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AWPR (via YouTube)Is this the worst cycling event EVER?
The new Aberdeen Western Peripheral Road (AWPR) is to host a “Go North East Road Festival” before it is opened to traffic in September. The event will offer cyclists an opportunity to “wobble or weave” on the road to promote active travel. However, people will not be allowed to bring their own bikes “for everyone’s safety” and cyclists will be banned from the road forever once the event is over.
The Community Weekend has been scheduled for Saturday September 8 and Sunday September 9. It is described as a free public event to celebrate “the opening of one of the largest infrastructure projects in Scotland, part of Transport Scotland’s commitment to improving travel in the north east.”
However, the Press and Journal reports that participants won’t be able to bring their own bikes for the cycling element of those celebrations.
The event website states: “During both event days, we are planning to have a selection of bikes for use in a ‘come and try’ arena.
“This will give an opportunity for novices and the more experienced to cycle a short section of AWPR B-T. Cyclists of all levels can wiz [sic], wobble or weave on the closed road, promoting active travel and greener transport.”
Access to the event is only by free shuttle bus and the website states: "Please note, for everyone’s safety visitors will not be able to bring their own bikes on site."
If you’re wondering how the AWPR will be of benefit to cyclists long-term, the answer is that local roads will be relieved of “strategic traffic” (whatever that is).
“The AWPR/B-T will be a Special Road, and, similar to a motorway, cyclists will be prohibited from using it for their own safety.
“However, the benefits to cyclists and pedestrians of the project are to be found in the local road networks which will be relieved of strategic traffic, with all the environmental and safety benefits this will bring.”
In an open letter to event organisers Transport Scotland, the chairman of Ride the North (a two-day cycling event which takes place later this month in Aberdeenshire and Moray) said: “I noticed yesterday the information presented online has been amended to state that cyclists cannot access with their own bicycles – but are invited to ‘wobble and weave’ on provided bikes for reasons of health and safety.
“I write to urge you to take soundings from local cyclists to gauge whether the proposals outlined will engage them as you would wish.”
A Transport Scotland spokesman said: “The event organising team has consulted with a number of local cycling groups to understand and meet their aspirations while also maintaining the safety of all visitors and the security of the site.
“More details about the festival will be announced next week but we can confirm there will be opportunities to cycle on a lengthy section of the road.
“There has been no change to any information previously provided in June and at no time has a mass participation cycling event been envisaged, given the project remains largely a construction site at this time.
“The ethos of the Go North East Road Festival is to be as inclusive as possible so that anyone can take up the opportunity to cycle on the road before it opens to traffic, regardless of ability.
“It has always been necessary to ensure that entry to the event arena is controlled for security reasons.
“This means that rather than encouraging people to bring their own bikes, we will make bikes available for people of all ages and abilities to borrow and ride on a lengthy section of the road.”
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.
Latest Comments
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It is possible that he didn't know that many of the trees need to be cut down.
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You should learn to share the road: like the drivers do.
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64 comments
What SHOULD happen with a bypass like this is that immediatly it opens, the diggers move into the city at key locations to begin a massive program of road reconfiguration (reducing motor traffic lanes, re-priortising junction design to be pedestrian and cycle first) to absolutely ensure that strategic traffic (which in this case means traffic from eg Peterhead, Fraserborough and Inverurie to Stonehaven, Dundee and beyond) uses the new road and that even traffic from one side of Aberdeen to the other) finds it easier to use the new road (or buses, cycles). Rather than the restricted A road designation, it should just be classified as a motorway- but of course that would mean having no at-grade crossings of a 70mph road, they would actually have to put in the lost bridges.
Hell, the entire A90 south of Aberdeen really should be upgraded and designated Motorway, with all the remaining right turns taken out and a high quality cycleway roughly paralleling it. But because the UK does half measures, even with facilities for cars, it won't be.
In most cases, all cycling gets is insults like this event.
On the plus side, is this a chance to try out lots of different saddles?
I find it so sad that this was the perfect opportunity to have a really high quality cycle lane alongside roads like this, especially with it being a new build. But yet again it’s just short sighted nonsense.
Generally, ring roads and bypasses can reduce traffic in the urban areas they bypass, but won't unless deliberate measures are taken to do so, such as town centre road closures (whether "filtered permeability" or total closures), removal of parking, etc.
Pervert!
It would be laughable if it wasn't so pathetic and shameful. This could have been a great showcase for Aberdeen - which needs to attract new people and business - and at virtually no cost. But it's been turned into a complete farce.
Defeat snatched from the jaws of victory or what?
Oh, I know what we'll do.
