Notes from Catherine Rowett, former Green Party MEP for East of England and deputy coordinator of the Eastern Region Green Party*(UK). Biographical reflections on life as an MEP. Longer reflections and discussions on issues relating to policy, the good life, justice, equality, anti-austerity economics and the future of the planet. This is also a forum for exchanging ideas on how to tread lightly on the planet and avoid supporting exploitation and corrupt practices. Here we go...

Thursday 26 March 2009

Things calculated to annoy a cyclist

Every road on the main cycle routes across Cambridge has been dug up this winter. In particular, the routes to get from East of the city, or North East, into the city, or to the Sidgwick site, or to the station, or to Trumpington Street/Silver Street, or to the University Library, or to anywhere any civilised person wants to go... all of them have been dug up, all at the same time.

When they dig up the road they make a large hole. Then they park their digger next to the hole. Then they park their portable toilet next to the digger, or on the other side, next to the hole. Then they fence the entire thing round, enclosing any remaining space between their hole and the pavement. Then they put up a big notice saying that the road is closed (or, in this case, a sign saying go to the left of this blockage, as though there were still a way past). The fact that it was the only cycle route for you to get to work or to the station is, of course, not their concern. While I was taking this photograph (which is a picture of the ten minute route from here to the station, in this case through Kingston Street) sixteen cyclists came by, and every one of them had to dismount (luggage, children and all) hump up onto the pavement, walk past, hump down again, climb on again, etc.
Why did they still do that? Because the next nearest way round, involving dropping down to Gwydir Street and going round by St Barnabas road instead of Devonshire road, is about twice as long and involves three sets of traffic lights, making this a twenty minute journey instead of a ten minute one.
I didn't think to get any pictures of the similar works on King Street, which were helpfully timed to be at the same time as yet another set of (still ongoing) works on Jesus Lane, so that both of the two main arteries into Cambridge for cyclists from the East were closed at the same time. It's true that Jesus Lane is not wholly closed... but it has traffic lights, which are extremely slow and add a great deal to the journey time. What is more, whereas at an earlier stage it was possible to by pass the problem on Jesus Lane by going round by King Street, now they have gratuitously moved the Jesus Lane traffic light back like this:
This is the view of it where you come out from Malcolm Street onto Jesus Lane opposite Wesley House. This used not to have a traffic light, so you could turn left at will providing no traffic were coming from the right, and you could turn right into Malcolm Street from Jesus Lane even if the traffic light, which was a bit to the right of this junction, were red. Not so now. As you can see the traffic light here is quite isolated from the road works: the works are way down the road to the right. Why stop the traffic here? Just to make life difficult for the cyclists, to prevent them from avoiding the problem by way of King Street and Malcolm Street...
Which way would you go if you couldn't do Jesus Lane and Trinity Street, or King Street and ... (well where do you go from there? It's a designated cycle route, but then you're not allowed to go through Sussex Street, for some incomprehensible reason, and the police, just to aggravate everyone further, have been having a campaign to stop the poor cyclists from going through Sussex Street, which was their last resort... but just how are you supposed to get to Green Street, which is also a designated cycle route? and just how are you supposed to get from Midsummer common to King's)
Anyway, suppose you decide instead to go by way of Emmanuel Road and Downing Street. Now, this is what greets you:
In this case they have closed not only the left side of the road (we're looking East here) but also the contra-flow bike lane on the right. They know we won't like it, and that it is a crucial cycle route, so they specially put up a notice telling us we must dismount. I realise I haven't got a picture of the offensive blockade that they've put up at the Trumpington street entrance to this route.

What exactly is the city's policy with regard to encouraging cycling? I ask in genuine bemusement.
By the way, I've never seen anyone digging in these places. You'd have thought that they could at least arrange their digger and their toilet booth in a long line while they're off duty, so that the whole blockage was made long and narrow, with room for cyclists to pass on one side. Wouldn't you?

9 comments:

Jim Jepps said...

