A new advisory cycle lane on Edinburgh’s Leith Walk – the home of the now-infamous zig-zag bike lane, roundly condemned as a “disaster waiting to happen” – has become the latest piece of cycling infrastructure in the city to be on the receiving end of widespread social media mockery.

The City of Edinburgh Council’s decision to paint the astonishingly slender advisory cycle lane, right beside tram tracks at the foot of Leith Walk, has been variously condemned by local cyclists as a “death trap”, “narrower than a pair of handlebars”, and as a “unicycle lane”.

Installed on Thursday, the extremely narrow, unprotected lane forms part of the council’s Trams to Newhaven project (link is external).

The project, expected to be completed early this year, includes the creation of a controversial northbound protected bike path on Leith Walk, which has been the subject of months of criticism and ridicule for its non-linear “zig zag” layout, potential for conflict between cyclists and pedestrians, and, most recently, the installation of large planters on the pavement.

As the council announced on Friday that two-way traffic will return to Leith Walk by the end of February, with preparation for tram testing on the new lines set to begin, cyclists have been left scratching their heads at Leith Walk’s newest ‘bike lane’, dismissed by one local as the “icing on the cake”.

After pictures of the narrow lane, located at the foot of Leith Walk at the junction with Duke Street, appeared on social media, Edinburgh-based cyclist and author Alan Brown ventured up to Leith – armed with a set of handlebars – to assess the latest addition to what has been described as “Britain’s worst new street”.

“Went down for a wee look. Actually burst out laughing on the way down it was so tragic,” he wrote on Twitter. “Edinburgh has done it. They’ve made a brand-new advisory cycle lane narrower than a pair of handlebars.”

“Given that you’re meant to cycle 0.5m from the kerb, according to the Highway Code, that’s completely laughable/tragic,” Emily Williams replied.

Speaking to road.cc, Alan, who commuted on Leith Walk before the Covid-19 pandemic, was scathing in his appraisal of the council’s work on the road.

“Leith is tasty, quite Wild West… But it was doable,” he said. “Then they put in an uphill lane. It was so fragmented you were better off in the road. I tried the cycle lane but you kept running into pedestrians and it was humiliating to have to zig-zag round cars and bins.

“The downhill lane is now world-famous. A patchwork zig-zag with surrealist junctions. People wandering all over it as they would.”

Referring to the new painted lane, he continued: “This thing is the icing on the cake. That corner is one of the most intoxicated on the planet… For absolute certain somebody is going to fall off the pavement and push a rider into the tram tracks.

“It’s a death-trap. It’s the council’s cowardice in concrete form. I struggle for words to describe how insulting it is in the neighbourhood with the lowest access to cars in Scotland.

“This should be a walking and cycling place, but they put the trams through for financial reasons and abandoned all other modes to scrap it out for crumbs.

“If I was commuting to Leith again, I’d use Easter Road. Between the tram tracks and the pavement/cycle lane, Leith Walk is no longer a practical proposition for bike mobility.”

That sentiment was echoed by Euan Hamilton, who posted the original photo of the painted lane which sparked the latest Twitter furore.

“I would love to cycle round the city but without proper segregation, I won’t take the risk. I walk or get the bus everywhere,” he told Edinburgh Live (link is external).

Meanwhile, this morning cycling campaign group Spokes noted that, alongside the “very substandard bike lane”, the tramline layout remains the scheme’s most serious problem.

In September, we reported that over £1.2m had been paid out to cyclists who were injured after falling from their bikes on Edinburgh’s tram lines during the last ten years.

Since the tracks were installed in 2012, there have been 422 incidents involving cyclists on the tram lines, with the majority occurring on Princes Street and around Haymarket.

“We highlighted the narrow kerb-tramline width early on but Trams to Newhaven insisted that the tramline must be there and the footway couldn’t be reduced,” the group tweeted.

“We know of one extremely serious injury tramline crash at Haymarket Yards, where, like here, tramline is close to kerb.

“A walker stepped out without looking, cyclist went into the tramlines to avoid hitting them and suffered severe injury.”

A spokesperson for the City of Edinburgh Council responded to the complaints by stressing that the design of the bike lane has not yet been finalised.

