Uprating the route, downgrading the experience

Here are a couple of civil engineers surveying the riverside path from Eastville park and the (now closed to cars) Wickham Glen to Broomhill Road. You can ride it, its lovely, but you do then have to carry your bike up a flight of steps.

It's going to be uprated, with the steps removed, making it part of an extended route up to UWE and The North.

Problem is -those steps. The surveyors said that from where the photo was taken, it was going to need a 1 in 20 gradient to bring the path up to the road. Which means this lovely green path (admittedly, it becomes unusable for commuting in the rainy season), is going to change to something tarmaced that slowly rises up to the road.

In its favour, it will still be green and quiet. But at the same time, its urbanification. Just as with any upgrading of Purdown Camp routes, what you gain in bike friendliness, you lose in wilderness.

Secret Cabot Circus Parking in Castle Park

Who remembers when Castle Park was little more than a parking area for the shops, back when the nearest shop was an Argos outlet, not the fancy Cabot Circus stuff? In those days, parking was easy and cheap, now you have to queue behind everyone else to get into the new parking area. Still, for your money you get parking spaces big enough for your landrover discovery with the roofbox, not like the Galleries parking area.

We get lots of visitors looking for secret and free Cabot Circus parking -today Captain Bikebeard is sharing some of the places they've noticed you can still park a car for nothing, right next to the shops.

Where is the place? Where it's always been: Castle Park.

Here a car with the number plate "AE1" is parked. This is apparently for the Lord Mayor, who has been driven down to celebrate the biggest bike ride.

But it is not just for the mayor, here another car BN03VVU has snuck in.

There must be lots of little places in the park you can fit a car, and it's very handy for the shops. Just take care not to run over anyone sunbathing if you have to drive over the grass to get there.

Hedge Funs Update

Following on from a previous post examining the important role nature can play in a childs upbringing and the opportunities for first hand experience provided by the cars parked on Bright Street we are pleased to bring you an update with the current state of progress regarding the car vs hedge vs pushchair situation. It appears someone has come up with a perfect solution... and removed the hedge.Meaning that silver van M991LHB and blue Golf P601LKP have plenty of room to park on the pavement and still allow enough room for pedestrians and for wheelchair access as requested in the leaflets that the Police have been leaving on car windscreens in the area.
The covers of the leaflets placed on windscreens in the Redfield / Barton Hill are a bit cryptic not giving much of a clue to the advice they contain, unlike the ones placed on vehicles in St Werburghs which have the advice clear to see.

" There have been considerable parking problems in this area recently including:
* Parking on the pavement.
* Parking on both sides of the road which restricts access to emergency vehicles.
* Parking on a cycle lane.

Police will be carrying out regular patrols in this area and will be issuing tickets and considering removal of vehicles if they are causing an obstruction. Please park with consideration and leave a wheelchair width space on the pavement and enough room for an emergency vehicle to get through. If this is not possible please park elsewhere. "

So in conclusion, pavement parking is Police approved as long as you leave enough space for a wheelchair. And if there's not enough width on the pavement it's a good idea to remove whatever is causing the obstruction on the other side of the pavement before considering removing the car.

In the case of Y499NLC seen here on Picton Street...
a simple removal of the wall along with the fire exit that is currently cramping the space on the pavement would be a perfect solution. Not only would it open up the width of remaining pavement to allow a wheelchair through, it would also allow anyone who became trapped in a fire inside the adjacent building to escape without having to risk the horrendous possibility of scratching the car when attempting to use the fire exit.

I blames the tennis

July 3rd, 18:18. Tennis still on. Tennis lovers in a rush to get home. Which means "bending the rules". The little ones. Like one way streets, and which direction you are allowed down them

First the van YR51XJX sprints down Nugent Hill and, showing the agility that modern ford transit vans have, swings right onto Arley Hill.

Then while taking that photo, this other car R214RVN popped down the nugent hill contraflow, swerved round the bit of pavement put in to stop cars turning right, and carried on down Arley Hill. But they at least waved at the camera.

Given that this junction has been fairly peaceful since the "feature" was added, what could bring two cars to do this within 30s, given there isn't even a traffic jam up Arley Hill? The only possible explanation: tennis lovers in a rush home.

mobile phone criminals

Crap Cycling and walking in Waltham Forest -which we only keep an eye on to make sure that Boris is doing a good job at keeping those tax-dodgers in their place- is picking up on the threat that cyclists on mobile phones present.