Perhaps it's meant to be a bit of fun :)

You're meant to leap over the obstructions or swerve to and fro like a skier around various items on the obstacle course.

I mean surely they could be doing this just carelessly???

Anonymous said...

It's not really the Council's fault if the sewers in all these roads collapse at the same time ...

Catherine Rowett said...

No, but I'm sure the council have to consider how to provide for the traffic, and I'm sure they think about how they will get the cars and buses to their destinations and what is an acceptable diversion. But when it comes to cyclists they don't seem to be at all concerned. They seem not to think that it is just fine to instruct them to dismount and walk, even though with a bit of extra thought they could surely have secured a way past, or provided a temporary route through a pedestrian area etc. They never seem to ask the motorists to get out and walk.

Anonymous said...

Where would you put all the abandoned cars if the drivers were just told to "get out and walk"? (The P&R, I suppose, but the buses are so unreliable ...)

I am greatly amused by the Pembroke Street signs which manage to have "Strictly cyclists only" and "Cyclists dismount" as part of their montage of 4 signs within a few metres of each other.

Really, incompetence rather than conspiracy ... really.

Also, remember that the City Council is responsible for some of these things and the County Council (acting for the Highways Agency) is responsible for others. And that's without mentioning Anglian Water and EDF, who are (probably) the major culprits in most of these thoughtless blockages.

Philip said...

I think any utility wanting to dig up the road has to get permission from the City Council, which presumably involves discussion about alternative routes etc. The problem is that burocrats and planners think nothing of sending motor vehicles miles round (energy conservation doesn't figure in their thoughts), which wastes the drivers' time but is not tiring. Cyclists and pedestrians won't go miles round, 'cos it's tiring, so will always find a shortcut and ignore the marked diversions.
Near here in Birmingham they recently re-arranged a junction ready for the new hospital. At the moment no traffic comes from the side-road, but they've put in traffic lights. Theyve not put in a pedestrian phase: instead they've fenced the entire junction off for 50m in all directions, and put a pelican crossing in at the end of the fence, so to continue along the main road you have to walk 50m up the side-road, cross the road, and walk 50m back. So everybody walks down the outside of the fence. They've now put notices up telling pedestrians to stay inside the fence on the pavement. Everybody continues to walk outside the fence...

Anonymous said...

I don't think the Council would get very far refusing permission to a utility coming to fix a large hole that has suddenly developed in a road due to a collapse of the utility-in-question's infrastructure!

I note that another one (possibly two) such problems have developed over the weekend. I wonder whether the increased building on the flood plain near here might not be at least partially responsible.

(Sorry: as a structural engineer -- by training if not by practice -- I am more concerned by the abnormal cluster of failures of utility supply systems, and interested in what might be causing them, than in the usual sorry tale of cyclists being treated as 354th-class citizens in Cambridge!)

Catherine Rowett said...

I agree that it's a bit strange but was not sure how much it was due to sudden and unexpected collapse and how much it was due to collateral damage, or precautionary work on neighbouring parts of the system, during the "quiet" time of the year.
It was not that I supposed that the Council would refuse to have it done, as that where the road is wide enough they should leave the cycle path active, even if the road is closed to cars, that they should make the blockade long and thin not short and wide, and that a diversion route for cyclists should be worked out and signposted, one that does not add too much in time, effort or additional distance, with appropriate ramps to avoid the need to dismount and cross raised curbs.

Anonymous said...

I'm afraid, Catherine, that you are an idealist! Come and join in the arguments on cam.transport, and then you too will see the unlikelihood of the Council doing anything, given the attitudes of even the most cycle-friendly cyclist Councillors.

I agree that it's worse than I've ever known it at the moment (which is not helped by Misguided Bus "works" either -- and some of the illegal anti-cycling signs there that quickly got backpedalled on were quite amusing); however I fear that most of the works were actually urgently necessary, rather than the result of a Council trying to spend up excess money before the end of the year.

Jim Jepps said...

CEN covers your story

http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/cn%5Fnews%5Fhome/DisplayArticle.asp?ID=404850