Teach people who don't ride that wobbling and weaving is okay to do on the road.
This is absolutely stupid and the people who set this up should be ashamed.
Being able to ride on a closed road, awesome! Everything after that, terrible!
Thumbs down.jpg
Rode the Deeside Way last Thursday out to Drumoak and back. There is a bridge, but it's reached by a diversion on to Station Road, then Milltimber Brae. After that, it's across a normal two lane road then up a climb reached through quite a narrow chicane.
To my mind, that was one of the better features of the Deeside Way. Going along a very narrow dirt path with my arms getting snagged by the overgrown vegatation and then being glad I was on a gravel bike due to the appaling rocky rough surface made a small diversion over a bridge a minor inconvenience.
Event does sound appalling. The GSO and M74 events down here were ticketed, but with massive entries. Did make it quite scary at times with huge variation in levels of cycling abilities and speeds.
There is a pretty long and steep climb at the Milltimber/Peterculter section - don't fancy that at all in winter with ice or snow even if I fit a set of winters to the car. Would be a good bit of fun just now dropping down it on a bike though!
The Deeside Way thing sounds utterly piss-poor. Has anyone nearby involved the local MP/MSP?
I can confirm that the original details about this event had made it clear that you could bring your own bike - but not cycle to the event - bikes would have to be transported in.
You are also not allowed to walk to the event. Locals have been complaining that despite the event being less than a mile from their house, they would have to drive to a pickup point, and then get bussed in.
As an Aberdonian, I was planning on going with my kids, but now I'm just thinking they should finally open this road.
More concerning is the failure of either the Council or Transport Scotland to take ownership of the issue where the new road cuts across the Deeside Way. There was initially supposed to be a bridge, but this was dropped from the plans. Part of the path has not been completed
Details here - http://www.aberdeencycleforum.org.uk/?page_id=19
But this is the gist of the issue (quoted from above link)
"At the west [Peterculter] end of the bridge the dual use path is offset from the Deeside way by approximately 30 meters, the current entrance to the dual use path is in the path of oncoming traffic. Pedestrians and particularly cyclists have to go into the path of oncoming traffic on the bridge to access the path."
This is the nearest smiley I can find describing my reaction to what you describe
As a non-Aberdonian, it looks to me like the event the Council have designed is simply insane.
Is that some special by law?
How does that work with 'freedom to roam'?
Much better idea to go to a great event at nearby Alford: http://ktbikerun.org.uk
To answer the headline question - yes, probably. However honourable mention needs to go to this effort in Manchester last year to celebrate £15m spent to go a whole half a mile, and for huge swathes of green belt to be given over to car parks and office units. The muppets at British Cycling even got involved.
http://www.airportcity.co.uk/media-hub/airport-city-to-host-community-cy...
Why is your own bike considered less safe than some BSO they're going to let you ride at the event? I know my bike better than their's, thank you very much!
Because on your own bike you may go at "excessive" speeds (i.e. above walking pace) and crash into someone in hi-vis and a construction hard-hat with so much kinetic energy that they suffer
nothing more serious than a bruise or scratchhorrific life changing injuries.Will nobody think of the navvies?
That was my first thought - I'm much more wobbly and unsafe on a cycle I've never used before than the one I do 30km a day on!
"Is this the worst cycling event EVER?"
Could we not have whip round and give them some sort of award? Wouldn't have to cost much, a gift wrapped puncture tube perhaps, or a BSO from the local supermarket.
perhaps a "Cyclists Dismount" sign to put up at the start of the ride.
"If you’re wondering how the AWPR will be of benefit to cyclists long-term, the answer is that it won't
local roads will be relieved of “strategic traffic” (whatever that is)."You wonder why they bother really. Its going to be a non-event anyway. Lets hope they do the same "No bikes" policy at the pru ride. I'd love to see 20,000+ riders scrabbling over a few knackered loaners. What a joke.
Absolutely, 100% this, was my first thought as soon as I read it also.
To be fair here, they couldn't open the entire length of the road for cyclists for the weekend without closing parts that are already open. (Where possible sections have been opened ahead of the official opening for better local access in areas) This road should have been open early 2018, but with various delays, not least the collapse of Carrillion group, it's WAY behind schedule. In view of this they are working to get the road open, but had promised an "event " before opening. I would have thought they might have managed to open a stratch between 2 junctions to let people have a ride on their own bikes, but I guess that's not going to happen.
For those wondering why the road is not open ti bikes after, that's easy, it's an urban bypass to get traffic past Aberdeen, and for those of us who have to get from Aberdeen Airport to the Dundee road when we land "back home" periodically it's going to make a huge difference. A huge amount of traffic currently stops and starts it's way through about 165 (well it feels like it) small roundabout and traffic light junctions to get around Aberdeen centre.
