts)

  1. Rosie
    Member

    CYCLIST KNOCKED OFF BIKE BY VAN DRIVER

    (amazingly blame apportioning headline for a change)

    The collision happened at the junction of Leith Walk and Balfour Street shortly before 10:15am.

    Eyewitness Dominic Hinde: "It happened right in front of me. The cyclist was coming down the cycle lane and the van turned straight into the road (Balfour Street) and the guy was pushed on his side and banged his head.

    Dominic said it's the third time in about three weeks that he's witnessed a collision between a vehicle and a cyclist on Leith Walk.

    On one of those occasions a vehicle pulled out and struck a cyclist and, in another instance further up the road, a car was parked in the cycle lane and a cyclist pulled out and was knocked down by another vehicle and left with a bleeding leg.

    https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/news/traffic-and-travel/his-face-was-bleeding-cyclist-knocked-off-bike-by-van-driver-on-busy-leith-road-1-5005881

    Posted 5 years ago #

  2. gembo
    Member

    Was on a just eat bike i noticed, hope he is ok

    Posted 5 years ago #

  3. gkgk
    Member

    Good pic in the EN too.

    Google streetview shows it used to be a tight little corner, replaced in 2015 with this fast, wide-radius sweeping kerb. You have to wonder what they were thinking.

    Posted 5 years ago #

  4. I were right about that saddle
    Member

    Just rode past this junction and it caused my memories to spool. Many joinery vans diving down that street off Leith Walk of a morning. The council's cycle facilities are best avoided there.

    I always expected the Burger Bike scheme to lead to novice cyclists getting hurt by thinking advisory cycle lanes have some safety benefit.

    Posted 5 years ago #

  5. neddie
    Member

    tight little corner, replaced in 2015 with this fast, wide-radius sweeping kerb. You have to wonder what they were thinking

    They were thinking, "We must let these ginormous bin lorries charge round here as fast as possible, as it's more important the bins are emptied than people actually stay alive"

    Posted 5 years ago #

  6. Arellcat
    Moderator

    tight little corner, replaced in 2015 with this fast, wide-radius sweeping kerb. You have to wonder what they were thinking

    The effective radius hasn't changed. When the cycle lane was installed, the hatched areas that were frequently parked upon were paved, forming a build-out, and the existing kerb line from Balfour St was continued, following the border of the hatching.

    But drivists are capable of all kinds of nonsense. The bollard on the eastern side of the Murieston Crescent junction was installed in 2011, was then bashed, scraped, generally driven into and uprooted from time to time, and now appears to have been replaced with a taller bollard.

    As Tulyar noted recently, bollards and barriers are installed because the design and management of the road has failed to eliminate the hazard or the behaviour.

    Posted 5 years ago #

  7. gkgk
    Member

    Re effective radius not changing - I know what you mean, re the roadway and vehicle arcs, but I was careful to be describing kerb radius and it's that, the clearly-defined, wider radius kerb that is making the corner more dangerous, I think, by offering drivers earlier sight of, and reassurance about, the arc to take and who is (supposedly) holding priority. The double reds make it worse. The old corner involved drivers negotiating that worn-paint area of ambiguity before finding the "tight little corner", which was surely safer and slower.

    Posted 5 years ago #

  8. Duncan
    Member

    Picking up on mention of Murieston Crescent - the short straight section nearest to Dalry Road has been stressing me out recently.

    Going towards Dalry Road is inconvenient on a bike - cars often queuing a hundred yards back at rush hour, with no inside filter lane for bikes - partly due to private car storage but also street bins.

    Going away from Dalry Road, this is downright dangerous. Cars and bins obscure the sight lines for vehicles pulling out of Murieston Terrace. Twice in recent weeks they have pulled out in front of me, without seeing me at all. The last time, the car pulled into the Crescent, and drove straight at me, seeing me at the very last millisecond. A slight swerve by both of us brought me to a standstill by the driver, with my leg brushing the car.

    I wonder if others have found this section increasingly dangerous/ inconvenient? I will pass this on to the council, and it would be good to have other stories, if they're out there.

    Posted 5 years ago #

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