“The whole cycleway remains closed as it is under construction and there are also ongoing works around this junction – this is not the final layout for the cycleway,” the spokesperson said.

The council’s response – urging patience before the project has been completed – has proved a common one over the last ten months.

In April, as images first emerged of Leith Walk’s new protected bike path, it quickly gained notoriety for its “moronic” zig-zag layout and sharp bends around obstacles.

Locals also shared images online of lampposts situated right in the middle of the path, despite the bends, while others criticised the poorly-placed utility covers and lack of space afforded to pedestrians.

And this week, locals criticised the decision to install large planters on the pavement, further reducing the space for pedestrians and cyclists, as “bizarre” and “dangerous”.

In December, an Edinburgh pensioner, who suffered a suspected broken rib and other minor injuries after hitting a shallow kerb on the side of the new infrastructure, warned that the crooked bike lane is a “disaster waiting to happen”.

The city’s council responded to 69-year-old’s John’s complaint by noting that the lane is currently closed, with barriers and signage in place notifying the public, and will not be complete until early this year – though the pensioner claimed that it won’t be any safer when it’s officially open and that the “terrible design” could cause someone to be seriously injured.

Last month, Edinburgh local Lauren tweeted a photo of several people queuing across the cycle lane as they waited for a bus, with the caption: “Spot the problem with this section of Leith Walk cycle path”.

“A dedicated cycle path is a positive development as many people, including me, aren’t confident cycling in traffic,” Lauren said.

“Unfortunately, the Leith Walk cycle lane design reduces pedestrian space and puts cyclists and pedestrians into conflict. It’s common to see people walking in the bike lane without realising.”

Edinburgh City Council’s transport and environment convenor Scott Arthur says he recognises the “genuine concerns” of residents concerning the much-criticised layout, and will monitor the situation when the lane is fully open.

“The current layout on Leith Walk complies with the Edinburgh Street Design Guidance (ESDG), which recognises that flexibility is required to accommodate a variety of modes in the design of existing streets,” Arthur said.

“The Council’s project team worked hard to engage closely with the public from the project’s inception, and the design was developed in close consultation with the community and stakeholders during 2018 to allow residents, businesses, pedestrians, and cyclists to co-exist with buses and trams.

“The cycle lane is currently closed, with diversions in place. However, I do acknowledge that there are genuine concerns regarding this scheme and I will ensure it is closely monitored once it is fully open to the public.”

https://road.cc/content/news/cyclists-blast-new-cycle-lane-narrower-handlebars-299085

