Author: nigreenways

Bicycle Strategy for Northern Ireland arrives

Posted on by nigreenways

There is cause for optimism and much to applaud in the Department for Regional Development (DRD) strategy document for cycling in Northern Ireland. Here are some highlights, slightly trimmed for space:

“..to provide greater choice in the way people travel [we] will work .. to reduce the need for longer journeys and to increase the opportunity for travel by bicycle. This will entail the development of high quality local cycle facilities within new developments and the provision of links with other urban cycle networks, public transport interchanges, the National Cycle Network and the countryside.”

The “..strategy identifies a range of measures that will seek to improve conditions for cyclists and establish a pro-cycling culture. If more people are to be encouraged to cycle, a fundamental shift in attitude will be needed in every part of our society. An increase in safe utility, recreational, tourist and competitive cycling can have economic, health and environmental benefits for society as a whole.”

“Concerns about road safety and our climate are often quoted as reasons why few people cycle in Northern Ireland. However, significant increases in cycling have been achieved through pro-active policies and actions in other European countries having similar weather conditions.”

The “..creation of a cycle-friendly road network is important if more people are to be encouraged to cycle. The traffic management measures needed to improve conditions for cyclists .. will involve the re-allocation of road space from the motorist to the cyclist, however, this will require a fundamental shift in attitude on the part of transport and infrastructure providers and the support of the general public.”

“Our long-term infrastructure objective is to create a network of high quality cycle routes .. [these] may be on-road or off-road and will include dedicated cycle tracks, shared use surfaces, traffic calmed roads and may make use of paths across parks and other open spaces.”

The “..conversion of footways and footpaths to shared use by cyclists and pedestrians will only be considered where there is no other opportunity to improve conditions safely for cyclists on the carriageway or elsewhere.”

We will “..implement an ongoing programme of secure, convenient and, where appropriate, covered cycle parking provision at new and existing main public transport interchanges and park and ride sites .. [and] in main town centres.”

We will:

  • develop local cycling targets and strategies that will encourage more people to cycle
  • implement a programme of traffic calming schemes and 20 mph zones and afford greater priority to collisions involving cyclists in the prioritisation of these schemes;
  • monitor road traffic collisions in which cyclists are involved and initiate appropriate remedial action
  • improve cycle access in towns by the development of planned urban cycle networks and provide at least an additional 50 miles of urban cycle route
  • adopt recognised good practice in cycle-friendly provision and apply detailed cycle audit procedures to ensure that pro-cycle facilities are actively considered during the design of road schemes
  • apply cycle review procedures to major commuter corridors in Belfast and Londonderry

“In developing an action plan to address these issues, the objective will be to achieve a shift in the perception and behaviour of a large section of the general public.”

Targets:

  • double the number of trips by cycle in 5 years
  • quadruple the number of trips by cycle in 15 years

The “..strategy represents a significant commitment to cycling by Government.”

The strategy contains some excellent and progressive content, setting a strong commitment to embedding cycling firmly within the transport mix in Northern Ireland. There’s even recognition that “dedicated cycling tracks” are needed in urban areas which will take road space away from motor vehicles. It talks the talks, and promises to walk the walk – just what a progressive cycling strategy needs to be in 2014.

Except (if you haven’t it figured out by now) this isn’t from the new draft Bicycle Strategy for Northern Ireland 2014.

BicycleStrategyNI

This is all lifted from the Northern Ireland Cycling Strategy 2000 (PDF, 8.56MB) published back when the politician at the DRD helm was the future First Minister of Northern Ireland, Peter Robinson (to this day a regular cyclist). Technically, it’s still the framework for cycling in Northern Ireland (that second target was to 2015).

PeterRobinsonCycling

This isn’t a full autopsy on the 2000 strategy to determine its failures and successes; for the most part, that will be obvious with even a basic knowledge of current cycling conditions here. In reading DRD’s new strategy, it’s important to remember our history, so that we are not doomed to repeat the mistakes.

I’m not even going to critique the new draft Bicycle Strategy for Northern Ireland line by line – smart heads in DRD have kept it light and punchy, easy to read – so go and draw your own conclusions (PDF, 699K). It’s in consultation until Friday 21st November, so if you have even a passing interest in seeing cycling conditions improve in Northern Ireland please send your views to cycling.unit@drdni.gov.uk. I’ll publish my submission when it’s sent.

Cargobike Dad tackles the new strategy and matches my own positive thoughts on how its shaping up. However, this includes the concerning use of cyclist ‘user profiles’ to influence future route design. Dutch cycle network design principles and density means everyone can cycle everywhere. DRD want to be “visionary in our approach and we want to embrace innovation” so why this rush to compromise at the outset? Hopefully concerns will be taken on board.

https://twitter.com/seanlondonandon/status/504670674862866432

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In the encounters I’ve had with DRD staff who wrote the strategy (the new Cycling Policy Unit) I’ve found them to be genuine, passionate, open, honest, pragmatic but genuinely open to ideas, savvy operators in a tough Departmental environment and (should it matter) all normal everyday cyclists – the right people in the right place at (hopefully) the right time. They deserve a chance to make a difference.

