Useless Cycle Lane Blocked by Bollard

You have to hand it to the traffic engineers of croydon, they really know how to make the laughable into the ludicrous. Remember "X" marks the spot - the useless cycle lanes by West Croydon Station?



Well, because many of Croydon's car drivers can't read road signs and obey them, Croydon Council have added two bollards to make it quite clear which way they should go.



Only they've put one of the bollards where it blocks the entry to one of the cycle lanes!

Not that any sane cyclist would ever use these cycle lanes, but the council could at least admit defeat and remove this useless cycle facility.


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cycling, cycle lane, croydon

Car Drivers Get Out and Push

If your local council proposed a road that you had to push your car along there would be an outcry in the press, so why do we accept cycle paths you cannot cycle on?



Councils and others who who create this kind of thing simply demonstrate that they are not prepared to do the job properly.

Cambridge signs

"bladder inflammation upset"

"The use of “CYCLISTS DISMOUNT” and “END OF ROUTE” signs should always be avoided unless there is a proven need."

Design Guidance
‘Cyclists dismount’ and ‘End of Route’ signs
These two signs have been used indiscriminately and incorrectly by many local authorities.
The ‘cyclists dismount’ sign (Diagram 966) is widely ignored by cyclists who understandably wish to remain on their bikes. With careful design it should be possible to design a cycle route that avoids the use of this sign and replaces it with a give way option to join the carriageway or another route (see also B.09 Obstruction of cycle track accesses).
Draft DfT guidance (LTN 3.03) states that Diagram 965 “Indicates the end of a cycle lane, track or route. Can be used with Diagrams 1057 and 1058. It should not be used for short breaks in the route. The use of this sign is not mandatory and it should be used sparingly”.

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cycling, cycle lane, cycle path, cycle track, sustrans

Highway Code URGENT

Ask your MP to sign up and urge the government to fix the Highway Code.

An Early Day Motion has been tabled in parliament that reads:

EDM 1433
That the alterations in the provisions of the Highway Code proposed to be made by the Secretary of State for Transport, dated 28th March 2007, a copy of which was laid before this House on 28th March, be not made.

The EDM has been tabled by Menzies Campbell, leader of the Liberal Democrats.

This action has been taken specifically to encourage the Government to address the problems created by the new rules that will require cyclists to use cycle facilities 'wherever possible'. Although initiated by the LibDems, it is very important that this EDM gains cross-party support and signatures from as many MPs as possible. All cyclists are urged to persuade their MPs to sign EDM 1433 as a matter of urgency.

Find your MP’s contact details at: http://www.writetothem.com/

Particularly if you are writing to a Labour MP , it is worth mentioning that the cycling organisations are still in dialogue with officials and hope that the Government may yet agree to revise the Highway Code – hence they may be paving the way for a “good news” announcement from the Minister.

For MPs of all parties, please also ask them to speak to their party colleagues in the Lords to ask them also to “pray against” the Highway Code. For procedural reasons, the Code is far more likely to be challenged effectively in the Lords than in the Commons.

How will the draft Highway Code hurt cyclists? See:
http://www.cyclenetwork.org.uk/latest/doc/hcode_cyclists.pdf
send a copy to your MP.

This is a national campaign, full details are at:
http://www.cyclenetwork.org.uk/latest/latest.html#hcedm

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cycling, cycle lane, cycle path, cycle track, highway code

Tamworth Road/Cairo New Road 2

All of 10 feet away from yesterday's post is this silly little road feature, notable for being a very short, narrow and tapered cycle lane which looks like it should feed into an advanced stop area, except there isn't one...



and in close up.



...and yes that is a bus in the left hand edge of the picture about to sweep round the corner and right through the cycle "lane".

P.S. In setting up this blog I've discovered that the old Crap Cycle Lanes of Croydon site was linked by the guardian web site and within only two days of setting the site up I've already been blogged!
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Tags croydon, cycling, cycle lane