A cyclist says the bike lane along Bristol's Park Row is "completely pointless" as drivers keep parking there and blocking it. Phil Sturgeon has taken video clips of vehicles and vans parked in the cycle lane with their hazard lights on, prompting a large response from others who agree it's a daily issue.

Improvements are already planned for the cycle lane, which was initially introduced as a temporary measure in 2020 but is due to be made permanent. Bristol City Council has said that builders will begin work at the end of this year, as part of two major walking and cycling upgrades.

Posting on Twitter last week, Mr Sturgeon said that drivers currently ignore the signs indicating that no parking, waiting or loading is allowed. The cyclist, who lives in the area, said: “This happens all day, every day and evening and in the middle of the night.

"These drivers park and go for coffee, leaving their hazards on, or the vans are loading. It’s very dangerous for cyclists having to drive around them.” He raised concerns about enforcement of bike lanes and said drivers also sometimes drive over the bollards.

He added: “I have conversations with everyone who stops. But people don’t care.” Other cyclists responded reporting similar issues, saying they regularly find the route to be blocked by parked vehicles..

Ian Pond, chairperson of Bristol Cycling Campaign, welcomed the improvements planned for the route but said he has been told the works "won’t be finished before February 2024". He said: “The cycling provision on Park Row, originally installed as part of the COVID measures in 2020, is poor quality, intermittent and urgently needs to be improved.

"It’s good to see that there is an approved, high-quality and comprehensive plan to dramatically enhance the cycling and walking domain along this road. We all look forward to its completion."

The city council has three construction projects in the pipeline on walking and cycling upgrades around the city. These are joining the 'missing links' between the end of Bath Railway Path through the Old Market to Castle Park and Baldwin Street, a pedestrian scheme in Cotham Hill and the upgrades to make the bike lane on Park Row permanent.

Builders were scheduled to start work at the end of this year, according to a council update in January. At the time, head of city transport Adam Crowther said: “I cycled up and down Park Row a lot when it first went in, checking on the traffic, it was great.

"It’s a little bit tired now, it has been parked all over, and those little plastic bollards can work — but they need to work in the right environment. This scheme will put hard starts and finishes to a lot of those cycle lanes, so it feels more like a cycle lane rather than someone’s just put a cone in the middle of the road that you can drive over if you want to.

"The traffic signals will be replaced, the bus stops will be upgraded, and there’ll be better pavements. It’s a big scheme, really ambitious, and it’ll be impressive when we get to a finalised permanent scheme."

https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/bristol-cyclist-fed-up-pointless-8247122

On 14/03/2023 05:18 am, swldx...@gmail.com wrote:

> A fairy-cyclist says the bike lane along Bristol's Park Row is "completely pointless" as drivers keep parking there and blocking it. Phil Sturgeon has taken video clips of vehicles and vans parked in the fairy-cycle lane with their hazard lights on, prompting a large response from others who agree it's a daily issue.
>
> Improvements are already planned for the fairy-cycle lane, which was initially introduced as a temporary measure in 2020 but is due to be made permanent. Bristol City Council has said that builders will begin work at the end of this year, as part of two major walking and fairy-cycling upgrades.
>
> Posting on Twitter last week, Mr Sturgeon said that drivers currently ignore the signs indicating that no parking, waiting or loading is allowed.

Not even for undertakers collecting and delivering corpses?

> The fairy-cyclist, who lives in the area, said: “This happens all day, every day and evening and in the middle of the night.
>
> "These drivers park and go for coffee, leaving their hazards on, or the vans are loading. It’s very dangerous for fairy-cyclists having to drive around them.”

Why?

> He raised concerns about enforcement of fairy-bike lanes and said drivers also sometimes drive over the bollards.
> He added: “I have conversations with everyone who stops. But people don’t care.”

That's right.

No-one cares.

Well, no-one with the slightest amount of common sense and a sense of
proportion.

And most people dislike fairy-cyclists, especially the ones who "think"
that their fairy-cycle or Lycra outfit is a badge of law-enforcement office.

> Other fairy-cyclists responded reporting similar issues, saying they regularly find the route to be blocked by parked vehicles.

"Blocked"?

No way around the stationary vehicles at all?