Once the road opens, and the traffic on the "old" road drops, then there might be possibilities to improve cycling facilites there, but until the new road opens there is simply not space to do so.
All the evidence from the past 60 years shows that traffic on local roads won't drop, but that suppressed demand will be released and because of the traffic induced by the new road, local traffic will increase. The assumption that new roads will reduce traffic on existing roads is wrong and has been proved wrong every time, but it is still trotted out by the road builders and developers, who are as honest as the politicians who support them.
If local roads were made cyclist/pedestrian only with emergency vehicles exempt, you might be right, but the chances of that happening are slightly less than winning the lottery if you don't buy a ticket.
Lets face it though they have been promising this by pass since before most of that information was available
I think in this case it might. Aberdeen is so isolated that there is a finite amount of traffic, which is probably already clogging up the existing roads. An example I know very well is the Broughton bypass just north of Preston. The traffic through Broughton has practically stopped, as they have actually made it awkward NOT to use the bypass. It's made a huge difference to what was a 20 minute jam at busy times on the Broughton crossroads. They've even made a good job of providing an alternative route for cyclists round what would be a nightmare roundabout. As for cycling on the bypass, you CAN but you'd have to be the most insane, self obsessed idiot to try.
Just because it's your right to ride on a road doesn't mean you should. It can't be pleasant riding on a 70mph dual carriageway with nowhere to go. I see it on the A590 near levens. Lovely quiet road running parallel to the dual carriageway, but some cyclists insist on using the main road. Why? Had a discussion with as colleague about cyclists on the snake pass. That would terrify me as the speed differential uphill would be so huge, yet it's too narrow and twisting for a safe pass. Though on the counter side, I'm perfectly happy riding up the A6 to Shap. Because it's wide, pretty straight and, for an A road, very quiet. That's because the M6 takes the load, much like the Aberdeen road will do.
Well, in my experience as a professional transport planner with an MSc in transport planning and a keen observer of transport, I disagree. You think that the traffic is finite, but have no evidence to show that it is, and that there isn't massive suppressed demand from people who don't drive because of the existing congestion.
Thanks for your input, but I'll go with my opinion based on my knowledge, experience and the evidence.
Taking the opening of Inverness West Link as an example - a major selling point by the Council was that it would reduce city centre congestion.
The opponents of this scheme argued that this would be negligible (and that the primary motive was to open up development land)
The West Link opened a year ago, and guess what? We now have a busy West Link - ie lots of traffic is using it, but the town appears just as busy as ever (ie, there might be some reduction, but not so much anyone would notice)
If you look at the models they used to predict traffic flow what is striking is
1) The 'experts' don't know how the models work - they stick numbers in, and come out with comments like 'it just works'
2) There is no statistical accuracy output for their predicted local traffic reduction
3) There is no consideration of seasonal local factors (eg, tourist traffic, in the case of Inverness - not so applicable to Aberdeen)
4) There is no factor to take into account 'suppressed demand'
5) There is no factor to take into account long-term future planned building developments / residential areas / retail areas - and the influence they will have on 'city centre congestion'
Although I agree with you, I know of a counterexample:
The Norwich Southern bypass. It took several years for drivers to start using it, but eventually the numbers of cars on the southern part of the outer ring road did drop. Now, 26 years later, the ring road is once again congested, but that will be accounted for by the enormous growth in car ownership rather than suppressed demand. There are still downsides:
1. Cyclists find it harder to cycle out of Norwich, because small road crossings have been shut and no bike pathways were been built* under the road.
2. Unlike the immediate post-war bypasses, no provision was made for cyclists who also want to ride all or part of the route.
3. Cars and lorries travelling around Norwich on the A47 travel more miles, at high speed, thus contributing even more to global warming.
So the assumption hasn't been "proved wrong every time". I'll vote for your suggestion that local roads should only be for cyclists, pedestrians and ambulances, with the proviso that the ambulances will be lightweight pedelec long johns and that people with walking difficulties are also allowed ultralight electric transport. When we need a car, we could use our own or a car club car, kept in the out of town underground car park with a field of rape on top.
New roads would reduce traffic if they were made strictly for non motorised traffic and segregated pedestrians from cyclists and runners and all from animal riders. We've run out of land, so it's time to consider building multistorey roads or reducing our population.
*Correction, there was one near Bawburgh but, menacingly, motor vehicles are now allowed to use it too.
Got any figures to support that?
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