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What I’m looking for in the new Bicycle Strategy are signs that DRD thinking has moved on from the previous strategy:

  • that best practice in infrastructure design and network density from established cycling countries will factor in plans and, crucially (given past experience) that cycling plans won’t be vetoed within DRD / Transport NI by more influential voices
  • that DRD recognises and wants to grasp the unique opportunity and tools of centralised government executive powers to set Northern Ireland on a course to surpass other areas of the UK and Ireland, not coast in the wake of their failure (in comparison to Netherlands / Denmark etc)

Despite the hyperbole of Danny Kennedy’s call for a “cycling revolution”, I am sold on the Minister’s commitment (and that of his advisors and staff) to what cycling investment can deliver for his department and for Northern Ireland.

Yet two things might override these good intentions:

  • elections in May 2016 which will almost certainly see a new Minister in place (likely from a different political party) who may not share the developing vision for cycling
  • an over-reliance on ‘gambling’ for monitoring round money to deliver cycling projects, rather than a fixed proportion of central funding

Austerity is beginning to rain down hard on budget rounds, and only half of DRD’s £2m capital bids for cycling in June were approved. What chance will cycling have during future budget squeezes, without reliable core ring-fenced funding?

One sentence from the new strategy shows why this is fundamental to success, and why the old strategy didn’t achieve much:

“Since 2002 the Department has invested over £10 million in the development and expansion of cycle lanes and on cycling infrastructure measures.”

Which broadly speaking means DRD committed around 50p per head of Northern Ireland population each year for most of the lifetime of the 2000 strategy, compared to €24 in the Netherlands. And the headline result*?

NI bicycle journey share in 2000? 1%.

NI bicycle journey share in 2013? 1%.

In hindsight it’s fortunate that the 2000 strategy tried to “encourage cyclists to wear helmets” because that’s 14 years of head-butting brick walls. However there are some encouraging recent signs of cycling growth in Belfast especially, and DRD’s future plan to raise annual per head spending to £4 may begin to make some impact.

It’s important to set the new Bicycle Strategy for Northern Ireland in this context – it’s a positive high-level vision, but words don’t guarantee significant change, as the 2000 document shows. The devil will be in the detail of delivery plans, local masterplans, securing continuous funding and retaining political will. Hopefully this time round things are different, and I wish DRD well at the start of their new journey.

*DRD NI Travel Survey: Average number of journeys per person per year

Educating cyclists the DOE way

Posted on by nigreenways

Northern Ireland’s much heralded Cycling Revolution™ is going to need some great promotion to become a reality. Step forward our Department of the Environment (DOE), where local road safety promotion sits in isolation from the road builders (and revolutionary vanguard) over at the Department for Regional Development (DRD).

Recently DOE launched their first ever cycling safety video Respect everyone’s journey. It was a reasonable first effort, notwithstanding plenty of valid criticism. At least they wisely stayed away from the schlock-horror of their usual road safety adverts (see the international viral “hit” Shame on You).

ChrisErin

A follow-up cycling video has been uploaded to YouTube, which shows how far DOE has slipped in just 3 months, and manages to perfectly capture how poor the cycling conditions and expectations are in Northern Ireland:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJ40bHE1OPA?rel=0&w=600&h=450]

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Comments on YouTube are (wisely) switched off, but the video has already attracted scorn and ridicule on social media.

https://twitter.com/AngelaJWallace/status/490026202498072577

Here’s 10 of the top reasons why it’s so bad, in no particular order:

#1 That target audience?

It’s difficult to see who the video is trying to patronise reach. But on closer inspection..

“Cycling’s a great way to get around .. but that doesn’t mean you can forget about hazards, or who you share the space with .. we all have to respect everyone’s journey, whether you’re on the road, or in a cycle lane”

So it’s those death-wish cyclists with no regard for the rules of the road, who put themselves and others in danger, and generally don’t give a damn about respect – they’re the target audience. I reckon DOE’s instinct that a twee instructional video will make them think again is spot on.

#2 Image quality

As with DOE’s previous video, I’m already struggling to see cycling as normal because of the awful music. Simple Minds behind the scenes – indeed. And Chris and Erin seem dressed and ready to appear in a James Bond opening title sequence rather than going for a cycle, because NO-ONE DRESSES FOR CYCLING LIKE THAT. EVER.

Hiya DOE, here’s a modern image of cycling in Belfast, ironically taken the same day your video was published:

GrandParade

#3 Cycle tracks

Using the Stranmillis Embankment is an interesting choice. It’s by far and away the best on-road cycling space in Belfast, and was only just beaten into 2nd place by Derry’s Peace Bridge as NI’s best cycling infrastructure in the 2013 Fréd Awards.

It’s also wholly unrepresentative of the typical cycling experience here. In fact, there are just 3 separate cycle tracks in Belfast, totally just 2.5km in length. Making a video to explain how to use a cycle track (and generally how to interact with other humans) is overkill.

The Giro d’Italia passed along here in May 2014, but just weeks before the event, DRD’s Roads Service introduced another user to compete with cyclists – a variable message sign (and they got mildly arsey when people complained). Share the road indeed!

