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Active Travel Investment Programme - Realistic?

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  1. CycleAlex
    Member

    I was looking through the Active Travel Investment Programme and it struck me just how many projects are timetabled to begin construction in the next few years.

    24 in 2020, 14 in 2021 and 5 in 2022.

    Considering how few projects have been delivered recently, this seems like a huge jump? Surely it would need a boost in staff to project manage if nothing else.

    2020:
    Residential Cycle Parking
    QuietRoute 6 – Grange Road
    Crossings
    QuietRoute 61 – Niddry to
    Moredun via Bioquarter
    City Centre West to East Link
    Various Locations – Tram
    Route – phase 3
    Dropped Kerbs and Raised
    Crossings Programme
    Deanhaugh Street and Leslie
    Place
    City-wide Public Bike Parking
    Calton Rd (Waverley to Leith
    Street)
    Arboretum Place at Botanical
    Gardens West Gate Entrance
    Meadows – Union Canal
    (Innocent to Canal Phase 2b)
    Sighthill Crossing Link
    QuietRoute 5 – Holyrood Park
    A90 Barriers
    One-way Street Exemptions
    (Phase 1)
    QuietRoute 9 Phase 1
    Guardrail Removal
    Roseburn Path – Union Canal
    QuietRoute 60 – Clermiston
    Junction
    City-wide Route Signs / Map
    Boards / Courtesy Signs
    Waterfront Promenade (West
    Shore Rd to Granton Harbour)
    QuietRoute 9 Phase 2
    Dean Park Crescent
    Cultins Road Shared Footway

    2021:
    Forthquarter – Silverknowes
    Prom. (Granton Link)
    QuietRoute 8 – Roseburn to
    Gyle Links to Saughton Park
    QuietRoute 9 – A8 Gyle to
    Newbridge
    QuietRoute 20 – Craigleith to
    Leith Walk
    Union Canal to Telfer Subway
    Connection
    QuietRoute 30 – Holyrood
    Park to Ratcliffe Terrace
    QuietRoute 6 – Meadows to
    Castle Terrace
    North Edinburgh Path
    Network – Phase 2
    West Edinburgh Link
    Marchmont Road – King
    Buildings
    Crewe Road South / Orchard
    Brae
    Morrison St
    St Leonards – Canongate /
    Holyrood Drive
    Leith – Portobello (WoL to
    Links Place)

    2022:
    Meadows to George Street
    Fountainbridge / Dundee
    Street
    Broughton Street / E London
    Street
    Bioquarter to Dalkeith Road
    and Mayfield
    Pennywell Road and West
    Granton Road

    Posted 4 years ago #

  2. jonty
    Member

    It was noted in committee documents that they were [planning to] change the way they were staffed to improve the rate of delivery. I'm not sure how well that's gone - perhaps all this stuff is realistic now?

    Of course, they might not have accounted for the CCWEL nonsense dragging on well into the New Year.

    Posted 4 years ago #

  3. toomanybikes
    Member

    Given absolutely nothing has been built during 2019, presumably there's a big pot of money that's been accumulating?

    or more realistically: given absolutely nothing has been built during 2019, assume that absolutely nothing is going to get built in 2020

    Posted 4 years ago #

  4. jonty
    Member

    I don't think that's how budgets work unfortunately. This year's active travel budget will be paying for the changes to the original Picardy Place design as well as making a contribution (I think) to road and pavement resurfacing.

    Some of the money will however be going on developing some of the projects mentioned above. For example, the Western Approach Road stuff is meant to get started next year, so design and procurement work will probably be happening behind the scenes.

    Finally, of course, all those lawyer hours for contesting the CCWEL objections won't come cheap...

    I'm relatively optimistic about some of those projects being delivered next year, but reasonable to expect more 'sorry, project on hold again' emails (or maybe Tarvit Street-style 're-consultations'.)

    Posted 4 years ago #

  5. Rosie
    Member

    @CycleAlex - thanks for extracting this. Yes, there are some big projects there. The Roseburn to Canal one really is ambitious.

    @Toomanybikes - Off the top of my head, I can't think of anything that was built this year. The City Transformation project made the year seem less dark, but in actual km of infra.. Was it really zilch?

    Posted 4 years ago #

  6. Frenchy
    Member

    The Lower Granton Road path was built this year, so it's not quite zero.

    Posted 4 years ago #

  7. Rosie
    Member

    @Frenchy - oh yes - forgot that one.

    I do wish some anorak would do a graph of kilometres (or metres!) built over the last 30 years.

    Posted 4 years ago #

  8. Frenchy
    Member

    Light up the @kaputnik signal.

    Posted 4 years ago #

  9. Rosie
    Member

    @Frenchy - I tried the Lower Granton path today. Very enjoyable. Now if only it all joined up to everything else.

    Posted 4 years ago #

  10. acsimpson
    Member

    @Rosie, does it not connect to the Trinity Path on the NEPN?

    Posted 4 years ago #

  11. Rosie
    Member

    @acsimpson - yes - delightfully.

