tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post1686582664005048219..comments2024-03-27T12:53:39.298+01:00Comments on A view from the cycle path: Reflections on EnglandDavid Hembrowhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543024940730663645noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post-17583628111355673642010-11-22T11:27:18.790+01:002010-11-22T11:27:18.790+01:00An interesting reflection on Britain - although it...An interesting reflection on Britain - although it does leave me somewhat depressed!<br /><br />I live in Bristol where there is a heavy volume of cyclists in comparison to other places. Which makes me feel optimistic. But I guess I need to just cycle somewhere else for a reality check.<br /><br />What can we do eh... There will have to be a seismic shift in attitude, but the government are not Ruth Brookerhttp://ruth-brooker.co.uk/blognoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post-75494949783590330072010-10-26T18:37:56.434+02:002010-10-26T18:37:56.434+02:00So now I know where Canada gets its attitude towar...So now I know where Canada gets its attitude towards public transport and cars. I guess it's no surprise since the queen is the same. Dave, can you ask the Dutch royal family to take over Canada?<br />Well, it seems that when they re-surface a road here, they include simple bike lanes, but they don't form any useable network (in Toronto). The separate, nice bike trails we have are veryMicheal Bluenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post-82594915706577041292010-10-20T16:31:47.832+02:002010-10-20T16:31:47.832+02:00Hi, really like the blog. I grew up in Bridgwater ...Hi, really like the blog. I grew up in Bridgwater and still live in the West Country, so I know Burnham and the surrounding area quite well. When I was younger I did quite a bit of cycling, and used public transport a lot until I was 22, when I brought a car. <br /><br />To my shame I rarely cycle these days, although my mum (now in her 70’s) still cycles to and from Bridgwater on a regular basisAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post-80821675733562912032010-10-19T16:57:10.992+02:002010-10-19T16:57:10.992+02:00@Paul Lowe - there is an RSS feed for the blog, ju...@Paul Lowe - there is an RSS feed for the blog, just point a suitable newsreader (e.g. Google Reader) at that to get your notifications (that's what RSS/Atom etc was invented for).Neilhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11443493823465136241noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post-30612168551627742712010-10-18T20:56:21.384+02:002010-10-18T20:56:21.384+02:00@Neil. The Green Party manifesto states "Cycl...@Neil. The Green Party manifesto states "Cycles are a vehicle and, as such, cycling should, wherever possible, take place on roads." That is also the view of Britain's leading cycling organisation the Cyclists Touring Club. This is the philosophy of vehicular cycling and it is a catastrophe, because it blissfully ignores the reality that most people don't want to cycle among freewheelerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16731932510033958017noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post-34254514132889881902010-10-18T14:12:48.275+02:002010-10-18T14:12:48.275+02:00HI david, great post and i try to read your blog e...HI david, great post and i try to read your blog every time i am aware it is updated. Would you consider using twitter to tell everyone you have written a new post?<br />PaulPaul Lowehttp://www.cyclinginstructor.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post-26016550631325240332010-10-18T13:30:35.632+02:002010-10-18T13:30:35.632+02:00Neil: I may sound grumpy, but I did enjoy my visit...Neil: I may sound grumpy, but I did enjoy my visit very much. <br /><br />The thing about the journey comparison is that it is just so extreme. The last bus in the correct direction leaves so early in the day as to be useless for many potential passengers, and the journey time is so extraordinarily long that it's a nearly useless service. Such problems seem not to occur here in NL. EverythingDavid Hembrowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14543024940730663645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post-46514499330900095612010-10-18T12:18:18.690+02:002010-10-18T12:18:18.690+02:00:( it does paint a pretty poor picture of the UK, ...:( it does paint a pretty poor picture of the UK, though I'm glad you managed to enjoy the visit despite that.<br /><br />Belgium beer is pretty special too. Not the same as British Ales, but very nice (in moderation!).<br /><br />On the comparison of your's vs your Mum's journey's - that isn't necessarily a good indicator. Not everywhere can be on a direct line to the place Neilhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11443493823465136241noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post-89426779294920721002010-10-18T10:34:21.516+02:002010-10-18T10:34:21.516+02:00I'm afraid Britain's cycling organisations...I'm afraid Britain's cycling organisations have to bear some of the responsibility for this dismal state of affairs. Their 'vehicular cycling' strategy has been a total failure but they continue to insist that things are getting rosier for cycling, even though even quite basic and non-controversial infrastructure like cycle parking and cycle signing is mediocre and under-funded.<freewheelerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16731932510033958017noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post-30202424910701848612010-10-18T08:54:27.186+02:002010-10-18T08:54:27.186+02:00Paul: Yes, noise pollution is taken seriously. Roa...Paul: Yes, noise pollution is taken seriously. Roads are surfaced with lower noise asphalt, and <a href="http://hembrow.blogspot.com/2008/09/for-good-neighbours-live-in-quiet-car.html" rel="nofollow">barriers are constructed</a> to keep road noise away from houses.