http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-37242352

Obviously preaching to the converted here but segregated lanes, better standards of driving or both?

I’m not a fan of segregated lanes as they enforce the misconception that roads are just for motorised vehicles. They do have their place but need to be properly thought out and have priority where they cross other lanes, junctions.

5% of transport budget to be spent on cycling – so what get’s cut. Road repairs ?

Segregated lanes properly constructed are a good idea and where they exist it should be compulsory to use them

where they exist it should be compulsory to use them

That would be terrible. Lets hope it never happens.

Totally agree. Utterly ridiculous idea which only further reinforces the “roads are for motor vehicles” mindset. Motorways should be compulsory too.

Segregated lanes properly constructed are a good idea and where they exist it should be compulsory to use them

What nickjb said. I’ve ridden in too many segregated lanes full of pebbles, broken glass, rubbish etc that never get cleaned by road sweepers or have too many other risks like pedestrians walking in them.

Cycle lanes in the gutter separated from the rest of the carriageway by a line of paint should be done away with. Proper cycle routes where appropriate (which probably means urban areas). I think that’s the only way to get Joe Public using bikes as a mode of transport rather them being seen as some sport/training/commuting hybrid. More people out cycling to work, shop etc. in civvies as opposed to Lycra.

Totally disagree with compulsory use though. In fact if you want to go arse up head down a segregated cycle route full of mum’s and kids (my Utopian view there) is probably the wrong place to be.

Oh I also have a pipedream that towns should be connected by offroad cycleways.

Utterly ridiculous idea

Not entirely, there are compulsory bike lanes in Holland (and also lots that aren’t). On my old commute to work it would have made some sense to ride on the road for a mile or so because it was shorter, the cycle path took a more scenic but considerably longer route. The cycle path was compulsory though which meant that everyone used that instead of mixing it with the cars and lorries.

I would agree that the infrastructure needs to be fit for purpose and properly maintained for it to be an acceptable alternative to the road though. On my current commute I have the chance to ride on a segregated path but it is littered with broken glass and potholes so I miss out the worst sections and ride on the road.

“Segregated lanes properly constructed are a good idea and where they exist it should be compulsory to use them”

Utterly ridiculous idea, for the reasons already stated.

What we should be doing is the opposite; working on solutions for properly integrated transport systems. To achieve this though, we need people to change their attitudes towards cyclists. The Jeremy Vine video highlights this perfectly; many drivers simply believe they are superior and have more ‘right’ to be on a road. Drivers have to be made to understand that driving a motor vehicle is a privilege, not a right. Maybe introducing cycle proficiency/awareness into driving education and tests might help.

Drivers have to be made to understand that driving a motor vehicle is a privilege, not a right

and sentencing needs to change to help that. i.e. anyone that does wrong when driving and gets banned from driving should be banned for life, not juts a year or two. As you say, it is not a human right.

I really think with around 50% of drivers they are too stupid to be driving or just don’t care and very difficult to change that.

I wish Southampton City Council would at least upkeep what we already have!

The kerbside filter demarkation near the Hill lane / Milton Road junction (towards city centre) has now almost completely gone, to the point where many cars prevent bikes from travelling along it when the lights at the junction are red.

During the revamp of Northam Bridge, I swear a number of blue signs along the pavement, indicating shared pedestrian/bike use of the wide pavements, were covered over by the fresh tarmac.

There are numerous problems on the short bike lane that goes across Bitterne precinct, on Angel Cresent. Cars often park on the lane on the Woolston side, Sainsburys often have too many trolleys parked up blocking the Bitterne village side, while pedestrians are often oblivious to this long established bike route due to the warning signs not facing the right way!

Nationally, we should never have ended up in this mess, there should have been much better planning.

But having said that, going on recent well publicised cases (eg. the lad with rear video camera who had a car go into the rear of his bike, hire car windows dark and did not stop, couple who hired car would not state who was driving), the punishments being handed out to drivers who are a danger to cyclists are pathetic.

If cycle lanes are any good then there won’t be a need for compulsion.

Fair play to Chris Boardman and BC for seizing the opportunity to put the government on the spot.

I’m not convinced we’ll ever get proper infrastructure in the UK. The Dutch have been building for 40 years; we haven’t even agreed to start. I think existing roads with driverless cars may be the future of UK cycling.

Remember that the Dutch were in this same position forty years ago so it can be done, it just needs political will.

It’s not just bike lanes or better driving standards, having somewhere convenient to lock your bike when going shopping for example is low cost and relatively easily done. Go somewhere like Ghent and there are bike racks/hoops on every street corner so riders don’t have to leave their bike 400 metres away in some dark corner of a car park.

If cycle lanes are any good then there won’t be a need for compulsion.

This +1, you only have to travel on the truly motor vehicle free routes round here to see what demand there is for them & just a little bit more joined up thinking would make them so much more useful for commuting etc rather than relegating them to the leisure only users.

