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.
I don't think anyone is actually criticising greenroofer's cycling, are they?
There was a nice couple on the path to Sliverknowes on Saturday who spotted me coming up behind them and got their big white dog with black spots (dalmation?) well under control before I got anywhere near them. I thanked them.
Given that I've stirred up a bit of debate (sorry), I thought I should share my views about the towpath, the aqueduct and dogs. To put things in context, I ride it every day from Meggetland to beyond the bypass. I've notched up three years and 7,000 miles on it so far.
Key thing for me, as a regular user, is that it's a narrow shared space with a water hazard on one side. Everyone on it has to look out for themselves and to think about the impact of their actions on everyone else. If what I want to do causes avoidable fear or inconvenience to another towpath user, I should stop it. It doesn't matter if 'I' am a cyclist, or a pedestrian (with or without a dog)
Under 'causing fear or avoidable inconvenience', I include: going too fast for the situation on a bike, not paying attention to what other users are doing, not wearing something reflective when it's dark, not warning pedestrians when approaching from behind on a bike, not keeping a dog under close control, not keeping children under close control...
Interestingly, this philosophy still applies when I cross the aqueduct. When I'm travelling at key commuter times, I would actually cause more avoidable inconvenience to the stream of bike commuters if I walked across. A pushed bike is wider than a ridden one, and it slows everyone down. At those times, I ride across. When I'm going to the allotment on a sunny Sunday afternoon, I am unlikely to ride across the aqueduct because the traffic is then families and people out for a stroll. Riding across would cause them avoidable fear and inconvenience, and I shouldn't do it.
There was no drama with the white dog yesterday. I was never at any risk of hitting it. If you listen to the bike noises you'll hear me feather the brakes as soon as it appeared, change gear and then brake to a halt as soon as it was clear that it was totally out of control. In my view having to stop was an 'avoidable inconvenience' and something its owner should try to avoid causing to other users of the shared path.
I try my best to be a courteous user of the path by trying to avoid frightening or avoidably inconveniencing the people I'm sharing it with. All I can hope is that all the other users do the same.
You did everything right. I really don't know what the problem was.
^^ seems very reasonable, Greenroofer.
The closest I've come to an incident on the canal was when an old lady absolutely flew around a bridge on her bike (wind assisted) and missed me by a whisker. Otherwise it would have been another one of these:
"You did everything right. I really don't know what the problem was."
Who said there was a problem? (unless it's someone int he video - as I said, I can't see it).
" 5.3 Failing to keep a dog under close control in any Park." -
Is the canal towpath a 'park'? Me thinketh not.
Right, conciliation.
My responses above weren't anything to do with the video (I've not even been able to watch it yet!), so any offence caused to Greenroofer I wholeheartedly apologise for. My comments were just at a general undercurrent (that was perhaps stronger having seen other threads on this subject) that dogs on shared use paths = bad and pretty much always out of control. Thing is, it's like bad cyclists, we don't really register the 90% who are under control, and so get a sort of confirmation bias when one does do something wrong.
But that's no excuse for being so confrontational. I'm back in my box now, have taken a relaxing blue pill, and am trying not to let work get to me.
"Is the canal towpath a 'park'? Me thinketh not."
Indeed. Surely the rules for responsible dog use on a narrow blind cornered towpath would be much more stringent than a huge open area?
Strangely, I ran into a dog on the way home today. I suppose you'll have to take it on faith that I wasn't able to deliberately construct this with incredible skills (and a lot of re-tries, and sinister lack of morals), but someone's small dog crossed in front of me and I actually went into it, although fortunately not hard enough to lose control of the vehicle.
Sadly, I let the side down with my total absence of good honest CCE street preaching skills and could only manage a feeble "that's what leads are for". In the interests of fairness I feel obliged to post the extremely dark, hard to tell what's going on footage shortly...
I highly recommend using the 'cog' icon to turn this up to HD, as otherwise the quality is miserably poor.
The point of this isn't really that I was endangered by this dog, since I'd obviously slowed down massively by the point I went into it (I won't say 'over', as I think it just got shunted to one side).
But it's easy to think of a scenario where a small black dog jumping out of shadows could lead to a serious injury (naturally, we must think of the children), or of course a larger dog could potentially unseat even an ugly character such as I.
I'm clearly the "marked cyclist" today! - Didn't notice the big green luminous arrow above my head however it must be there! - Following on from today's bad driving I'm heading down Kirk Brae at about 18:15 when I'm aware of a Ninja pedestrian stepping out between parked cars.
At the time I thought going to get into the drivers seat of one of the cars. But no they're headed across the road to the other side. Did they look? No! I did shout to them to watch out for traffic however they carried on regardless - that was possibly the scariest part. Several times at night I'm passed by Ninja cars, if there had been one of them instead of me I think they'd have been underneath it!
I also shouted for them to wake up / pay attention, but they were also oblivious to that.
Do Ninja Zombies exist?
Today, proceeding through a green light, I had a pedestrian who, having undoubtedly noticed me, decided to step right in front of me and mutter "p***k" as I swerved to avoid him.
Also today, I have been laughed at (twice), and my bike was deliberately knocked over on the train.
In all of these cases, I can only assume that it is the presence of the bicycle that has marked me out for this treatment. How people can treat others in this way I don't know, but it makes me consider giving up riding. I have no desire to be abused as I go about my daily business.
@CalumCookable Don't give up. The weather and the conditions will get better. If other people want to be miserable (and from the look of the people you see in places like Great Junction Street it's the default mood) then that's their problem. If it helps, I was at that point in 2003. I gave up for six months. It was only joining ERC and meeting and riding with other cyclists that enabled me to get some perspective on the way I was/am treated sometimes.
