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Birmingham campaigners feel other cities are getting higher quality cycle infrastructure

Cycling in bus lanes and shared use pavements highlighted as particular problems

Following the announcement of the latest phase of Birmingham Cycle Revolution, local campaigners have expressed concerns that other cities around the UK are getting higher quality cycle infrastructure. “We would really like Birmingham to be leading the UK in setting standards for cycle infrastructure, but that doesn't seem to be happening,” said Chris Lowe, chair of Push Bikes.

Earlier this week, Birmingham announced a series of schemes intended to improve cycling along major city routes. £2.8m is to be spent on a number of projects as part of the latest phase of Birmingham Cycle Revolution (BCR). However, Lowe feels that some of the routes being planned have been affected by compromises.

Birmingham's original bid to the Department for Transport covered a much larger cycle network than other cities. While Lowe thinks this is important if Birmingham is to become a truly cycle friendly city, he points out that a larger network is more difficult to deliver.

“That focus on the network did result in the initial money being spread thinly over a wide number of routes, with the consequence that the quality of the infrastructure has suffered.

“Cycling in bus lanes was the least popular form of cycle infrastructure in the recent Bike Life report, but does form significant lengths of some of the routes. Shared use pavements are also a significant part of the routes, but the pavements are unlikely to be re-laid, and we have had issues with arguing for priority over side-roads.”

In stakeholder meetings, Push Bikes has been arguing for a high level of spending on fewer routes. Despite this, Lowe feels the Birmingham Cycle Revolution team are heeding lessons from the initial routes and believes there are plenty of positives in the upcoming improvement projects.

“There will be wide mandatory cycle lanes on Wheeler Street, with protection for the cycle lanes at the numerous speed-bumps along that road. This is a parallel route that will give a link from Handsworth into the city centre, and the design of the conflict management between cycle lanes and the speed bumps will provide a good example for future cycle lane design in Birmingham.”

In addition to this, he points to the Soho Road and Alcester Road routes, planned for delivery between spring 2016 and September 2016, which have 1.6m plus mandatory cycle lanes planned for much of their lengths, and also the 3m wide two-way cycle tracks planned for Bristol Street and Harborne Road.

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7 comments

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Wolfshade | 8 years ago
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I complain to Birmingham City Council over their cycling "provision". Their responses show that they don't have a clue.

The upgrading of the Birmingham-Worcester tow path with a nice loose gravel finish is a typical item.

ASL's without filter lanes.

Shared paths which don't have priority over the side roads.

 

Grumble grumble grumble

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Paul_C replied to Wolfshade | 8 years ago
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Wolfshade wrote:

ASL's without filter lanes.

Shared paths which don't have priority over the side roads.

I'm with you on the lack of priority across side roads, but the new ASL's no longer have to have feeder lanes . The rules changed. You can now enter them over the rear stop line. Beforehand, you could only legally enter them via the feeder lane when the light is at red.

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Wolfshade replied to Paul_C | 8 years ago
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Paul_C wrote:
Wolfshade wrote:

ASL's without filter lanes.

Shared paths which don't have priority over the side roads.

I'm with you on the lack of priority across side roads, but the new ASL's no longer have to have feeder lanes . The rules changed. You can now enter them over the rear stop line. Beforehand, you could only legally enter them via the feeder lane when the light is at red.

Yes, this was part of the amendements to the TSRGD that came in March 2015, but these "facilities" were existing pre-2015.

Though I am not sure that leaving them out is good infra design though. But then I am not entirely convinced with the whole argument for them (ASLs). They are fine if you can guarantee that you will be in the box as or before the light turns green, if not you can end up stranded in an undesirable location. As 75%(?) of collisions occur at junctions something needs to be done.

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Mike F | 8 years ago
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Manchester and Solihull sound similar. They spent a lot of money changing a perfectly good dual carriageway (Chester road near bham business park) into a single lane bottle neck for cars, and an unused cycle lane that spits you out onto a crazy busy section of road. Around the corner they've reduced another road from 2 lanes to 1, and not even left enough space for a painted on cycle lane. I'd like to lock up the Muppets who make these decisions, and probably don't even realise the mistakes they've made. I hope the same people aren't spending the Birmingham Cycle Revolution cash.

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Some Fella | 8 years ago
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Cycling campaigners in Birmingham can rest easy. Manchester is putting in loads of new infrastructure and it is absolutely bobbins. 

You have nothing to be jealous of. 

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jonathing | 8 years ago
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Having been a Birmingham resident for a little over two years I'm yet to see anything revolutionary with regards to cycling here.

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skull-collector... | 8 years ago
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“Cycling in bus lanes

>becasue bikes and buses mix together very well

Shared use pavements are also a significant part of the routes

>shared uses = zero points

, but the pavements are unlikely to be re-laid, and we have had issues with arguing for priority over side-roads."

>you might want to see what happened during the Leeds-Bradford "Super" highway building phase

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