    Posted 4 years ago #

  12. gembo
    Member

    No sign of more staff when i was down scrounging the lights for notPY. Sadly, one leaving. Several of these projects delayed. Internally the movement of planning for cycling through the organisation is something that requires ongoing attention from these gallant officers. The resistance to cycling is everywhere in every organisation. Mostly from colleagues who drive. May be unconscious.

    I am hopeful the workplace parking levy is going to impact BUTnot that hopeful. I have a cycling pal at the weekends who often commutes. One pannier one rucksack which i ponder upon. Anyway i have quizzed him about his commuting habits, got to start with the low hanging fruit. Why not commute everyday? You could cut out ZWIFT then and talk to your wife more etc he says yes. I say also you would remove yourself from the long list of people driving enormous vehicles into edinburgh with no other inhabitants except the driver. He is convinced (he has heard me on this before). His only problem is the status attached to his free car parking status. He can’t let that go.

    Posted 4 years ago #

  13. sallyhinch
    Member

    Can't answer to the second question, but I do occasionally do the backpack + single pannier combo because I prefer my laptop to be on my back, with everything else going in the pannier. Not sure why exactly, except for a vague feeling that it would get less shaken up on my back and that electronics don't generally like being rattled about.

    Posted 4 years ago #

  14. sallyhinch
    Member

    Could your colleague prominently park his bike in his free parking spot?

    Posted 4 years ago #

  15. chrisfl
    Member

    @sallyhinch - I've found exactly that. Back when I used to commute out to Queensferry I twice had to have laptops repaired, when using panniers.

    With our office move from car park dominated Gyle to Haymarket, car parking space were allocated based on distance to the office by public transport. Which is arguably fairer than based on seniority.

    Lots of folks have noticed that the daily cost of trains is much more than the cost of driving, but I did point out that that's partly because the cost of roads and parking is coming from elsewhere.

    Meanwhile it seems that the 15 car drivers have been handed out car park passes, but the 17 cyclists are still waiting for passes to get to the bike parking.

    Posted 4 years ago #

  16. chdot
    Admin

    “ but the 17 cyclists are still waiting for passes to get to the bike parking.”

    Does that mean there’s first come first served for not enough bike spaces or no one allowed in until they get a pass??

    Posted 4 years ago #

  17. chrisfl
    Member

    I think just a lack of priority given to cyclists, although from my initial glimpse of the car park, the Sheffield stands are too close together for 2 bikes, so I don't think that there will be enough spaces for 17 folks planning on cycling; also I've no idea how many of the bike spaces will be used by other folks in the building. A week before Christmas isn't going to be typical!

    Posted 4 years ago #

  18. Rosie
    Member

    Spokes looks forward to 2020:-

    City-centre West-East route [CCWEL] – Work should begin by this summer, assuming the government inquiry report is favourable – shockingly, this inquiry has delayed the project by over a year, and largely just repeated the Council’s own extensive consultations

    Bike secure-storage lockers – Work should begin this Spring installing ~180 ‘bike hangers,’ each holding 6 bikes, on streets round the city

    E-bike hire – Some 120 e-bikes will be added to the Just Eat Edinburgh Cycle Hire fleet in the Spring

    CargoBikes will be supporting local businesses on Leith Walk during the 1.5 years of tramline construction, starting now
    Leith Walk will be closed to motor traffic northbound during much of the tramline construction period. We understand that a temporary 2-way cycleroute will be provided throughout – and of course the final post-works Leith Walk layout now includes a 2-way segregated cycle route and signficantly reduced private-motor space

    Tramline safety measures, phase 3 – These long-delayed physical measures are expected this Spring – including a short segregated lane at South St Andrew Street, no motor-vehicle entry at Grosvenor Street and advance cycle lights at several junctions. Whilst hugely welcome, these are basically ameliorative measures to reduce the unnecessary dangers caused by a tramline layout designed with little consideration for cycling or walking

    Road renewals – Spokes fought for years for a policy to incorporate cycling and walking improvements in road renewals/resurfacing – and to get an increased priority weighting for roads important for bike journeys. The policy is now in place with results starting to be seen, for example at Jock’s Lodge/Portobello Road, and coming soon on part of Gilmerton Road. Note however that the policy is “where possible” – for example, unexpectedly rapid road deterioration may rule out a potential active travel scheme which would require traffic orders to implement

    Advance cycle traffic lights – Improvements in Council traffic control software mean that it is now relatively easy for advance cycle lights to be installed when traffic signals are renewed. It is now Council policy to consider this during each renewal and several sets have recently been installed or are in the pipeline, for example Pilrig St/Newhaven Rd junction. Of course they are only useful where you can be at the front of the queue, so their value at Liberton Brae/Mayfield Rd junction is lessened because of the absence of cycle lanes to the Advanced Stop area

    Low Emission Zone – By end 2020, Edinburgh’s LEZ should be in place. Following extensive consultation in 2019, final details are still to be announced, but it may be city-wide, with tougher restrictions in the city centre

    Old Town road closures – The Open Streets programme of monthly Sunday road closures will continue (and be expanded?) in 2020. Starting in 2021 some of these road closures will become permanent (including the consequent removal of all roadside parking) under the City Centre Transformation plans.

    http://www.spokes.org.uk/2020/01/cycling-into-2020/

    Posted 4 years ago #

  19. neddie
    Member

    @Rosie

    Will any of these 180 bike hangars be able to store cargo bikes?