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#4 “A good tip is to try and avoid the busiest times on your route; it’ll make your journey quicker, and smoother.”

According to DOE, cycling is not something you should be doing during rush hour; grow up and get a car for that, kids. It’s not like anyone would want to cycle to work, or to the shops in the morning, or hop on the bike for a 9am appointment etc.

If you’re daft enough to try it, expect a slow, rough journey. Hmm. Now you mention it, that’s a scarily accurate representation of cycling in Belfast’s rush hour. Finally some feckin’ honesty and insight – chapeau!

#5 Promoting shambolic infrastructure

At 3.42 and 4.35 I became convinced that the video was a scalpel-sharp piece of satire – you got me DOE! It’s one thing that the Ormeau Road Bus Shelter and University contra-flow lane were voted in the top 5 worst pieces of infrastructure in the 2013 Fréd Awards (beaten only by a dinosaur tail – true story), but quite another for the government to then think it appropriate to use them in a cycling promotion video.

Plonking a bus shelter in the middle of a shared use path is a nightmare for everyone using the space, more so for families with children or elderly people walking around the back. Don’t tell us how to navigate crap design, tell DRD how to redesign it!

https://twitter.com/ibikebelfast/status/490029456200040448

This is also NI’s first attempt on video to promote the contra-flow cycle lane concept, or at least DRD’s awfully executed attempt. If you need to use the phrases “But the danger is..” and “This is where you really need to be on high alert..” you’re admitting it’s dangerous crap, so just get rid of it!

https://twitter.com/AngelaJWallace/status/490024940624949248

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#6 Those reflectors

While being thoroughly patronised by this video, I knew I’d have to admit that DOE had all their facts sewn up, that their advice was legally watertight and all information presented would be factually correct. Every scene shows someone cycling in daylight hours, not between sunset and sunrise. So it’s safe to assume when Erin says ‘by law, you must have a red rear reflector and amber pedal reflectors” that means not just when the sun’s gone down, right?

#7 “Bus lanes are there .. to make your journey smoother and faster, but because they’re shared with buses, permitted taxis and motorbikes, they can be extremely busy”

Damn right bus lanes are busy – by January 2015 DOE will create a single tier taxi system which will force the number of taxis in Belfast bus lanes up from 500 to around 4,000. Good idea to gloss over the destruction of cycling subjective safety at rush hour (hiya point #4).

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#8 “Before you make any move .. always look around you, especially behind, and give a signal if necessary”

NoSignal

..says Erin at 4.20. Meanwhile, back in the mists of time at 4.10, the girl in the video makes a ridiculous move without signalling her intent to the Renault Clio. All happy smiles and waves in the video; try that in the real world, and there’s more chance she’d end up in A+E.

https://twitter.com/ellenfromnowon/status/490102359243378688

https://twitter.com/richardholywood/status/490042413487239168

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#9 “By the way, footpaths (as the name suggests) are for feet”

Can you say ‘Equality Impact Assessment’? Wheelchair users and those on mobility scooters might have a few things to say about your interpretation here, DOE. While riding on many footways is illegal (footway or footpath – check those legals again) and generally frowned upon (never mind slower, bumpier and probably more dangerous) it’s a symptom of poor infrastructure – people are scared away from traffic, and want to cycle in what seems like a safer place. Build better routes and more protected cycling space, then people will simply choose the better alternative.

#10 “Respect other road users, because we all share the same space”

This is exactly the problem. The whole video is one long excuse for bad infrastructure, glossing over decades of under-investment in cycling. Countries with the highest cycling levels separate cycling as a transport mode distinct from motor vehicles and pedestrians, or unravels (high quality) cycling routes from the the busiest roads altogether.

DOE admits (whether knowingly or not) that trying to ride a bike around Belfast is made difficult and dangerous because cycling is not properly catered for, because we have to compete with cars, lorries, buses, taxis – and then offers up some random methods for coping, to varying degrees of usefulness.

* * * * *

Really, this only scratches the surface of the things which are obviously wrong with this video, and the swathes of underlying assumptions and daft language which other ‘road users’ are not subject to, like:

It’s a truly ill-advised piece of nonsense which does nothing to advance cycling promotion in Northern Ireland. Perhaps it’s time for DOE to fully hand over the reigns on this function to DRD’s Cycling Unit, who (from personal experience) actually know a thing or two about urban cycling.

https://www.facebook.com/BelfastBikefast/posts/317025061809199

https://twitter.com/vee_thirteen/status/490023337364443136

https://twitter.com/niroads/status/490233011670364160

https://twitter.com/BruteonaUte/status/490023126638817280

 

Ride On Belfast 2014

Posted on by nigreenways

ROBblog

 

 

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On Friday 20th June 2014, the second annual Ride On Belfast event took to the city streets. Last year, around 70 people rode from the Gasworks to the City Hall, inspired by and assembled under the banner of The Fréd Festival. This year the theme was ruthless expansion, with the twin aims of:

  • being the biggest peloton in Belfast since the Giro d’Italia
  • encouraging people not used to cycle commuting to try it out

That was the simplest expression of what Ride On Belfast is about – people riding bicycles in Belfast for their own reasons, whether being the most practical way to work, for the school run, for their health or just the enjoyment. It’s not a protest, it’s not ‘taking back’ the roads, it’s not causing aggro to others – just riding a bike.