On Sunday, 5 February 2023 at 14:40:22 UTC, swldx...@gmail.com wrote:
> A new advisory cycle lane on Edinburgh’s Leith Walk – the home of the now-infamous zig-zag bike lane, roundly condemned as a “disaster waiting to happen” – has become the latest piece of cycling infrastructure in the city to be on the receiving end of widespread social media mockery.
>
> The City of Edinburgh Council’s decision to paint the astonishingly slender advisory cycle lane, right beside tram tracks at the foot of Leith Walk, has been variously condemned by local cyclists as a “death trap”, “narrower than a pair of handlebars”, and as a “unicycle lane”.
>
> Installed on Thursday, the extremely narrow, unprotected lane forms part of the council’s Trams to Newhaven project (link is external).
>
> The project, expected to be completed early this year, includes the creation of a controversial northbound protected bike path on Leith Walk, which has been the subject of months of criticism and ridicule for its non-linear “zig zag” layout, potential for conflict between cyclists and pedestrians, and, most recently, the installation of large planters on the pavement.
>
> As the council announced on Friday that two-way traffic will return to Leith Walk by the end of February, with preparation for tram testing on the new lines set to begin, cyclists have been left scratching their heads at Leith Walk’s newest ‘bike lane’, dismissed by one local as the “icing on the cake”.
>
> After pictures of the narrow lane, located at the foot of Leith Walk at the junction with Duke Street, appeared on social media, Edinburgh-based cyclist and author Alan Brown ventured up to Leith – armed with a set of handlebars – to assess the latest addition to what has been described as “Britain’s worst new street”.
>
> “Went down for a wee look. Actually burst out laughing on the way down it was so tragic,” he wrote on Twitter. “Edinburgh has done it. They’ve made a brand-new advisory cycle lane narrower than a pair of handlebars.”
>
> “Given that you’re meant to cycle 0.5m from the kerb, according to the Highway Code, that’s completely laughable/tragic,” Emily Williams replied.
>
> Speaking to road.cc, Alan, who commuted on Leith Walk before the Covid-19 pandemic, was scathing in his appraisal of the council’s work on the road.
>
> “Leith is tasty, quite Wild West… But it was doable,” he said. “Then they put in an uphill lane. It was so fragmented you were better off in the road. I tried the cycle lane but you kept running into pedestrians and it was humiliating to have to zig-zag round cars and bins.
>
> “The downhill lane is now world-famous. A patchwork zig-zag with surrealist junctions. People wandering all over it as they would.”
>
> Referring to the new painted lane, he continued: “This thing is the icing on the cake. That corner is one of the most intoxicated on the planet… For absolute certain somebody is going to fall off the pavement and push a rider into the tram tracks.
>
> “It’s a death-trap. It’s the council’s cowardice in concrete form. I struggle for words to describe how insulting it is in the neighbourhood with the lowest access to cars in Scotland.
>
> “This should be a walking and cycling place, but they put the trams through for financial reasons and abandoned all other modes to scrap it out for crumbs.
>
> “If I was commuting to Leith again, I’d use Easter Road. Between the tram tracks and the pavement/cycle lane, Leith Walk is no longer a practical proposition for bike mobility.”
>
> That sentiment was echoed by Euan Hamilton, who posted the original photo of the painted lane which sparked the latest Twitter furore.
>
> “I would love to cycle round the city but without proper segregation, I won’t take the risk. I walk or get the bus everywhere,” he told Edinburgh Live (link is external).
>
> Meanwhile, this morning cycling campaign group Spokes noted that, alongside the “very substandard bike lane”, the tramline layout remains the scheme’s most serious problem.
>
> In September, we reported that over £1.2m had been paid out to cyclists who were injured after falling from their bikes on Edinburgh’s tram lines during the last ten years.
>
> Since the tracks were installed in 2012, there have been 422 incidents involving cyclists on the tram lines, with the majority occurring on Princes Street and around Haymarket.
>
> “We highlighted the narrow kerb-tramline width early on but Trams to Newhaven insisted that the tramline must be there and the footway couldn’t be reduced,” the group tweeted.
>
> “We know of one extremely serious injury tramline crash at Haymarket Yards, where, like here, tramline is close to kerb.
>
> “A walker stepped out without looking, cyclist went into the tramlines to avoid hitting them and suffered severe injury.”
>
> A spokesperson for the City of Edinburgh Council responded to the complaints by stressing that the design of the bike lane has not yet been finalised.
>
> “The whole cycleway remains closed as it is under construction and there are also ongoing works around this junction – this is not the final layout for the cycleway,” the spokesperson said.
>
> The council’s response – urging patience before the project has been completed – has proved a common one over the last ten months.
>
> In April, as images first emerged of Leith Walk’s new protected bike path, it quickly gained notoriety for its “moronic” zig-zag layout and sharp bends around obstacles.
>
> Locals also shared images online of lampposts situated right in the middle of the path, despite the bends, while others criticised the poorly-placed utility covers and lack of space afforded to pedestrians.
>
> And this week, locals criticised the decision to install large planters on the pavement, further reducing the space for pedestrians and cyclists, as “bizarre” and “dangerous”.
>
> In December, an Edinburgh pensioner, who suffered a suspected broken rib and other minor injuries after hitting a shallow kerb on the side of the new infrastructure, warned that the crooked bike lane is a “disaster waiting to happen”.
>
> The city’s council responded to 69-year-old’s John’s complaint by noting that the lane is currently closed, with barriers and signage in place notifying the public, and will not be complete until early this year – though the pensioner claimed that it won’t be any safer when it’s officially open and that the “terrible design” could cause someone to be seriously injured.
>
> Last month, Edinburgh local Lauren tweeted a photo of several people queuing across the cycle lane as they waited for a bus, with the caption: “Spot the problem with this section of Leith Walk cycle path”.
>
> “A dedicated cycle path is a positive development as many people, including me, aren’t confident cycling in traffic,” Lauren said.
>
> “Unfortunately, the Leith Walk cycle lane design reduces pedestrian space and puts cyclists and pedestrians into conflict. It’s common to see people walking in the bike lane without realising.”
>
> Edinburgh City Council’s transport and environment convenor Scott Arthur says he recognises the “genuine concerns” of residents concerning the much-criticised layout, and will monitor the situation when the lane is fully open.
>
> “The current layout on Leith Walk complies with the Edinburgh Street Design Guidance (ESDG), which recognises that flexibility is required to accommodate a variety of modes in the design of existing streets,” Arthur said.
>
> “The Council’s project team worked hard to engage closely with the public from the project’s inception, and the design was developed in close consultation with the community and stakeholders during 2018 to allow residents, businesses, pedestrians, and cyclists to co-exist with buses and trams.
>
> “The cycle lane is currently closed, with diversions in place. However, I do acknowledge that there are genuine concerns regarding this scheme and I will ensure it is closely monitored once it is fully open to the public.”
>
> https://road.cc/content/news/cyclists-blast-new-cycle-lane-narrower-handlebars-299085

