CityCyclingEdinburgh was launched on the 27th of October 2009 as "an experiment".
IT’S TRUE!
CCE is 15years old!
Well done to ALL posters
It soon became useful and entertaining. There are regular posters, people who add useful info occasionally and plenty more who drop by to watch. That's fine. If you want to add news/comments it's easy to register and become a member.
RULES No personal insults. No swearing.
For me personally the lanes are a chance to slow down, relax and enjoy riding my bike. Only a segregated lane can bring such relaxation. Otherwise there's always that pressing feeling that you need to push on and watch out for inattentive drivers.
It's that relaxation which makes the new lanes such a huge result. It also means I find it easier to envisage a future with a larger demographic of people riding more places more often.
Why all the anti-Sfp folk obsess about cyclists not being able to overtake each other beats me. The we want to encourage onto the lanes won’t be bothered about that. I’m quite happy to cruise along arriving safe rather than maimed or dead. On Lanark Road there are plenty of sections without orcas, particularly near any bus stop where passing would be easy. All that’s required is a little patience. Lots of new wands in today and ‘Bored Walk Beach Bum’ losing his shit again tells me we’re on the right track. Wait till all his new fans get stung £3 plus for a can of juice
“@chdot (and others): I think there is scope for a major PR disaster here - the worst thing we could do right now is to lend ammunition to the antis who say "It cost all that money and they aren't using it". It may be a stretch, but if we get this wrong, we could set back efforts to introduce safer infrastructure for years/ ever.“
Yes but.
I’m not (or even close to) saying ‘don’t bother to use them they are not good enough’.
I am saying don’t ‘shame’ people who don’t use them in certain places.
There will be some bike riders (probably not CCEers) who will avoid all/most of them for some (misguided) reasons.
Generally, it really isn’t about ‘us’.
It’s about people new to cycling - or at least new to being willing to cycle on busier roads than they used to.
For this, the quality and usability of the infrastructure is important.
The real issues are not whether people on bikes don’t use bits of cycle path/infra - in the same way some already stick to the road rather than use paths at the side of the road that stop at every side road - and so (potentially) ‘annoying’ a motorist or two.
This is all new to (almost) everyone.
Most of the new stuff is significantly better than previously (for people on bikes) AND (generally) we want it to become permanent AND better (especially if it really isn’t particularly good in ‘temporary’ guise).
Clearly there are people against all this for various real and made up reasons.
Most aren’t persuadable for the reasons that they a) ‘don’t like change’ b) see anything that ‘curtails their freedom’ as WRONG.
Unfortunately Covid means that all sorts of ‘street’ businesses are suffering. Anything perceived as ‘reducing footfall’ will be resisted - especially if the ‘more cyclists/pedestrians means more customers’ is still some way off.
There are more people using bikes, but a significant proportion (understandably) are for leisure/exercise in places away from lanes at side of (not as busy as they used to be) roads.
It’s complicated.
It’s reassuring that key politicians and Gov policies are generally (now) in favour of ‘active travel’, ‘slower speeds’, ‘road space reallocation’ etc.
People will soon be much more worried about whether they can fly off for their summer holidays than whether wands will be (permanently) replaced with solid kerbs.
“Us old, battle hardened cyclists will just have to change our fight or flight cycling mindset. Waltz, not mosh pit. If you are struggling, just ask yourself this question:
"Am I being an Audi driver?"“
And
“Why all the anti-Sfp folk obsess about cyclists not being able to overtake each other beats me.”
Maybe I’ve missed something.
Don’t think there can be too many bike riders against SfP on principle.
Not even sure that many don’t/won’t use lanes because of the difficulty of overtaking.
If riders prefer sticking to the main carriageway, personal choice.
Does anyone really believe people MUST use new infra?
To some extent the battle is won. But IF they result is being stuck with too many compromises it will be disappointing - ESPECIALLY if a lot more people are using bikes in future.
Apols @chdot - I meant the anti-sfp brigade outside of this group. They all seem terribly worried cyclists won’t be able to overtake each other.
Not had any problems overtaking other cyclists on the SfP so far. As has been said their purpose is to make less confident cyclists feel safer so I can live with a little bit extra fore planning of my overtake tbh
@ SnowyTheWolf
Ah
Ok
No prob!
That must be the most disingenuous concern!
@snowythewolf,
Smells like concern trolling to me. What they really mean is they would like to park their car next to the kerb as close as possible to where they are going.
Yes there’s a whole lot of concern trolling going on at present. Worry for cyclists, the elderly, the disabled etc etc but if they were honest they would admit it’s their ability to park on the road being removed that they object to. The guy chatting to Board Walk dude (let’s pollute Scotland’s Bondi) as the street cleaner machine came up the cycle lane behind them, cue quick cut, own Britannia Spice. They have a number of cars, big black Mercedes often parked outside on Lanark Road. Great restaurant and famous family name ‘Uddin’ in Edinburgh’s curry world. The private number plate with the family name confirms this. That’s why he was so agitated.
The videos posted on the Boardwalk Beach Club Facebook page are hilarious. Silverknowes Road is causing great problems for horse riders and learner drivers now!
Perhaps the owner should spend more time trying to improve his awful Tripadvisor rating.
