Cycle paths - Lesson learned

[Heltor Chasca]

Attaching a speed limit isn't helpful IMO. You should be able to stop in the distance you can see to be clear. But also moderate your speed when going past property entrances and parked cars etc

I agree. Being on my bike is one of the few places I can be these days where I feel a vague sense of being free of our nanny state. Erm...well to a degree....

[Si]

In fact I wonder what it must be like to ride on a proper cycle path

If you suddenly had a network of proper cycle paths spring up around you then you'd still be in the same boat because that network of paths would attract a lot of 'ordinary people'(tm) out of cars and onto bikes, who would wobble along at 8mph, looking at the scenery, smelling the flowers, etc rather than heading for the verges when they hear a racer coming up behind them!

or to summarise in one word......'utopia'.

[mjr]

20mph on a shared path is way to much. If you want to go fast take the road, but a shared path is not safe for either party

Not necessarily. I'll happily do 20mph on our 5 and 10m wide shared paths if there's a gap. Shared paths are meant to be DESIGNED for 20mph but too few are. If you can't give another path user five feet clearance, slow to near walking pace. If it happens often, use http://www.fixmystreet.com to request widening.

Northamptonshire County Council used to be awful at cycling. They probably still are. If anyone in Northampton wants to see better cycleways, visit Milton Keynes. Some of the redways are good except for the road crossings (which is a shame because that's where most of the danger is).

[Heltor Chasca]

Interesting post. To add to my last bit: our local greenway has just been resurfaced in smooth Tarmac. It has been open for a day and a half for the school run and it is beyond splendid (well done BANES) HOWEVER today (Saturday) when I went up there with the kids, 3 Mamils did their very best to carve us up right down our middles. [emoji88]

Absolutely NO need for 20 mph on a shared access greenway. If I'm 'in a rush', which I try not to be these days, I'll use the road.

In my youth I would have maybe empathised with the OP, but now in my 40s, as an experienced road user, I know exactly what I would do if an idiotic cyclist knocked one of my kids over.

[emoji173]️Share and share alike...b

[mjr]

There is a need for cycle paths to support 20mph use if we're going to have cycling as a viable transport mode. Using the road isn't practical for many people as one needs to be going considerably faster than that on many major roads not to suffer several close overtakes every mile and some abuse. It shouldn't be like that and police should crack down but they've not got the manpower and there's no sign of the cuts turning into expansion any time soon.

It's a balancing act though, as there's no excuse for buzzing other path users IMO.

[pwa]

The speed thing depends on the exact conditions. On the Swansea seafront shared use track on a sunny Saturday you would be lucky to get to 10mph safely. Too many people about. But on the Llanelli to Crosshands track (shared use former rail line, nice and wide, passing through countryside) there are often opportunities to cycle downhill at 15mph to 20mph safe in the knowledge that you can stop within the distance you can see. Obviously, you slow down when you meet a pedestrian. More so if they haven't seen you. It's not simply a matter of avoiding a collision. It is also about not intimidating someone else.

[661-Pete]

The key word here is 'shared'. If a cycle path is exclusively for cycles, as is the case in Holland, then of course speeds can be higher. Personally I don't see the future of cycling 'infrastucture' in this country working out, if we rely solely on 'shared' paths. An opinion which I think is 'shared' by many others here!

[pwa]

The key word here is 'shared'. If a cycle path is exclusively for cycles, as is the case in Holland, then of course speeds can be higher. Personally I don't see the future of cycling 'infrastucture' in this country working out, if we rely solely on 'shared' paths. An opinion which I think is 'shared' by many others here!

But not by Sustrans. Not a cycling charity, a sustainable transport charity.

[reohn2]

The key word here is 'shared'.

Exactly!

[Stradageek]

Wow, what a lot of comments, not sure about 8mph and I think there is a little responsibility on the part of other path users to leave some room for cyclists, if they can, much as we 'single out' as cyclists to help share the roads.

[hatless]

I don't think you can expect much of pedestrians, not in Northampton or anywhere else. People, including me, walk in parks and on pavements thinking about anything except walking. When I cycle I am usually thinking carefully about what I'm doing. When I drive my car I'm watching and reacting, but often thinking about other things, too. On my bike I feel vulnerable, so it gets nearly all my attention.

[mjr]

That's so sad. I'm often thinking of other things while cycling, but probably more so when not on roads busy with motor vehicles. People shouldn't feel vulnerable while cycling.

I don't mind people walking not thinking of much, but when on a shared path, they should share it by sticking to one side or the other.

[reohn2]

Wow, what a lot of comments, not sure about 8mph and I think there is a little responsibility on the part of other path users to leave some room for cyclists, if they can, much as we 'single out' as cyclists to help share the roads.

The difference is that cyclists on shared use paths are like motors on the road,the rider is in charge of a vehicle and travelling faster than others with the potential to cause harm so should show the most responsibility toward the more vulnerable user,especially around children and animals as both are unpredictable.
That doesn't excuse pedestrians who show little or no responsibility,especially those wearing headphones and earbuds,and dog owners with there animals on stretchy leads,or no lead at all.

Why aren't you sure about 8mph,it's twice as fast as a brisk walker.Where there is congestion with lots of pedestrians and possibly other cyclist too,8mph can be too fast.

Where there's no pedestrian traffic and no entrances onto the path 20mph can be safe,but you have to be sure it's safe.
There are one or two areas on a particular shared use towpath I use,where I can see almost 1/2 a mile in front of me where I regularly ride at 17 to 20mph,further along the same path and at around 3.30pm,5 mph would be safest due to unpredictable teenagers just let loose

[reohn2]

That's so sad. I'm often thinking of other things while cycling, but probably more so when not on roads busy with motor vehicles. People shouldn't feel vulnerable while cycling.

I always think I'm vulnerable when cycling,but on shared use paths I think both myself and pedestrians are both vulnerable especially if it's busy.
People shouldn't feel vulnerable anywhere in a civilised society,but some societies are more civilised than others,even some different areas of the same society.

I don't mind people walking not thinking of much, but when on a shared path, they should share it by sticking to one side or the other.

IMHO you're asking too much of them,they'll spread out such as I mentioned in the post above,you'd have a job trying to get a gaggle of teenagers just out of school to keep to one side and they can sometimes be deliberately obtuse about moving if not treated with respect,likewise some groups of ramblers .
Where the path is clearly marked with a central line between cycle lane and pedestrian lane I agree,and I find that to be the case on the continent,not so in the UK.

[Elizabethsdad]

Shared use paths mainly seem to be a box ticking exercise by local councils so they can claim to have increased cycling infrastructure with minimal expenditure. They seem to cause more agreivation as it shifts conflict from cars vs bicycles to bicycles vs pedestrians - plus if you stay on the road drivers shout at you to use the cyclepath (sic). These problems are going to remain until we can all learn to share the public rights of way with respect to each other and get rid of the them and us mindset. They are not going to be solved by extra cyclepaths, helmets or hi-viz clothing - the requirement for these seems to be an indication of the failure of society to look out for itself.