> Ian Pond, chairperson of Bristol Fairy Cycling Campaign, welcomed the improvements planned for the route but said he has been told the works "won’t be finished before February 2024". He said: “The fairy-cycling provision on Park Row, originally installed as part of the COVID measures in 2020, is poor quality, intermittent and urgently needs to be improved.
> "It’s good to see that there is an approved, high-quality and comprehensive plan to dramatically enhance the fairy-cycling and walking domain along this road. We all look forward to its completion."

"the fairy-cycling and walking domain"?

Is he for real? Does he not understand how pretentious he sounds?

And what would he say if normal people (pedestrians) started to walk in
the so-called fairy-cycle lane?

> The city council has three construction projects in the pipeline on walking and fairy-cycling upgrades around the city. These are joining the 'missing links' between the end of Bath Railway Path through the Old Market to Castle Park and Baldwin Street, a pedestrian scheme in Cotham Hill and the upgrades to make the bike lane on Park Row permanent.
> Builders were scheduled to start work at the end of this year, according to a council update in January. At the time, head of city transport Adam Crowther said: “I fairy-cycled up and down Park Row a lot when it first went in, checking on the traffic, it was great.
> "It’s a little bit tired now, it has been parked all over, and those little plastic bollards can work — but they need to work in the right environment. This scheme will put hard starts and finishes to a lot of those fairy-cycle lanes, so it feels more like a fairy-cycle lane rather than someone’s just put a cone in the middle of the road that you can drive over if you want to.
> "The traffic signals will be replaced, the bus stops will be upgraded, and there’ll be better pavements. It’s a big scheme, really ambitious, and it’ll be impressive when we get to a finalised permanent scheme."
>
> https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/bristol-cyclist-fed-up-pointless-8247122

Is the fairy-cyclist's peevish and childish complaint about people
parking on a so-called fairy-cycle lane?

Or about people parking on a stretch of road that has not had a
fairy-cycle lane imposed upon it?

Parked cars in cycle lanes, nothing new. I've encountered them often. On cattle Market road, shortly after the wide cycle lane & pavement opened, a guy fishing parked his car in the exact centre of the cycle lane, despot there being about 3m to one side. Right dead in the middle just to make a stupid 'point'. At the same location on my morning commute, I came face to face with a stupid HGV driver who mounted the cycle lane in front of me to make a phone call, causing people to scatter. Not a good idea with your firms logo on the side. His manager got an unexpected ranty phone call about 15 mins later.

swldx...@gmail.com <swldxer1958@gmail.com> wrote:
> Parked cars in cycle lanes, nothing new. I've encountered them often. On
> cattle Market road, shortly after the wide cycle lane & pavement opened,
> a guy fishing parked his car in the exact centre of the cycle lane,
> despot there being about 3m to one side. Right dead in the middle just to
> make a stupid 'point'. At the same location on my morning commute, I came
> face to face with a stupid HGV driver who mounted the cycle lane in front
> of me to make a phone call, causing people to scatter. Not a good idea
> with your firms logo on the side. His manager got an unexpected ranty
> phone call about 15 mins later.

I’d have to say that this boring, repetitive bleating stuff about car
parking is, nonetheless, a great relief from the boring, repetitive
bleating stuff about fly-tipping.

--
Spike

There's regularly heavy traffic around Coronation Road, Bedminster Bridge, Redcliffe Hill.

Zero cycle lanes etc.

So, what's this all about?

I'll let you in to a seemgly little known fact...

It is too many people in their own personal metal boxes, all clogging up the roads.

swldx...@gmail.com <swldxer1958@gmail.com> wrote:
> There's regularly heavy traffic around Coronation Road, Bedminster Bridge, Redcliffe Hill.
>
> Zero cycle lanes etc.
>
> So, what's this all about?
>
> I'll let you in to a seemgly little known fact...

> It is too many people in their own personal metal boxes, all clogging up the roads.

And by what authority do you claim there are too many people?

You should be careful what you wish for, if Ukraine goes nuclear, you just
might get your wish.

You might find the roads a lot less congested, but cycling in full
radiation gear won’t be fun.

--
Spike

People keep saying that these cycle lanes have killed off a business. *Which* business? I hadn't noticed any closing down along there?

10 hrs ago

Edit: the flower shop closed, further along toward St Michael's Hill, but that never had parking anyway.