But to make this year really special, we needed some new, innovative tactics..

The Weather Underground

Belfast is used to long arid summers, heatwaves lasting months and emergency air-drops of Mr Frostie supplies, but Fréd and his goons needed to be sure that precipitation wasn’t going to affect Ride On Belfast. There was nothing for it – with a brass neck, we tweet-bombed all of the finest weather presenters on local television, and Frank Mitchell too.

And by jove, the BBC crew got into the spirit, with Angie Phillips retweeting, Barra Best tweeting his own predictions, and the fabulous Cecilia Daly (the new darling of Belfast cycling) going the extra mile..

And so, the day before Ride On Belfast gathered, we got our first official ‘national’ weather forecast!

[gigya src=”https://abfiles.s3.amazonaws.com/swf/default_player_10.swf” style=”background-color:transparent; display:block; box-shadow:0 0 1px 1px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.15); min-width:349px; max-width:700px;” flashvars=”image_option=small&imgURL=https%3A%2F%2Fd15mj6e6qmt1na.cloudfront.net%2Fi%2F9638374%2F300x300%2Fc&link_color=%23c70067&mp3Author=nigreenways&mp3Duration=45505.0&mp3LinkURL=https%3A%2F%2Faudioboo.fm%2Fboos%2F2273070-ride-on-belfast-gets-a-personalised-weather-forecast&mp3Time=11.43pm+21+Jun+2014&mp3Title=Ride+On+Belfast+gets+a+personalised+weather+forecast&mp3URL=https%3A%2F%2Faudioboo.fm%2Fboos%2F2273070-ride-on-belfast-gets-a-personalised-weather-forecast.mp3%3Fsource%3Dwordpress&player_theme=dark&rootID=boo_player_1&show_title=true&waveimgURL=https%3A%2F%2Fd15mj6e6qmt1na.cloudfront.net%2Fi%2Fw%2F724171″ width=”600″ height=”150″ allowFullScreen=”true” wmode=”transparent”]

And as it turned out, the weather was just about perfect on the day..

 

The Gathering

https://twitter.com/ellenfromnowon/status/479874513573019648

This year’s Ride On Belfast was helped by some last minute news from Translink, as their early morning ban on bicycles on trains was eased to accommodate those travelling for the event:

This was a most welcome nod to active travel, and hopefully will give Translink and DRD pause to consider trialling this over a longer period.

https://twitter.com/BelfastCyclist/status/480028818204536833

https://twitter.com/bernie_stocks/status/479921650725814272

The gathering crowd was impressed to see Northern Ireland’s Transport Minister Danny Kennedy ride into the bunch with his new Cycling Unit in tow. Regular cyclist and MLA Sammy Douglas also joined in.

Minister Danny Kennedy arrives with his bicycle outrides
Minister Danny Kennedy arrives with his bicycle outriders

 

The Grand Départ

Under severe pressure from hungry commuters, the peloton set off a little earlier than planned. With a tight first turn from the Gasworks green onto the road, the Minister seized his opportunity and put in a devastating early kick. This split the peloton at the Ormeau Road crossing, and the breakaway group was never caught again. Apparently, Danny Kennedy’s sprint finish down Donegall Place was a phenomenal sight.

https://twitter.com/MrVirtualGill/status/479892607603343360

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XbGdaI6zEqc?rel=0&w=600&h=338]

 

On The Open Road

This year Ride On Belfast took an extended trip around Belfast, leading to an iconic roll down Royal Avenue towards the City Hall. The PSNI officers took a relaxed back seat this year, yet the busier junctions were taken with ease. Notable pinch points (again) were the length of time to traverse Shaftesbury Square (not great for cycling at all) and the bus lane at Great Victoria Street (still not great for buses, never mind cycling). Holding the outside lane along Carrick Hill worked to control what was expected to be the busiest and fastest traffic of the ride. The traffic-restricted streets of the city centre were a joy.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5uxRPmcbSYY?rel=0&w=600&h=338]

https://twitter.com/GeoffCaves/status/479919201080311808

https://twitter.com/jonathan_alban/status/479886080544882688

 

Selfie On Belfast

After the last year with Máirtín Ó Muilleoir as Lord Mayor, Belfast has fallen in love with the selfie. As well as people just taking them for the craic, See.Sense also ran a competition for the best selfie taken by their stand at Belfast City Hall..

https://twitter.com/BelfastAikido/status/479895033630699520

https://twitter.com/KillinchyCC/status/479929158337069056

https://twitter.com/GeoffCaves/status/479915437950763008

https://twitter.com/dbinterz/status/479921452708548608

https://twitter.com/clairemulv/status/480005258463416320

 

City Hall and well-earned grub

A huge thank you again to Travelwise and Belfast City Council for providing a free breakfast at the Bobbin Cafe (and the new option of a free coffee at Javaman) for those who completed Ride On Belfast. The City Hall grounds became a sea of bicycles for the morning, while local cycle lighting tech firm See.Sense showed off their wares and PSNI bike officers were busy security-marking bicycles for the punters.