Nugents will tell us Leith Walk means only pedestrians can use it.

On 05/02/2023 02:40 pm, swldx...@gmail.com wrote:

> A new advisory fairy-cycle lane on Edinburgh’s Leith Walk

"Walk", you say?

> – the home of the now-infamous zig-zag fairy-bike lane, roundly condemned as a “disaster waiting to happen” – has become the latest piece of fairy-cycling infrastructure in the city to be on the receiving end of widespread social media mockery.

As it all ought to be.
>
> The City of Edinburgh Council’s decision to paint the astonishingly slender advisory fairy-cycle lane, right beside tram tracks at the foot of Leith Walk, has been variously condemned by local fairy-cyclists as a “death trap”, “narrower than a pair of handlebars”, and as a “fairy-unicycle lane”.
> Installed on Thursday, the extremely narrow, unprotected lane forms part of the council’s Trams to Newhaven project (link is external).
> The project, expected to be completed early this year, includes the creation of a controversial northbound protected fairy-bike path on Leith Walk, which has been the subject of months of criticism and ridicule for its non-linear “zig zag” layout, potential for conflict between fairy-cyclists and pedestrians, and, most recently, the installation of large planters on the pavement.
> As the council announced on Friday that two-way traffic will return to Leith Walk by the end of February, with preparation for tram testing on the new lines set to begin, fairy-cyclists have been left scratching their heads at Leith Walk’s newest ‘fairy-bike lane’, dismissed by one local as the “icing on the cake”.
> After pictures of the narrow lane, located at the foot of Leith Walk at the junction with Duke Street, appeared on social media, Edinburgh-based fairy-cyclist and author Alan Brown ventured up to Leith – armed with a set of handlebars – to assess the latest addition to what has been described as “Britain’s worst new street”.
> “Went down for a wee look.

Fairy-cyclists often go for slightly more than that in public places -
especially village greens as I understand it.

> Actually burst out laughing on the way down it was so tragic,” he wrote on Twitter. “Edinburgh has done it. They’ve made a brand-new advisory fairy-cycle lane narrower than a pair of handlebars.”
> “Given that you’re meant to fairy-cycle 0.5m from the kerb, according to the Highway Code, that’s completely laughable/tragic,” Emily Williams replied.
> Speaking to road.cc,

:-)

> Alan, who commuted on Leith Walk before the Covid-19 pandemic, was scathing in his appraisal of the council’s work on the road.
> “Leith is tasty, quite Wild West… But it was doable,” he said. “Then they put in an uphill lane. It was so fragmented you were better off in the road. I tried the fairy-cycle lane but you kept running into pedestrians and it was humiliating to have to zig-zag round cars and bins.

"I tried the fairy-cycle lane but you kept running into pedestrians..."

That says all you need to know about fairy-cyclists and about local
council highway department staff.
>
> “The downhill lane is now world-famous. A patchwork zig-zag with surrealist junctions. People wandering all over it as they would.”
> Referring to the new painted lane, he continued: “This thing is the icing on the cake. That corner is one of the most intoxicated on the planet… For absolute certain somebody is going to fall off the pavement and push a rider into the tram tracks.
> “It’s a death-trap. It’s the council’s cowardice in concrete form. I struggle for words to describe how insulting it is in the neighbourhood with the lowest access to cars in Scotland.

