The End Of The Innocence

You've missed out "of".

@Backladder if we had any sense we'd realise that "shared use" is "buying too cheap" in many places. Single small space for both - get not many of either (and everyone is disgruntled). Although ... out in the countryside I believe the Dutch often *only* build "shared use". But they make nice wide cycle paths that people can *also* walk on. But where there will be lots of walkers? A footway *and* a cycle path.

@Rendel Harris oh it's not that I would expect anything other than cheery waves, especially from the friendly and hospitable fine people of Scotland, but honestly it wouldn't seem right to slow down hard working motorists if I wasn't engaging in an activity that added value to the economy. As the adage goes, "don't bite the hand that feeds you". Cycling infrastructure has been provided over generations through the blood, sweat and tears of hard working people, and it seems such a shame to (hypothetically of course) stick two fingers up at the productive in society. Additionally I wouldn't want to slow right down on the shared use track. I have a motto of "full gas always"... No time to lounge around I'm afraid, I'm a busy man!

@Backladder haven't got out there yet! In my experience "it depends" with both roads and cycle infra. The former can be regularly fine - until you have a couple of horror shows in a row. The latter - despite "shared use" - might be in practice be almost empty. I've had the odd tricky interaction on shared use (but Edinburgh...) However I've not yet felt in danger of death on one. (Canal paths are almost always "no" though).

You could not be an entitled prick and slow down to a safe speed for the situation, showing your much-self-vaunted-though-probably-imaginary courtesy, as you have so frequently told others they must do in such situations? Or you could ride on the road because, as you've also so frequently told us, Britain's roads are the envy of the world for their safety record and you ride with such courtesy that you never have any interactions with drivers apart from "cheery waves"?

"By the way, that photo in the article exemplifies why segregated shared use paths are an absolutely crap idea. Imagine I’m riding there, doing 20mph. Am I meant to use the path with people spewed haphazardly all over it? Or the road where drivers get upset by cyclists ignoring the expensive new infrastructure they’ve paid for? Lose lose." As someone who has used that section of road many times I would always stay on the road rather than use the cycle path, although not very wide it has many sections where it is easy for cars to overtake and in normal circumstances is not very busy. At that point in a ride I would still be over 50 miles from home so I wouldn't want to cruise down the shared path mixing with pedestrians. The shared path appears to be set up to allow tourists to feel comfortable doing cycling/walking loops from Drumlanrig castle and gardens rather than experienced cyclists going from A to B (and then maybe back to A)

@wtjs why isn’t there a removable bollard in place at either end? I'll answer my own question: because central deep steel socket - steel bollard - lock would be cheap and would work. Until the nutters move in with heavy machinery and knock them over, and the police would be too busy to do anything about it

I like the downward bit.

@AidanR if you've spent any amount of time watching your GPS device, on a ride, you'll know that overall average speed drops more quickly whilst climbing than it rises whilst descending - because, given a climb and a descent of equal lengths, more time is spent climbing. Sustained speed, over longer distances is where the bigger gains come.

Also your reminder that data show that "wider road" doesn't mean "more careful sharing" (or even "higher capacity"). What it *does* mean is *higher speed*. And possibly "less attentive/ careful drivers".