Inside the City Hall, the breakfast queue stretched out the door (which is testament to the rise in participation at Ride On Belfast) and we’re all grateful to the Bobbin staff for coping under severe pressure.

https://twitter.com/KillinchyCC/status/479930501453848576

https://twitter.com/lobsterbane/status/479917543784996864

 

The Media

Straight after the event, our Twitter traffic was enough to set #RideOnBelfast trending locally – maybe next year “sectarianism” can be beaten by cycling? Little steps..

Paul Reilly brought the UTV cameras down to see what all the fuss was about, and importantly set the day in context with a reminder of the shocking scene of a child’s bicycle under a truck at Ballyhackamore the day before. Along with the tragic death of 5 year old Conor O’Neill 9 days before, Bike Week had a strong focus on road safety and infrastructure improvement this year.

DKROB

https://twitter.com/GregorClaus/status/480273772008988672

The Irish News covered the event in its Saturday edition. Might need to check that ear-to-shorthand connection though, as ‘enthusiast’ (a word I’m almost violently resistant to when it comes to practical cycling) somehow crept into a quote. And “giro d’italia” needs capitals. #facepalm

 

The Aftermath

Ride On Belfast turned out to be a really positive, fun event and this was reflected in social media comments directly afterwards. We had new cycling commuters, people trying out cycling for the first time in years, as well as familiar faces.

https://twitter.com/BarryParke/status/479964204578136065

https://twitter.com/donnakmonteith/status/479984227816337409

https://twitter.com/theflyingfanny/status/479913575453315072

https://twitter.com/lobsterbane/status/479914027989344256

https://twitter.com/donnakmonteith/status/480053273609904128

https://twitter.com/lobsterbane/status/479922578476523521

https://twitter.com/ellenfromnowon/status/479913587113492480

https://twitter.com/ukprototype/status/479951509275566080

https://twitter.com/KillinchyCC/status/479952404700725248

In the end, the various breakaway groups which started from the Gasworks numbered 150, with close to 200 registered for the bicycle breakfast at City Hall. Overall that was a doubling of participation from 2013, which is a credit to all involved – The Fréd Festival, Travelwise (DRD) and Belfast City Council.

Fading glory on Sydenham Road

Posted on by nigreenways

Perhaps the Belfast Harbour Commissioners don’t yet realise the significance of what they’ve created on Sydenham Road.

In a sense their separate cycle path (arguably the best stretch in the city) is an interesting symbol of the changing nature of Belfast’s Harbour Estate. The area is moving further away from the days of heavy industry to a clever future mix of innovation, education, high skilled jobs with big inward investors, start-up hubs, urban sport parks, education campuses, signature tourism and leisure facilities. With a new resident population growing in hi-spec apartment space, and commuter traffic growing, the area needs a smart, modern transport mix to thrive.

SydSTB
Peloton travelling along Sydenham Road to the opening of the Sam Thompson Bridge

The path was constructed in spring 2013, part of better defined road space. Two extremely wide lanes were split into 4 with the additional space used to create a wide 2-way cycle path, fully kerb separated. Although general traffic capacity was technically doubled, this was still a remarkable example of taking road space away from motor vehicles for cycling – on private land as well.

Who better to get on with the relatively insignificant job of road space reallocation than the Belfast Harbour Commissioners. This organisation, and their forebears, moved heaven and (literally) earth to create and shape a great port city from the sandy shallows of a lough which used to be named after Carrickfergus, the former primary settlement.

Belfast Harbour sits at the junction of 4 great cycling routes – the Lagan Towpath, Loughshore Path, Comber Greenway and Connswater Greenway. With the new Sam Thompson Bridge sited within the Harbour Estate and the ongoing positive reception for the Connswater project, Belfast Harbour is now a key link in Belfast’s active travel chain.

Some clever touches at the points of greatest potential conflict on the Sydenham road cycle path (such as the car showroom access) show there has been real thought about safety and comfort of all road users:

Yet, the Sydenham Road cycle path is in danger of being the Harbour’s high-water mark, as current expansion work and outstanding issues mean the quality of the route is beginning to recede. So what are the problems and potential solutions to the Sydenham Road route?

New shared pavement at Dee Street roundabout

Rumours of works to the Sydenham Road route drew me down to the area in May, and it was disappointing to see a shared footpath solution being constructed at the Dee Street roundabout. From excellent separate #space4cycling to an awful compromise within metres. This is the classic approach to cycle design in Belfast; a cycle lane (and a magnificent one in this case) built where space is easy to take from general traffic, but at major junctions cycling space must disappear to meet the needs of motor vehicles.

Sydenham Road transition from cycle path to shared footway
From high quality separate cycle path to shared footway (with bus stop pole at transition)

More worrying is the lack of thought about the curve to access the new crossing to Airport Road. After passing a prominent electricity box, a high brick wall obscures the view on a turn which greater than 90 degrees. Faster bicycle traffic will mix with pedestrians here, and the potential for collisions at peak times is now very high.