Twice yesterday I had the green, had pedestrians walk out in front of me, and scowl at me. The second gave such an indignant look up at the light on seeing me coming through that she clearly thought she must have had the light - realising her mistake didn't get me off the hook though. Pah.
Similar bafflement at the attitudes of people in the Rubbish Driving thread.
@WC, heh, reminds me of one outside Fountain Park a few weeks ago - pedestrian pushed the button on the crossing and instantly stepped out...a shame the lights had not yet changed for her to cross! Can only assume she had scanned for cars and missed the bike-with-flashy-lights-and-bright-yellow-rider... but in swerving to avoid her ample frame, I didn't get an apology, rather a sarcastic 'thanks very much!' ...no pleasing some people!
It's not really the bike though. I was stopped at a set of lights yesterday and a car passenger shouted a load of foul mothed abuse at a woman waiting to cross the road. I was genuinely shocked. How could someone be so horrible to someone who was clearly a total stranger? What makes someone think another person is deserving of that, or that their behaviour is in any way acceptable. There are some nasty people out there, but thankfully they are a small minority - you just have to remind yourself of that sometimes.
Had one of Snowy's type yesterday, heading down MMW. Ped looked at me and then did that funny weird wiggly walk across my path where they realise shortly after setting off that they have completely misjudged how fast you are going; when I hoy-ed after slamming on the anchors and skidding, I got a barrage of abuse. I suggested to him that he'd obviously prefer to get hit next time. At the time, I may have been willing to arrange that for the lanky streak of p*ss
"It's not really the bike though."
How often do people here get abuse or threats when they are not cycling though? I don't very often and certainly nothing like as much as when I am cycling. We are considered fair game.
That's possibly more because on a bike you're on the road, whereas as a pedestrian you're mainly on the pavements - but you get the same treatment for encroaching on the road.
I was crossing a side street a month or two back when a car, driven by a typical boy racer, swung into the turn without any indication whatsoever, clearly accelerating at the peds he saw in his domain, leaning on his horn.
His chavtastic girlfriend in the passenger seat just looked at me gormlessly as I should 'INDICATE!' at him.
So yes, more abuse (though, thankfully, it's actually rare for me to be shouted at) when on the bike, but proportionate to the amount of time spent 'in the road' the level of abuse is probably similar.
Oh yes, abuse from motorists definitely. But abuse from pedestrians?
Oh, abuse from pedestrians - sorry, misread that completely! No, I can't actually ever remember getting abuse from a pedestrian when I was myself a pedestrian (save for the occasional drunk, but I'd venture they don't count as indicative of a general rule of thumb).
Ignore my post above, I'd flicked the stupid switch.
Well I didn't really specify except that we are on the "rubbish walking" thread so fairy nuff. ;-)
I got a hug from an unknown drunk whilst on the 'bent. It wasn't entirely welcomed, but still...
I'm not sure anyone's made a mode of transport where everyone is polite to you, and I include the heavily armoured ones with numerous and fearsome killing-things on them.
I do concede that the relative slow speed, vulnerability and clear acoustics of a bike mean people have more opportunities to be rude than most. I wonder how many people would enjoy driving if they could hear what other drivers are saying about them from inside their cabs.
Already recounted and only tangentially relevant anecdote alert: I witnessed some non-dangerous but astonishingly self-centred, stupid driving and parking some months ago while wrangling some sproglets up the road. Even the 7-8 year old children I was shepherding could tell this guy failed, hard, and said so with the jawdropping lack of tact that only children can truly accomplish. Normally we shush them in such times, but on this occasion some odd paralysis came over me and I was unable to lower their volume, so I am confident the eejit heard every word.
@CalumCookable Don't give up, going by bike is the best mode of transport, everyone is just jealous. Be confident and enjoy not waiting in traffic.
Today's rubbish walking was the workie on Russell Road who walked across the road and deliberately blocked my way, each time that I tried to go around him. Due to being flustered, I apologised, and he ignored me, and didn't apologise himself. I had half a mind to go back and report him to his gaffer, but decided his gaffer would probably be completely disinterested, so left it alone.
See the man. See the man run. See the man run alongside London Road. See the man jump onto the road on the outside of a bin in order to not have to slow down for three seconds for the walkingpeds in front of him. See man pathetically attempt to transmute his shame and guilt into anger after pointing out the daftness of jumping into the road if I had been an unobservant FirstBus rather than a bicycle.
Two joggist ladies ran out across the road on a red man at the Central Halls, earbuds in and no shoulder check, just launched themselves off the pavement from a crowd. Very nearly got ran down by me but I managed to skid to a halt in time (I had got a green coming fown from Lauriston so was doing a reasonable rate of knots.) If I had been a car, they might not have been so lucky.
Then a girl walking down the middle of the road from South Gyle Station towards the Gyle, again earbuds in. I was passing slowly on the left with what seemed like reasonable clearence when she suddenly diverted her route of travel and straight into me (despite there being no pavement in her direction of travel). Again managed to avoid the inevitable with a bit of nifty wobbling around her.
Rubbish walking and unnecessary walking-towards-me-whilst-waving-hands-and-shouting from a jakey on the WoL this evening:
Today's rubbish walking was actually me... I walked across the crossing by John Lewis after having locked my bike up and crossed because the guy next to me did and didn't check the colour of the lights. Cue pissed off cyclist who had to swerve around me. I'm really sorry. My mind wasn't present today. I promise not to do it again.
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