Our thoughts exactly. There should be laws against this kind of thing, and if the cyclists are not going to obey them, car drivers should be allowed to enforce them, vigilante style, probably by overtaking them then braking suddenly and turning.

Here we see someone on the phone on a quiet empty road in Clifton on a Saturday afteroon. The greenery are something that has been causing a problem recently, as apparently the street lighting is poor. The greenery makes the streets darker and more edgy here than in say, tree-free inner-city areas like St Pauls or Upper Easton. With the reduced lighting and the illusion of green and pleasantness, the risk that a pedestrian will blindly step out in front of a cyclist is increased -it is far more likely than on a busy main road. Yet this man is making phone calls while going along, instead of wearing the high-viz clothes what would attract the attention of pedestrians, or a helmet to reduce the damage he causes them when they step out in front of him.

If these subversives had vehicle numbers, we would be able to report them to the police, instead of being forced to stick our head out the window and swear at them as we drive our landrover discovery past at 40 mph while taking these photographs one-handed.

Hourbike hits BRS

In The Centre, there is now a stand for bicycles. At first glance, some more secure bike parking, but on a closer look, its less secure bike parking, but a way to rent a bike by the hour

There are instructions, apparently there are places in UWE and Bristol Parkway that join up too. That could make the short but not very exciting walk from Parkway to UWE easier.

In the town centre, there's not much you can do with it, not unless Templemeads and the bus station come into the story. Here in the centre, 3/4 of the roads have you endangered by car, bus, van and taxi, one bit is bus-only, but in that stretch the buses really don't think bikes should be there, and will pull out without looking.

The bikes are practical, some gearing, some luggage handling. QR saddles to adapt for customer height, though without the anti-theft cable to ensure the saddle will stay there overnight. Perhaps the width and styling of the saddle will discourage such thefts, for which the nearby watershed bike park area is infamous for.

Mr H is being somewhat critical of the process, but where it could be useful is if once you are registered, you are also entrusted with access to rental bikes in other places -London, Cardiff, Oxford, etc. That would mean when you visit one of these places, you can use a bike for the day.

No helmets, no high viz clothing, no discount aldi or lidl waterproof trousers. Users will be expected to bring those themselves. Or worse -go without!

Cornering Problems

There's an HGV on the zig-zags, overhanging the zebra crossing, and making negotiating Cotham Hill tricky in the pre-9am peak period

Parked? Not really. People are out trying to solve a problem. What problem? This car.

It's up on the pavement by Domino's Pizza, but whoever parked there last night doesnt know that during working hours, you get truck deliveries to the building supplies site, and cornering in from Whiteladies Road is fairly sharp. If they had parked further up on the pavement -the way most Domino's Pizza staff and customers appear to do- there wouldn't have been any problems, but as it is, it's sticking out.

This is something people always get wrong: they assume that if you leave space for a car, there's nothing to worry about. But you have to leave space for a truck. Because they don't care that much if they damage your vehicle on the way through, and they will get through. This lot did. Eventually.

The Pavement is So Hot Right Now!

It's official. What once was a rare and daring manoeuvre, parking up the pavement, has now become an everyday activity and the officially accepted way of parking. To celebrate the dawning of this new era in parking, teams across Bristol are forming to show off the many styles and approaches to this groundbreaking new pastime.

Pictured here on Victoria Avenue we have a stunning display of Synchronised Pavement Parking from the beautifully co-ordinated team of elegant white vans, EU03ONX and 1946BSK. Support for this new craze is widespread, with this particular team being sponsored by Garden Doctor, The choice for the Green Gardener.

There's no prizes been awarded yet, but rumour has it that these two stand a good chance of being eligible for the coveted Yellow Sticker, a highly regarded award that that has been known to cause quite an overwhelming outburst of appreciation from previous recipients. I'm informed that this team have earned themselves extra points by leaving enough width between them for two cars. On a normal two way road this is something that wouldn't really be noticed by the judges, but performing such a daring feat on a one way road places them at the top of their game. I'm told that extra consideration is also given for the narrowness of pavement left for pedestrians and pavement users, because as everyone knows a slower pavement user is a pavement user more likely to have the time to fully appreciate this outstanding display of talent and technique.