<br /><br />There are several places within a short cycle of my home where you can hear nothing but nature unless an aircraft flies David Hembrowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14543024940730663645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post-6840473100974438792010-10-18T00:30:37.957+02:002010-10-18T00:30:37.957+02:00I just spent a week in France, and found urban cyc...I just spent a week in France, and found urban cycling facilities to be as poor and sparse as they are in much of the UK.<br /><br />In the various towns I visited, I saw little more than a few advisory cycle paths, which appeared and disappeared apparently at random, and could often be found with motor vehicles parked in them. Needless to say, utility cyclists are pretty rare too.<br /><br />At Mike Cnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post-5748449844495988072010-10-17T19:30:53.562+02:002010-10-17T19:30:53.562+02:00Reading about cycling in the UK always makes me aw...Reading about cycling in the UK always makes me aware of how good the conditions are in Germany (in general). Even if I complain very much about my local area (Berlin), I get an impression of how lucky we are here around. ... And to be honest: warm beer and the kind of/unpretentious manner of serving your lunch is not a good compensation for missing cycle infrastructure at all ;-)Michael Snoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post-4785989536226461702010-10-17T17:56:27.947+02:002010-10-17T17:56:27.947+02:00Oh how I recognise the UK you write about and how ...Oh how I recognise the UK you write about and how sad I am sometimes to live here. I feel the new government is even less likely to encourage cycling provision than the previous - all under the rather ridiculous cloak of "austerity measures" - very, very sad!<br /><br />Glad you liked the beer though. I think the Bitter's and Ale's are one of the great contributions to the widerMiddleAgeCyclisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03873996681529127207noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post-48118157768586976332010-10-17T16:56:53.626+02:002010-10-17T16:56:53.626+02:00Hi David,
I really like your Blog, I'm a Germa...Hi David,<br />I really like your Blog, I'm a German and moved to the netherlands 5 Years ago. Before that I was a real Motor-heda, everything was fine as long as it had an engine.<br />Things changed and now there are several "fietsen" in my garage... <br />Besides the actual cycling I also like to read about it and your blog is one of the finer ones about this topic.<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post-7052434824734065132010-10-17T00:55:45.326+02:002010-10-17T00:55:45.326+02:00Similar story here in Australia, sadly, particular...Similar story here in Australia, sadly, particularly during the 'school runs'.<br /><br />I was out walking the dogs this morning and it suddenly occurred to me how quiet and pleasant it was - without the cars - I'm not sure why there weren't any around this morning but I did enjoy it. I could hear the wind in the leaves and birds chirping.<br /><br />We tend to forget about the Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post-6650326541506771102010-10-16T18:30:19.187+02:002010-10-16T18:30:19.187+02:00Oh, and agreed about the weather: cold and rainy c...Oh, and agreed about the weather: cold and rainy climates actually seem conducive to cycling (not just Holland, but Oregon, Minnesota, Quebec...). It's the extremely hot and humid places like the Southeastern US that really pose challenges.BGhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15650718276049777977noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post-85866660806033014232010-10-16T18:28:17.608+02:002010-10-16T18:28:17.608+02:00Ah, well, everything is relative -- compared to th...Ah, well, everything is relative -- compared to the USA, where I live, England has rather nice public transport and at least slightly better roads for cycling. I'm sorry your mother had a slow and inconvenient bus to the airport, but even that is beyond the imagination of people here. Most airports are not served by public transport of any kind.<br /><br />I recently asked the BGhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15650718276049777977noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post-71269388757026406332010-10-16T10:57:45.842+02:002010-10-16T10:57:45.842+02:00Rohan: It's really not the weather (Britain ha...Rohan: It's really not <a href="http://hembrow.blogspot.com/2009/12/its-too-cold-to-cycle.html" rel="nofollow">the weather</a> (Britain has lower rainfall and warmer winter temperatures than NL) and it's not <a href="http://hembrow.blogspot.com/2009/10/effect-of-hills-on-cycling.html" rel="nofollow">the hills</a>. I've done all <a href="http://hembrow.blogspot.com/search/label/excusesDavid Hembrowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14543024940730663645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3102538965694240940.post-40791644374647897212010-10-16T10:30:43.077+02:002010-10-16T10:30:43.077+02:00I'd just like to say that it's not just th...I'd just like to say that it's not just the terrible provision for cyclists that stops them - there's the weather and the fact that there are some serious hills... I have cycled to work or school virtually everyday for the last 13-14 years (since I was 8), and love it as a rule. <br />However, I used to live in Devon, specifically north west Devon, where there are more hills that flatRohannoreply@blogger.com