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Junction of Lymington Road and Brookley Road in Brockenhurst where cycle by-pass has since been installed (via StreetView).jpgHampshire County Council forced to review bike lane that put cyclists ‘on collision course’ with parked cars
Most would agree that three metres is not especially long for a bike path, but impressively this is not the worst quality of just such piece of cycling infrastructure in the New Forest. Hampshire County Council are reviewing a new ‘cycle by-pass’ in Brockenhurst after receiving a complaint that it directed cyclists straight towards parked cars.
Located on the junction of Lymington Road and Brookley Road, just across from the Cyclexperience bike shop, the short stretch of bike path was intended to make life slightly easier for cyclists turning left. Photographs on the Bournemouth Echo website make it clear these lofty ambitions sadly weren’t met.
A spokesperson for Hampshire County Council said the ‘cycle by-pass’ was constructed in April of this year at a cost of £6,253 “as part of a number of a schemes to improve accessibility for cyclists in Brockenhurst.”
An unnamed New Forest resident told the newspaper:
"My understanding is that this was one of a number of cycle infrastructure schemes identified by consultants working on behalf of Hampshire County Council in February 2014.
"This particular scheme has introduced a short section, approximately 3m, of dedicated cycling infrastructure at the entrance/exit to Brockenhurst station. Whilst the short length of the cycle route is of concern, the main issue seems to be that cyclists using the route are placed on a collision course with vans and cars legally parked on Brookley Rd.
"I am as convinced as I can be that no cyclist was involved in the design or implementation of this scheme, and would question how it has been approved from a safety perspective.”
The man cited the cost of the work and where the money had come from as being additional concerns. “I understand that the scheme was funded by the National Park Authority using grant funding from the Department for Transport, funding which the National Park Authority originally applied for to deliver a public bike share scheme."
In 2013, The New Forest National Park Authority (NFNPA) was awarded a £3.6 million grant, £2 million of which was originally intended for a cycle hire scheme in the national park. The NFNPA abandoned that proposal, despite having spent £84,000 on a feasibility study and selecting a preferred supplier.
It was subsequently told to hand back £1.5 million of the money after the Department for Transport (DfT) rejected two other schemes it had planned to spend the money on. One of those, accounting for £1.25 million, was criticised as being more focused on road maintenance than on cycling.
Alex has written for more cricket publications than the rest of the road.cc team combined. Despite the apparent evidence of this picture, he doesn't especially like cake.
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17 comments
It's cycle lanes like this that make me want to get in to local politics just so I can tell planners how shit their designs are.
My goodness there are some interesting design ideas!
I do conceede at busy times it might be more expediant to use such a cut through than to filter through the traffic and make the turn (though not having cycled through there I cannot comment).
The worrying thing is that the contractor designed this, presented it to the council who would have reviewed it and given the green light, the contractor would have then built it being totally aware of the closeness of the parked cars, probably having concerns over how close they were parked to the construction site.
Yes to this
(Edit) It would have probably been better if they'd put 'no parking' for at least a car's length, to make sure bicycles actually had room once they'd been spat out of the 'cycle path'.
And it'll fill up with litter and/or broken glass in about ten minutes flat, which will stay there because the street sweeper won't fit...
Leighton Buzzard has these bizarre bike box/lane things. I think we're expected to bunny hop the 200ft or so between them.
https://goo.gl/maps/jjTz3aDp6dD2
It is weird that road, going out the cycle lane suddenly appears but the road stays the same width. Never understood that. Plus it vanishes all together as you get close to the town centrejust to be annoying.
This is it..... https://twitter.com/Bournemouthecho/status/732087703043489793
So any cyclist using the lane is failing to comply with the Keep Right signs?
Agreed, that's completely fuckwitted. A line of paint would actually have been better.
I've only seen photos myself, on Twitter, but to answer Mungecrundle, there realy is a 3m strip of cycle path bordered by a small traffic island whoch directs you straight into the back of any car paked legall in that space.
Seems there's form for very short cycle lanes down that way. Like these on the A337 in Highcliffe, Dorset.
Wow.. what the hell?
These are exactly the places people are advised to take the lane to avoid impatient drivers making close passes.. What were they thinking with those "bike lanes"?!
They actually look like they're designed to spark conflict between cyclists and drivers. Experienced cyclists will likely eschew the bike lane as they seem to be encouraging close passes from vehicles. People in vehicles will then start frothing at the mouth as cyclists are ignoring the bike lane and getting in their way.
We should get the people who design these to be blindfolded and made to stand in one of these so-called bike lanes so that they can experience the thrill of HGVs passing within a meter of them.
I just don't understand what is so difficult about getting cyclists' opinions on proposed infrastructure. All they have to do is contact one of the interested cycle organisations to send them someone that is wise in such matters.
I hope that what they were thinking was "by putting bike lanes here we will make drivers aware of cyclists and discourage them from overtaking in a dangerous place". Of course since most drivers seem to think that bike lanes have magic force fields and so they can pass as close as they like as long as they aren't actually going into the lane... I think it's just another case of cycle lanes designed by people who have never actually ridden a bike on the road.
There is something similar to that on my commute (A412, Maple Cross) HERE
Looking at them in the pic's they don't look too bad, but practically, they are shite. The white bits are humps, so you can catch them if you try to use the "bike lane" but then try to avoid the crap that has congregated there. Cars do get the hump if you don't use them, but I don't let that bother me.
They are basically just little safe havens for the puncture fairies...
I've ridden this section many many times and never realized there was a "cycle lane" there.
Not to comment too specifically on this particular setup as I haven't used it first hand, but even a short reserved space at a critical junction can be exceedingly helpful to a cyclist wishing to pass slower traffic on the nearside. I use a similar, admittedly longer, but still relatively short section most days. Maybe the picture distorts the reality, but cycling into the back of that parked red car? Really?