Roads are about rather more than the many neighbourhoods near which they
pass.

> “This should be a walking and I fairy-cycling place,?

WHY?

What do your dodgy social statistics have to do with roads?

If Mason's near neighbours don't have many cars between them, does that
mean that he isn't allowed to drive from 'Ull to London? Especially
since the M11 and A12 pass through some of the less affluent parts of
the capital?

> but they put the trams through for financial reasons and abandoned all other modes to scrap it out for crumbs.

I agree. Let the fairy-cyclists fairy-cycle along the tram tracks. They
always used to enjoy riding with their wheels stuck in the tracks. How
they laughed.
>
> “If I was commuting to Leith again, I’d use Easter Road. Between the tram tracks and the pavement/fairy-cycle lane, Leith Walk is no longer a practical proposition for fairy-bike mobility.”
>
> That sentiment was echoed by Euan Hamilton, who posted the original photo of the painted lane which sparked the latest Twitter furore.
> “I would love to fairy-cycle round the city but without proper segregation, I won’t take the risk. I walk or get the bus everywhere,” he told Edinburgh Live (link is external).
> Meanwhile, this morning fairy-cycling campaign group Spokes noted that, alongside the “very substandard fairy-bike lane”, the tramline layout remains the scheme’s most serious problem.
> In September, we reported that over £1.2m had been paid out to fairy-cyclists who were injured after falling from their fairy-bikes on Edinburgh’s tram lines during the last ten years.

That's what happens with tram lines. It always was what happened with
tram-lines. Most of us can still remember the tram-lines being in place
decades after trams ceased operations.
>
> Since the tracks were installed in 2012, there have been 422 incidents involving fairy-cyclists on the tram lines,

Have they (fairy-cyclists) never learned *anything*?

> with the majority occurring on Princes Street and around Haymarket.
> “We highlighted the narrow kerb-tramline width early on but Trams to Newhaven insisted that the tramline must be there and the footway couldn’t be reduced,” the group tweeted.
> “We know of one extremely serious injury tramline crash at Haymarket Yards, where, like here, tramline is close to kerb.
> “A walker stepped out without looking, cyclist went into the tramlines to avoid hitting them and suffered severe injury.”
> A spokesperson for the City of Edinburgh Council responded to the complaints by stressing that the design of the fairy-bike lane has not yet been finalised.
> “The whole fairy-cycleway remains closed as it is under construction and there are also ongoing works around this junction – this is not the final layout for the fairy-cycleway,” the spokesperson said.
> The council’s response – urging patience before the project has been completed – has proved a common one over the last ten months.
> In April, as images first emerged of Leith Walk’s new protected fairy-bike path, it quickly gained notoriety for its “moronic” zig-zag layout and sharp bends around obstacles.

That must be a problem for many fairy-cyclists. They don't like having
to look where they're going. Or having to slow down.

> Locals also shared images online of lampposts situated right in the middle of the path, despite the bends, while others criticised the poorly-placed utility covers and lack of space afforded to pedestrians.

That's a bit more like it. Especially in a thoroughfare called Leith *Walk*.

> And this week, locals criticised the decision to install large planters on the pavement, further reducing the space for pedestrians and fairy-cyclists, as “bizarre” and “dangerous”.
> In December, an Edinburgh pensioner, who suffered a suspected broken rib and other minor injuries after hitting a shallow kerb on the side of the new infrastructure, warned that the crooked fairy-bike lane is a “disaster waiting to happen”.

There was a crooked man, who fairy-cycled a cooked mile...
>
> The city’s council responded to 69-year-old’s John’s complaint by noting that the lane is currently closed, with barriers and signage in place notifying the public, and will not be complete until early this year – though the pensioner claimed that it won’t be any safer when it’s officially open and that the “terrible design” could cause someone to be seriously injured.
> Last month, Edinburgh local Lauren tweeted a photo of several people queuing across the fairy-cycle lane as they waited for a bus, with the caption: “Spot the problem with this section of Leith Walk fairy-cycle path”.
> “A dedicated fairy-cycle path is a positive development as many people, including me, aren’t confident fairy-cycling in traffic,” Lauren said.
> “Unfortunately, the Leith Walk fairy-cycle lane design reduces pedestrian space and puts fairy-cyclists and pedestrians into conflict. It’s common to see people walking in the bike lane without realising.”