Now we know there's those of you out there that say this pavement parking is nothing new, change the record, it's boring, but you're obviously not noticing the subtlety that takes it to a whole new level. You have to keep an open mind about these new trends. You have to keep your finger on the pulse. Don't close yourself off to these new horizons and possibilities. United we could really see events and celebrations like this blossom. This could be the thing that puts Bristol firmly on the map, a bit like Cabot's Circus did back in 2006. Who knows, before long we might even be enjoying events like the Double Yellow Dawdle (top points for the smallest purchases made while parked up) or the Speed Limit Shuffle (witness the magic as teams of illusionists transform areas that you previously thought had 20mph limits into 30mph and even 40mph zones).

Together we can do it. Together we can make Bristol a Parking City!

(photos and text by "AG". Thank you!)

Warning: main road

This is the sustrans route from Pill to Portishead, links up with the avon gorge towpath, and provides a track to the city that allows cyclists to avoid getting stuck where the A369 meets the M5. You can ride all the way to the new harbour development now.



All the way but here, the Warning: Cyclists Dismount sign. Because there's a zebra crossing here



And it would endanger everyone if cyclists rode over, rather than walked over.

Some thoughts arise on a road that seems to lead to a surplus car parking area for the avonmouth complex

1. are bicycles required to walk over zebra crossings? Its not a pavement, after all?
2.  if it doesn't have the belisha beacons, is it actually a zebra crossing? And if not, what is it?

Remembering Pete Taylor

Where the Railway Path runs into all the schoolkids crossing to whitehall, there's now a sign up: Thank you for not driving.

It is more than just a recognition of the fact that so many of the people on the path are doing just that, it is a way of remembering Pete Taylor, who was the man behind the signs.

There's going to be a memorial on July 18

We will meet at the Kebele centre at 9.30-10 on Sat 18^th July. For those of you that don’t know it, you can get directions at the website - . It is hoped that a few people will bring some cakes, and we can have a coffee and nibble whilst we all gather. Pete loved cake so this seemed to be a fitting start to proceedings!! Let me know if you are up for bringing cake contribution!

We will then amble down the cycle path to the Oak trees Pete planted where we will scatter his ashes and remember him. Everyone is welcome and people are invited to share their memories and celebrate his achievements in any way they see fit – music, talk, poems, songs – whatever!

I’d really appreciate it if people could spread the word via word of mouth, and please also forward this email to anyone I’ve forgotten to send it to.
Many thanks and I look forward to meeting as many of you as possible on the 18^th.

Kind regards,

Genevieve Taylor (Pete’s niece)"

For those of you who don't know the full story, there's a two page article in this summer's Bristol Cycling Campaign magazine. Pete used to find acorns, germinate them and nurture the seedlings until they were ready to be planted, which he then did. The oaks growing along the path are his work, and they will outlive all of us.

Saturday Evening on "The Strip"

James Barlow observes that while he was having dinner, the BBC were using his license fees to film in a restaurant off whiteladies road.

What he doesn't mention is that on the street outside, people were running around and outside the running shoe shop, stopping to play a game involve floating toys in a paddling pool.

Each person wearing the adventure-racer rucksack has paid £30 to take part in this two day event, which hopefully involved other kids games, including a trampoline.

Going over the edge in Kingsdown

Always interesting to see what notes get stuck on car windscreens. This car is parked legally, not blocking any junction or driveway, isn't even within 50' of a junction, that being a parking law that doesn't exist in Bristol or any other UK city. Ever.

What does the note say?

"IF YOU DON'T LIVE
HERE, DON'T PARK
HERE - YOU MAKE
IT IMPOSSIBLE FOR
THE RESIDENT FAMILIES"

Perfect punctuation, capital lettered. Someone spent time on this.

The problem is, parking on a road where it is legal to do so, not blocking driveways etc is in fact technically legal. So there isn't much you can do about it. There's also the question of what the resident families were planning on doing with their cars -they weren't trying to go to another part of town themselves, park in front of someone else's house, do a school dropoff or similar -where they?