Wall
A surprisingly busy (now shared-use) blind corner with a difficult mix of users

As nice as the brick wall is, Belfast Harbour could remove it to create more space for dedicated separated cycling and walking space on this roundabout. (Update 26 Jun 14 – reliably informed this wall belongs to a tenant company, so “..Belfast Harbour could approach them to remove it..”) Alternatively, a three-lane roundabout can afford to have enough space clipped off to provide a more continuous cycle route – plenty of examples of best practice exist in the Netherlands.

Smarter investment in altering the roundabout design would also go some way to solving the maddening problem of citybound access to the cycle path from Dee Street and the Sydenham Bypass. If you’re confident enough to have crossed a double roundabout (with very heavy traffic) you have to get from one side of a fast and noisy 4 lane carriageway to the other. It’s utterly impractical and quite dangerous (even when dismounting and trying to walk) for families or inexperience cyclists.

Sydenham
No controlled crossing at the start of the cycle path – a 4 lane nightmare to traverse

Belfast Harbour had a great chance to make a vast improvement on the Odyssey to Victoria Park route; instead the Dee Street roundabout area remains its weakest link.

Ramps

A big favourite with patrons of the Belfast Cycling Study Tour, the ramps on the cycle path made little sense, especially given the harsh angles which lead many people to use the road instead. Even at low speed, these provide a hefty jolt to bicycle and rider.

Ramps
Badly engineered ramps mean bicycles and riders take a thumping

Many people wondered why these traffic calming speed humps were missing from the main road.. 😉

Following complaints, Belfast Harbour (to their credit) have altered the approaches on the ‘bus stop ramp’ to allow a smooth transit.

Sydenham Road ramp after works
Belfast Harbour have now eased the angles on one ramp

Yet, strangely, the final ramp near the Dee Street roundabout remains in its original spoke-snapping shape. Unlike the central ramp, which serves a pedestrian crossing to Titanic Quarter train station, the purpose here seems only to access to a bin and post box. The balance of inconveniences seem badly skewed against dozens of everyday users.

Sydenham Road ramp for post box and bin
Remaining ramp with poor angles, serving just a post box and bin

This final problem ramp needs to either be removed completely or the approaches flattened as above.

Route inconsistency

While the main separate cycle path is (bar a few minor bumps) a joy, the Odyssey to Victoria Park route is neither consistent nor continuous – the mark of great cycling infrastructure around the world. If you have to think too much about where you can or can’t be; if signage isn’t clear; if you have to take difficult and seemingly unnecessary diversions; if you inconvenience people, you are not encouraging the use of bicycles.

From the Odyssey, you either start on the footway or on the road – there is no dedicated cycling space. At the Queens Road junction you’ll meet this generously wide cycle lane.

Sydenham Road yellow line cycle lane
Possibly the worst cycle lane in Belfast, just metres from the best

Held for an eternity at the traffic lights (sustainable transport journeys really need to have some advantage over motor traffic) you move across an advisory cycle lane and up a ramp onto a shared footway. Not too bad, except coming back the other way the visual queue is to cycle against the traffic – lethal if not illegal?

PermaPuddle2
Ramp invites you to cycle onto the road against the traffic

At the next junction is a similar ramp, with more confusion – cycling down the ramp onto the road doesn’t seem to be affected by the adjacent signal-controlled junction. While many would feel it’s prudent to wait, there’s nothing to caution users that cycling down into the junction is potentially dangerous – leaving a real threat of collision. Where would the responsibility lie?

Ramp1
Do you stop at a red light? Who has priority if you proceed?

The right hand side of the picture above says it all. If you’ve designed a dedicated route for cycling, and you feel that the road beside still needs an advanced stop line for bicycles, your design has failed.

Drainage

Not only do users have to contend with several transitions between shared and dedicated space, but those transitions themselves suffer from poor implementation. A lack of drainage is causing ‘perma-puddles’ to build up. As an occasional inconvenience perhaps not too bad, but the water sits for weeks at a time (even through dry spells, as in the picture) leading to murky, muddy pools gathering dirt and moss. People commuting to work risk getting clothes dirty, and chances of slips and falls are increased.

PermaPuddle1
Slippy perma-puddle on a transition ramp from road to shared footpath

Bad enough that one perma-puddle exists, but given that a new transition has just been created, lessons clearly haven’t been learnt.

PermaPuddle3
Second perma-puddle – transition has a treacherous raised kerb, and a bus stop sign

Updated 17th June 2014

Remarkably (planned) work has been carried out to attempt to fix the drainage issues, as seen on the way to Stormont during Tuesday rush hour:

Works

Hopefully this solves the drainage problems, and shows that Belfast Harbour are sensitive to the issues on this cycle route.

Belfast Harbour’s legacy wasn’t build on cheap solutions

Belfast Harbour is now firmly in the business of cycle route planning and design. If they deliver cycle space of a poor standard, it reflects badly on the neighbouring routes at Laganside and the Connswater Greenway, dragging down their potential too.