Yeah they are too funny. It’s like playing a first person PS4 game where you get to play the most confused man in Edinburgh stumbling his way into the 21st century. A more savvy business person would have sought to cash in by becoming a top cycle welcoming / friendly venue and made great play of the new lanes. Given his arrogant responses to any criticism from customers, it’s doubtful he has any business sense or sense generally.
Didn't realise just how many videos that guy had posted. One of the Lanark Road videos showed the council with their van parked in the cycle lane - then he comments on the cyclist riding in the carriageway, d'oh!
Quite obsessive. He has an avuncular veneer. Imagine you are at a nice Cosy party in his house in Colinton as you are new to the area and your children are same age as his.
All going well, he has shown you picture of his cafe, grooovy, he supports jazz musicians, you like jazz. Then you try the nice wine you brought trying to make an effort. He love# it, where did you get this. You say Henderson Wines, he says why did you go there you tell the story your wife has heard countless times of how you boughtt a litre of Bulgarian red from them on your first date when they were actually at Henderson Row. He is like but now it is in Morningside.tricky parking there. You say not really I cycled. His antennae twitching. Oh I wouldn’t cycle on Edinburgh roads too dangerous, you say well those new lanes make it safer. Tumbleweed moment then 30 minute rant. party over.
Somebody posted a photo of one cyclist going downhill outside the Lanark road lane wands on local Facebook and it all kicked off. I'm riding in them on our utility journeys but if I was out on the road bike and able to do well over 30mph down the hill, I'm not sure I'd want to do the canyon run between wall and bollards either.
However isn't all of this just noise? The real measure will be on nice summer's day how many new and unlikely cyclists are using the lanes, what's happened to modal share, it seems unlikely the council will either keep or scrap these lanes decided on whether a few people don't use them.
Street sweeper left quite a bit of gravel in the middle of the Lanark road lanes which was annoying me on the nursery run, so I took the leaf blower for a whizz (around the golf course, not the top of the hill or down by the canal).
Might be a fool's errand but it's a bit better.
“However isn't all of this just noise? The real measure will be on nice summer's day how many new and unlikely cyclists are using the lanes, what's happened to modal share, it seems unlikely the council will either keep or scrap these lanes decided on whether a few people don't use them.”
I’d say so...
Good to know that streetsweeping is happening.
Maybe CEC needs more suitable machines - or better operator training?
Some plans in Prague (with now/planned photos visible with slider).
Locals suggest it may not all happen - ‘The car lobby. Resident parking cost £30/year’
https://www.iprpraha.cz/taborska
https://rpsfiadre7l4su2lza2fucck5m-adwhj77lcyoafdy-www-iprpraha-cz.translate.goog/taborska
We're only in this position because of a few key people on CEC who have built enough of a consensus in the coalition to hold the line on this. The margins aren't great - 7:4 majorities in TEC could easily shift. Many of you would have noticed Lesley Macinnes' tweet yesterday about health problems. If that were to take her out of politics entirely, what do you think would happen? Is there sufficient will to keep things moving? The progress made seems relatively fragile to me.
That's why I think we need to do whatever we can to support these measures - voting, consultation responses, letters to councillors, etc. I expect most people here have done most of these things, but I think we're going to need to keep doing that to fight against the inertia and nimbyism. Even if you are out on your road bike, if there's a lane there, slow down and use it. Think of it as a piece of micro-campaigning - it builds the usage case and may encourage others to use them (on the safety in numbers principle). All of that helps to build a picture of demand and need - slowly and painfully, but that may be all we have (unless anyone wants to stand for office in the near future?).
Good to know that streetsweeping is happening.
I was going to ask if this was being done. I used the Milton Road lane (on my road bike!) last week and, though good, it could really do with a good sweep. Hopefully sweeps will occur regularly and frequently enough.
If that were to take her out of politics entirely, what do you think would happen?
It’s remarkable that she’s endured the abuse and vitriol for so long and is a testament to her strength of character. I would have walked away long ago.
With a slightly different turn of events in the local SNP we could have had someone like Gavin Barrie as Transport Convenor and the transport strategy would revolve entirely around the car.
She needs our constructive support.
Lesley has been a huge factor. Definitely. Hope her health improves. Lot of nasty people out there.
Judging by the Tripadvisor comments and ratings for the 'Beach Club', the owner needs to take a long, hard look at his offering to the public rather than railing against how unfair the rascally council are by closing a road nearby.
£3 for a can of Irn Bru and £8 for a cheapo wrap isn't screaming 'great value proposition' to me, particularly at a time when the wider public are thinking hard about how they spend their cash.
Updated plans for the Braid Road closure. https://drscottarthur.scot/2021/03/24/spaces-for-people-re-opening-braid-road-to-southbound-traffic/
Haven't digested them fully yet but at first glance there are things I like and others I don't, so maybe that means it's a reasonable compromise!
With all the facebook groups going on, I half thought about one which is basically "a group for people who want to know which businesses oppose spaces for people so they can decide where to spend their money" but who can be bothered?
@Dave I'd join that one!
@Dave - I'd join such a group. There's at least one business in Bruntsfield that will no longer receive my custom due to their stance on SfP.
OK, any advance on what the name should be?
Businesses Against Spaces For People? Or
Are These Businesses Against Spaces For People?
Businesses Against Moving Parking Outside Their Shops.
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