DRAFT proprosal for improvements to the existing cycle route corridor
The existing designated route between the UoE central campus and King's Buildings along Causewayside - Mayfield Road is often criticised for
* discontinuous cycle lanes
* that the cycle lanes are not protected from other traffic
* having to weave in and out as the cycle lanes pass around designated parking spaces
* poor road surface (especially the section between West Preston Street and Salisbury Place, which is also narrow)
Sustrans has Places for Everyone funds which I would have thought the University would be able to apply for to help upgrade this route.
A proper route masterplan would really need a proper (potential) user consultation and design process (publicity, web surveys, meetings/workshops, etc) but a couple of specific ideas which have been doing the rounds for a while (but which often nobody has the time to actually try to take forward properly) are:
1. A cycle bridge across the South Suburban Railway which would fill in the "missing link" between Lauder Road or Findhorn Place and Langton Road (which arrives at King's Buildings at an already signalised junction (but needs improvement)), providing a very quiet road alternative to Causewayside - Mayfield Road entirely.
The obvious location for a ramped cycle bridge would be between Mayfield Court and (either) Relugas Gardens or the path access to nos 61-69 Relugas Road just to the west (assuming there is space there for suitable approach gradients).
2. Selective restrictions of parts of Causewayside for private motor traffic (perhaps northbound only between Salisbury Place and West Preston St, and southbound only between Salisbury Place and Duncan St). This frees up road space for wider/better cycle lanes or segregated cycleways, and other streetscape improvements. By preventing use as a through route for cars, almost all traffic would be forced to reroute to more suitable streets such as the A701 (Minto St). Buses could continue to use the road in both directions by providing traffic lights at each end of the bus gate sections which would be triggered by approaching buses so that the appropriate one-way flow (separate from cycle traffic) would be possible (perhaps with a couple of wider "passing places" if needed?).
Someone has put up a neater and linkified version of the above draft proposal (which members of the UoE community can edit, if they ask for permissions), but bearing in mind that other people also use all or part of this route corridor, it might perhaps be handy if someone with enough spare time and tech skills could rustle up a wiki or similar somewhere that any registered user could edit?
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