Over the long decades, generations of Harbour Commissioners and the industries and trade they’ve fostered have done things on a grand scale – city building, airplane manufacture, Hollywood film production, launching the most famous ocean liners in the world.

While NI hopes that DRD’s new Cycling Unit is learning from cycling infrastructure best practice around the world, the industry and output from Belfast Harbour has always sought to be world-leading. Why should the Harbour’s cycle space be any different?

That Sydenham Road chatter..

Fat Bloke On A Pushbike Blog: The Sydenham Road Cycle Lane – My View

https://twitter.com/individualjs/status/444838843062419456

On the Waterfront

Posted on by nigreenways

This week in Belfast, the western bank of the Lagan River Walkway closed for two years, to allow construction of a new Conference Centre at the Waterfront Hall. This path is the traffic-free walking and cycling spine of Belfast, part of the National Cycle Network, and crucial to the success of the city’s cycling revolution. So why isn’t the path being maintained through the works, and why are the proposed diversion routes not up to standard?

The Waterfront extension works were announced in January, part of a £29.5 million upgrade to attract international conferences and exhibitions. Disruption to the Lagan Walkway route was expected, as the new structure will overhang the pathway when completed. However, it’s understood diversions were decided before the main active travel body in NI, Sustrans, was consulted. So what were the options on the table for Belfast City Council?

Waterfront Hall barrier
Confusion and delay on day one, whether walking or cycling

Maintaining the route

It’s understood that following initial works to the edge of the river, the substantive construction work will take place closer to the existing Waterfront building for a significant period of the next 2 years. Providing a boardwalk right at the river’s edge, or perhaps even a pontoon, seemed like a viable solution for continued access during periods of low risk.

Waterfront extension - at the river's edge
Options here for a boardwalk to maintain the route?

The river’s edge at the Waterfront includes an existing pontoon for boat access and a built-out viewing platform. A clever engineering solution (still) seems possible.

Questions need to be asked of Belfast City Council: was it their own Health and Safety assessment which ruled out this option, or did the contractors just inform them it didn’t suit?

Alternative Route 1 (via Oxford Street)

Sustrans Ranger Ellen Murray knows NCN Route 9 very well, and has tackled the issue in great detail on her blog. She took a run along this diversion heading south to see the difficulties:

Signs for the 2 main diversion routes
Signs for the 2 main diversion routes

“This proposed route brings cyclists and pedestrians around the front of the Waterfront Hall, along a fairly ambiguous path which doesn’t feel like a contiguous route. It then brings users across a cobbled section (which is slippery when wet) across a minor roundabout, and then along a quite narrow stretch of Lanyon Place. The road is flanked on the left by a construction site, leading to poor visibility at corners.

Water5
Dark, unfriendly streetscape of Laganbank Road; pinched footways, ongoing construction

This road is also significantly below the level of the adjacent East Bridge Street and is an intimidatingly dark route after hours which feels very isolated, which is likely to further affect cycle and pedestrian traffic using the route.

Rejoining the NCN9 route at the ramp alongside the railway underpass presents a significant conflict area for pedestrians and cyclists, who need to turn more than 90 degrees to continue along their journey. Along the whole proposed route, there are many crossing points for pedestrians, and a significant number of conflict areas for cyclists and pedestrians, who will now have to contend with Hilton Hotel traffic at the roundabout, and other local traffic along Lanyon Place.“

It also represents a significant detour, especially for those on foot. For anyone walking from the Albert Bridge or southern sections of the Lagan path, being diverted up East Bridge Street is a far more direct route, albeit with poor cycling connectivity to Oxford Street.

Better dedicated cycling facilities on East Bridge Street could have taken some of the strain during the next 2 years. Consideration should be given (as part of a developing cycling masterplan for Belfast) for a separate cycle path on the country-bound side.

EBSlane
#Space4Cycling possibly right under our noses on East Bridge Street?

Alternative Route 2 (The Bridges)

While a potentially shorter route, the mis-steps by Belfast City Council in rolling out this diversion have been amazing to watch. From first viewing of the map, you wonder if Belfast City Council ever bothered to check if cycling was legal on the tight, busy pedestrian footway on Queen’s Bridge.

QueensBridge
Cycling neither desirable nor legal on this busy bridge

Clearly, with the generous allocation of ‘Cyclists dismount’ signage (alongside the highly embarrassing upside-down route markers) the penny had dropped by the first day of route closure.

UpsideDown

Unfortunately the ‘Cyclists dismount’ signs then appeared on the shared use railway footbridge as well – thankfully with the intervention of Sustrans (following the tweet below) they were removed.

How much work did Belfast City Council put into considering users’ needs and journey modelling? Did anyone consider that a high percentage of users’ journeys might be towards Titanic Quarter, whether tourists, day-trippers or workers? From the south, the diversion sends bewildered users across the River Lagan fully 3 times to reach this area!