Fair play to the Olympians for bringing the issue to the forefront though.

Remember that the Dutch were in this same position forty years ago

Which is interesting since we now consider them one of the main cycling nations. It does surprise me a bit though since I used to visit Germany over 40 years ago and there were proper segregated cycle routes all over the show. I used to think it was just Britain that was backward.

we need people to change their attitudes towards cyclists

..and their attitude towards cycling. It shouldn’t just be about dressing up in lycra and hammering around covered in sweat. It ought to be a normal mode of transport for everyday folk to go about their business – with infrastructure to suit.

The dutch invested in cycling after a high number of child road deaths at the same time as an oil crisis

So they were in exactly the same position as the UK, but made a very different choice as a society, and have actually been doing the heavy lifting to make things work for 40 years. If you look at even the best of UK infrastructure in comparison, it’s tinkering.

I think existing roads with driverless cars may be the future of UK cycling.

Wrong for all the reasons that Carlton Reid writes about here:
http://www.bikebiz.com/news/read/makers-of-driverless-cars-want-cyclists-and-pedestrians-off-the-roads/018934

Besides, the uptake of electric vehicles has been so slow as to be almost non-existant, driverless cars will be the same. When they are finally introduced, the only logical place for them initially (until peopole get used to the idea of them) is a segregated lane on motorways with a higher speed limit specially for driverless cars. In the meantime, while drivers can pretty much speed and jump red lights with impuntiy, the last thing they’ll want is a car that won’t do that for them!

While the historical layout of our cities is often cited as the reason that segregated cycle routes are difficult to build a more holistic view needs to be taken, especially one that doesn’t broadcast a cycling message but talks instead about improving the life of the residents, because this will make it seem more in the communities interest. For example when I lived in Finsbury Park in the 90s a number of residential roads that were being used as rat runs had gates installed either at one end or half way along their length, overnight emptying the roads of traffic and making them far more pleasant to live on (both cleaner and quieter) as well as nice to ride (you even saw that halcyon image that people hark back to of kids playing ball games in the street).
The second issue is how to overcome the petty bureaucracy and blame culture that exists within the various layers of local and central government. For example, here in Brighton and Hove which proudly boasts of being a cycling city and the gateway to the south downs, with lots of policies regarding both cycling and encouraging use of the downs, two of the main roads leading to the downs – Dyke Rd and Ditchling Rd have attempts at cycle paths (mainly gutter but Ditchling does have a very impressive segregated path for about a mile and a half) both of which stop the moment that they reach busy junctions. When I asked someone from the B&H roads department as to why this was the case, I got a firm a finger of blame pointing to Highways England who he claimed have a final say at both intersections because they impact the A27 trunk road and they will not sign off anything that might impede traffic leaving this road. Apparently cyclists making a dash for it is preferable to a proper solution. Until this mentality is addressed, the current daft cycle paths will continue to exist

Wrong for all the reasons that Carlton Reid writes about here:

Carlton Reid describes some problems with current implementations of early driverless technology. I don’t see him explaining why those can’t be overcome as technology improves. As for adoption, I don’t think that will depend on people deciding they fancy a driverless car. Driverless cars will be so much safer than manual driving that the insurance costs will simply price manual drivers off the road. There are also lots of other reasons why smart, networked driverless vehicles can be cheaper to use.

I think general adoption of driverless cars which don’t run down cyclists is a lot more likely than the UK engineering universal cycling infrastructure that is fit for purpose.

Segregated lanes properly constructed are a good idea and where they exist it should be compulsory to use them

Awful idea.

Segregated lanes are good for those who want them, but it’d make it impossible to get a move on anywhere. You just can’t go that fast on them.

Cycling infrastructure should be cyclist provision at junctions, big traffic free backbone routes into cities etc, and consideration for shared use on normal roads.

Segregated lanes are good for those who want them, but it’d make it impossible to get a move on anywhere. You just can’t go that fast on them.

If you build them badly then yes.

But this isn’t slow:

Savvy cyclists, who know they will be safe in front of a computer-controlled car, will have little incentive to cede priority. “Some will be careful with an autonomous car in traffic; others less so in the expectation that the car brakes by itself,” said Hagenzieker.

we don’t have to cede priority now so why would you for a robot? Also where’s the hurry with a driverless car ? you can be reading the paper or watching a film.

But this isn’t slow:

Not when empty. Put a few commuters on it and it’ll get a bit sketchy. Imagine driving at 60mph in a busy 30mph limit. Well trying to ride at 20mph when everyone’s doing 10mph isn’t that different.

Of course you’d just slow down where appropriate as I do on cycle lanes, but if I want to get somewhere or do some training, I don’t want to have to slow to a trundle just because I’ve been given great facilities. Taking the road (and a bit of different cycleway as it happens) from Cardiff town centre to the local woods is much quicker than the Taff Trail cyclepath because you just can’t go fast on it.