    Posted 4 years ago #

  20. Rosie
    Member

    @neddie
    That's out report on the meeting which Cyclehoop spoke at.

    http://www.spokes.org.uk/2019/11/spokesmtg-bike-e-cargo-hire-storage/

    You could get in touch with Cyclehoop and ask them.

    Posted 4 years ago #

  21. neddie
    Member

    @Rosie

    I thought the people installing the bike hangars were supposed to be setting up a website so that residents could request hangar locations.

    Any idea when/if that's going to happen?

    Posted 4 years ago #

  22. Rosie
    Member

    @neddie - sorry no. If we get some news I'll post it.

    Posted 4 years ago #

  23. jonty
    Member

    There's a TRO out already detailing all the planned locations for the current wave. I think the locations were based on requests to the Council cycling team, I'm sure they'd be open to receiving more that way.

    Posted 4 years ago #

  24. CycleAlex
    Member

    Obviously the answer to this was a solid no, but I noticed a remark in a CCWEL report from June that doesn't bode well for next weeks Active Travel overview report.

    A strategic review of the entire Active Travel Investment Plan (ATINP) has been initiated. This will consider different options to reduce, where possible, the scope of individual schemes, as well as applying value engineering and reviewing the phasing of construction stages.
    Given the further delays on WEL and Meadows-George Street, I can't imagine it'll make for pleasant reading.

    Posted 3 years ago #

  25. LaidBack
    Member

    "...consider different options to reduce, where possible, the scope of individual schemes, as well as applying value engineering and reviewing the phasing of construction stages."

    If all the paperwork was laid out flat it would exceed any actual area of paths constructed.
    As you say the main thing is that cycling is unlikely to ever get any planned material advantage over driving any time soon.
    Sometimes I think that's the only thing that is going to plan.
    Cycle rates in city remain high (for Scotland) despite risks. Was speaking to two people that have given up on cycling at busy times. Just too much risk - younger riders too. Bad news if we expect to convert families to cargo bikes.
    Instead they will cycle on off road routes and drive or bus other journeys

    Posted 3 years ago #

  26. Yodhrin
    Member

    Honestly at this point I'm genuinely considering whether or not my planned move in a couple of years will be to Glasgow. I've lived in Edinburgh all my life and I really struggle to imagine myself anywhere else, but there's just such a complete lack of real ambition from the city's political class to do something to make the city more liveable.

    Posted 3 years ago #

  27. gembo
    Member

    @yodhrin, whereabouts in Glasgow would you move?

    The political class in Glasgow are the same SNP rulers and yet they don’t have the same opposition maybe.,?

    So at the moment Edinburgh retains various hard fought victories on the towpath the North Ed Network etc but Glasgow is looking to catch up. They ain’t done so much yet but maybe in two
    Years,?

    Posted 3 years ago #

  28. crowriver
    Member

    @gembo, Glasgow SNP ruling with Green support I think? Which may explain the active travel push.

    Edinburgh still in a better position at the moment but maybe not for much longer...

    Posted 3 years ago #

  29. Yodhrin
    Member

    @gembo Don't have a scoob tbh, last time I went through was almost 20 years ago for an old friend-of-a-friend's gig at the Cathouse. Wherever I can afford to buy a modest wee house with the value of my flat in Inverleith I suppose(previously I'd assumed I'd have to go over to the area of Fife around the bridges or well out to the developments to the west of the city). I just look at what they're doing relative to what our own council are even prepared to consider maybe doing at some unspecified future date and despair a little. I suppose it will depend on the elections next year.

    As to why Glasgow are so much more ambitious? I dunno if it was here or twitter, but I saw someone opine that folk in Glasgow are more used to the council just getting on and doing things without bothering to tiptoe back to the populace every five minutes to see if anyone wants to Rabble Rabble at them, whereas here a lot of residents of the Leafy Bits think "democracy" means "doing what I and my chums down at the rugger club think is sensible wot wot" and rather too many of our politicians are of that sort. Sounded plausible to me, but I dunno for sure.

    Posted 3 years ago #

  30. CycleAlex
    Member

    And to think the tiny jumps of progress we have made could completely disappear in next May's election... Potentially some 'tactical' delays for bigger projects to try and escape election controversy?

    @Yodhrin Glasgow seem to have started their more ambitious segregated routes around the same time as Edinburgh, but they just don't seem to get objections which saves them 2+ years. I wonder if having the schemes actually on the ground for that extra time lets more support build up, enabling them to go further?

    Posted 3 years ago #

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