Route

Looking at the map above, you might wonder why you need to cross two parallel bridges at all. The problem is the lack of a viable crossing – safe enough to allow pedestrians and cyclists of all abilities, people pushing prams, getting families (whether cycling or walking), those with limited mobility to safely cross four and a half lanes of fast, continuous traffic at Bridge End – as this video shows.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QK56pVvzzoQ?rel=0]

This disconnect requires urgent action. One of the poorest aspects of this whole scheme is the failure to adequately cater for disrupted journeys by actually spending money on solutions. Other European cities with a keen interest in protecting and encouraging active travel make big gestures to accomodate cycling and walking through construction projects. The boardwalk idea may have its health and safety drawbacks, but has cost been a factor? Surely not within a £29.5 million project?

Similarly, Belfast City Council should be able to find roughly £60,000 to work with DRD to add a toucan crossing at Queen’s Bridge (as recommended by Sustrans). This would improve accessibility for the duration of the project, and leave a lasting legacy to the east bank of the Lagan. This is the most pressing and necessary option which Belfast City Council must pursue to salvage some pride from this sorry episode.

Queen's Bridge with Bridge End and Station St flyover traffic
Four (and a half) lanes of busy commuting traffic, no controlled crossing

In the same week (trebles all round at the Press Office!) Belfast City Council have announced the contractor to deliver the Belfast Bike Hire scheme, which should now be operational by next spring. That’s right – the closure of Belfast’s premier traffic-free path, and the associated mess, will still be happening at least a year into the operation of Bike Hire.

There’s a disappointing sense that the needs of people who use this route everyday, and the all-important visitors to our city, were an afterthought in Belfast City Council’s Waterfront extension project. They’ve misjudged the importance of the path. It’s a route for tourists, for leisure use, for commuters, for shoppers and much more. Belfast City Council should be encouraged for it’s investments, both in the Conference Centre and in active travel projects like Bike Hire. But they cannot afford further failure on the day-to-day basics of encouraging car-free travel.

* * * * * * * * *

Related tweets

https://twitter.com/GregorClaus/status/461942212021215233

https://twitter.com/GregorClaus/status/461928466221633536

https://twitter.com/ellenfromnowon/status/461421963899326464

https://twitter.com/ellenfromnowon/status/461176643118460929

https://twitter.com/chrismccorry/status/460468494069669890

https://twitter.com/ellenfromnowon/status/460202136178262016

If only every ride home could be like this..

Posted on by nigreenways

Most days cycling in Belfast to work, to the shops or back home is uneventful. But then it’s Giro d’Italia year in Belfast and magic things are happening. Even a small section of a simple journey can hold remarkable sights within the space of a few hundred metres.

Continue reading “If only every ride home could be like this..” →

Infographics // All Party Group on Cycling

Posted on by nigreenways

I was honoured to be invited to the first meeting of the Northern Ireland Assembly All Party Group on Cycling on 4th March 2014, and I decided to mark the occasion with a ham-fisted attempt at a series of infographics on local cycling issues.

There’s actually some decent data on local cycling (especially commuting) which shows some of the developing strengths and historic structural barriers and weaknesses. Unfortunately the information is difficult to find and digest at source, and not widely known. To better inform our engaged politicians and the wider public, here’s 15 infographics with some important messages.

Continue reading “Infographics // All Party Group on Cycling” →

The political wheel keeps on turning

Posted on by nigreenways

Some remarkable facts and new developments are worth noting as cycling continues to benefit from a fair wind at the Northern Ireland Assembly.

20% of MLAs are now directly involved in cycling matters

This fact should be celebrated for, whatever individual politicians’ and parties’ views and policies, 22 of the 108 Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) are working through various issues to do with everyday cycling.

MLAsCyclingIssues

Continue reading “The political wheel keeps on turning” →

Once in a lifetime Giro opportunity wasted?

Posted on by nigreenways

Dunlop/Hume legacy is our chance to hoist Belfast to a unique place in cycling history

Is Northern Ireland about to squander a golden chance to promote its unique cycling heritage? Government agencies are ignoring a local anniversary of world significance as the Giro d’Italia Grande Partenza passes within yards of one of the birthplaces of modern cycling.

Two world firsts

On 18th May 1889, local cyclist Willie Hume took part in a series of races the old North of Ireland Cricket Club Grounds on the Ormeau Road. His safety bicycle (the direct ancestor to modern bikes) was fitted with pneumatic tyres, which were being used in competition for the first time anywhere in the world. Hume had purchased the tyres from John Boyd Dunlop, a Belfast-based Scottish veterinary surgeon, who’s development was the world’s first practical application of a pneumatic bicycle tyre.

Continue reading “Once in a lifetime Giro opportunity wasted?” →

Monkstown Greenisland Greenway

Posted on by nigreenways

A golden opportunity to link two communities with a new greenway centres on a disused railway just six miles north of Belfast. The ‘Back Line’ between Monkstown and Greenisland has been dormant for over 50 years, yet the land is still in public ownership. Developing a new 2.7km traffic-free path could provide great options for locals trips without the car, and build upon the success of the recently opened Newtownabbey Way.

Monkstown Greenisland Greenway map
(Click to explore the route in Google Maps)

Continue reading “Monkstown Greenisland Greenway” →