It would seem equally legitimate for this commuter to go round putting notes on everyone's doors complaining that the resident families make it impossible for commuters to park. And for both the resident families and the commuters to put notes under the windscreen of every car owned by a resident that doesn't get used for commuting or school runs, but instead sits there while the parent -selfishly- doesn't drive to school or work. It is those people, the so-called environmentally friendly cyclists, who are the worst. Not only do they slow cars down on the road, by leaving their cars in the street, they are the ones denying the rest of the city parking spaces!

Steiner School Mum Rage video

Cotham Road. With the school building going on, the trees are missing, its more hazardous to cycle along, but at least the builders are trying to retain safe access for schoolkids from Cotham Grammar to their coaches, by providing somewhere for the coaches to park.

They have sign telling you not to park there.

Today, Bristol Parking Services are out to make sure that the sign is obeyed. That's their car behind the Renault, WP51XXU. Two parking officers, talking to a mum.

Not a Cotham Grammar School mum: one from Steiner School across the road. According to the web site, their slogan is "Where education is a journey, not a race". True, but there is always the parking at the far end. Today, the topic of Steiner School discussion is this: is it acceptable for a parent dropping off their child to stop coaches parking, hence endanger other schoolkids?

Alternatively: is it acceptable for the BPS staff to endanger children being dropped off, by stopping them parking? As you can see from the video, the officers are being given a fairly hard time, and yet taking it quite well.

In the background, one of the officers is saying that this is nothing, if you want to see a road where they get a hard time, go to Guthrie Road. Oh yes -been there.

(update: saw one of the mums in this video on a different day, trying to find somewhere to park her Mercedes R320 family-friendly-not-for-real-offroad SUV. Parking Services should recognise that only important people drive such important cars, and leave them alone)

(update2: patched in the video. Thanks Chris!)

On the Blower

Another cyclist, dangerously using the phone while towing a child from school.

He has pulled over, but given this is the top of Cotham Brow, that's a very wise move. But it is still dangerous.

Why? That child is getting bored. Another couple of minutes of parental chat and then dad's going to set off down the brow at speed, curve round the mini roundabout at the bottom and only on the level bit will he notice the lack of pedalling coming from the stoker. At which point, it's back up that hill to try and find the kid that got bored and ran off earlier.

Some people say this isn't going to happen, but those people haven't been half way down Burrington Coombe when they discover their small child has actually got off by the ice-cream van at the top.

Hi-Viz

Following some comments earlier, I can reveal I will be doing Hi-Viz tomorrow night...

Having just received the following email:

Subject: Reminder: Critical Mass on Friday

Just a wee reminder about the Critical Mass bike ride on Friday!

Still a little time to spread the word... and remember to decorate your bike (and/or yourself) in some way if you get chance - anything from a couple of ribbons to a full-on costume would be fantastic!

As always we meet at the fountains opposite the Hippodrome from 5.30 and set off at 6pm.

See you there!

The danger-mums of Montpelier

Look at these women. They are pushing their children down the middle of some Montpelier roads. First, Upper Cheltenham Place.

Next: Cobourg Road.

Some readers may complain that although they are walking down the roads, they are not wearing high-viz clothing, and none of the babies in the push chairs have helmets.

But it is worse than that. These mums are actually pushing their children around the city! On foot! They would be much safer driving them in a family-friendly 4x4 vehicle.

You would never see mothers this irresponsible in Clifton.

Lost

The trouble with diverting traffic, is that there's no way of telling where it will end up.

This is a pity for the new residents of this recently sold-off and refurbished Alms House complex in Colston Avenue (which has no parking provision).

The lost car may very well be occupying one of their new guerrilla parking spaces.

Cycle Lane Innovation

On my way to The Croft last night I stopped at the lights and heard sounds, so I got out the camera...

This is obviously a new highways experiment combining street musicians and Bath Ales delivery vehicles to force cyclists into the correct position for getting to Stokes Croft without being flattened by cars turning left into Ashley Road.

It worked perfectly. More please.

Probably didn't see the signs

That or didn't understand the language

WU58KNA outside Sefton Park school, midday, on a school day.

Bristol: Pedestrian City

This on the afternoon of the St Werburgh's Fair: someone has graciously put a sofa in their driveway on Nugent Hill.

It may seem like a little gesture, but when you are walking up the hill, somewhere to sit is good. There are no council provided seats, so this privately managed resting facility is much appreciated. Some day, every hill in Bristol will have a sofa half way up it.