Fancy thinking the footway is for pedestrians, eh?
>
> Edinburgh City Council’s transport and environment convenor Scott Arthur says he recognises the “genuine concerns” of residents concerning the much-criticised layout, and will monitor the situation when the lane is fully open.
> “The current layout on Leith Walk complies with the Edinburgh Street Design Guidance (ESDG), which recognises that flexibility is required to accommodate a variety of modes in the design of existing streets,” Arthur said.
> “The Council’s project team worked hard to engage closely with the public from the project’s inception, and the design was developed in close consultation with the community and stakeholders during 2018 to allow residents, businesses, pedestrians, and fairy-cyclists to co-exist with buses and trams.
> “The fairy-cycle lane is currently closed, with diversions in place. However, I do acknowledge that there are genuine concerns regarding this scheme and I will ensure it is closely monitored once it is fully open to the public.”
>
> https://road.cc/content/news/cyclists-blast-new-cycle-lane-narrower-handlebars-299085

IanMSpencer | 1650 posts | 1 hour ago
1 like

The trouble with a bike lane on the pavement like that is that they hae placed it on walking desire lines - a pedestrian will not zig-zag to fit the path layout. The other problem is that pedestrians aren't really engaged in coping with cyclists, so they get irritated as their first response. A good few will be deliberately obstructive, however polite, and the real militants will throw a bit of half-read highway code at you as an excuse. See also dogs off leads or on long leads near cycleways.

On 05/02/2023 04:45 pm, swldx...@gmail.com wrote:

> IanMSpencer | 1650 posts | 1 hour ago

> The trouble with a fully-qualified fairy-bike lane on the pavement like that is that they hae placed it on walking desire lines - a pedestrian will not zig-zag to fit the path layout. The other problem is that pedestrians aren't really engaged in coping with fairy-cyclists [on *foot*ways], so they get irritated as their first response. A good few will be deliberately obstructive, however polite, and the real militants will throw a bit of half-read highway code at you as an excuse. See also dogs off leads or on long leads near cycleways.

Oi! Fairy-Cyclists!

Yes, You!

Stay OFF the footway!

There's a clue in the name of it.

Edinburgh City Council’s transport and environment convenor Scott Arthur says he recognises the “genuine concerns” of residents concerning the much-criticised layout, and will monitor the situation when the lane is fully open.

So after sufficient people have been injured and died, they'll rip it all out and start again; not the most common or sensible approach to safe road infrastructure.

“The current layout on Leith Walk complies with the Edinburgh Street Design Guidance......"

Then there is something very wrong with the Edinburgh Street Design Guidance, and one has to ask if it meets any design guidance of any authoritative body.

IanMSpencer replied to eburtthebike | 1650 posts | 2 hours ago
2 likes

Grenfell complied with building guidance apparently. Doesn't make it right. Of course, the key word is guidance - be interesting to know what their overriding objectives are, regardless of pedantic, face-saving interpretation..

On Sunday, 5 February 2023 at 17:10:23 UTC, JNugent wrote:
> On 05/02/2023 04:45 pm, swldx...@gmail.com wrote:
>
> > IanMSpencer | 1650 posts | 1 hour ago
> > The trouble with a fully-qualified fairy-bike lane on the pavement like that is that they hae placed it on walking desire lines - a pedestrian will not zig-zag to fit the path layout. The other problem is that pedestrians aren't really engaged in coping with fairy-cyclists [on *foot*ways], so they get irritated as their first response. A good few will be deliberately obstructive, however polite, and the real militants will throw a bit of half-read highway code at you as an excuse. See also dogs off leads or on long leads near cycleways.
>
> Oi! Fairy-Cyclists!
>
> Yes, You!
>
> Stay OFF the footway!
>
> There's a clue in the name of it.

Oi! Peasant!
Yes, You!
Stay off Laird Street in Birkenhead!
There's a clue in the name of it.