Cycling and pedestrian campaigners in Scotland have criticised local authorities for not gritting cycle paths or clearing them of snow. Meanwhile in England, a series of videos have shown cyclists coming off their bikes in icy conditions on the Bristol & Bath Railway Path.
While many roads north of the border have been gritted following two weeks of severe weather warnings, there are concerns that similar treatment is not being given to footpaths or cycle paths, reports The Scotsman, although the newspaper adds that Edinburgh had taken action to clear snow.
Cycling Scotland’s chief executive, Keith Irving, said: “It is essential that maintenance programmes designate key cycling routes that link people to essential services and jobs as a high priority.”
Meanwhile John Lauder, Sustrans Scotland’s national director, urged Glasgow City Council to take action on cycle paths in the city.
He said: “The facilities in place for cycling are great, but they simply have not been properly cleared during this biting cold weather.
“If we want to get more people cycling their short, everyday journeys in Glasgow, it is essential they can do so safely.”
A spokeswoman for the council, speaking to the newspaper on Wednesday, said that “priority footways” would be treated that evening, with the council then working on “secondary footways,” including off-road cycle paths.
She said: “We are currently focusing on priority routes, which comprise of 53 per cent of the city’s network.
“Gritting staff have been out round the clock and we also have additional external resources deployed to help our teams with the continued treatment of pavements and footways.”
Stuart Hay from Living Streets Scotland, which campaigns for pedestrians, added: “We are concerned busy routes and key pedestrian areas don’t always get the same priority as roads when it comes to gritting.
“It’s important that pavements are ice-free, especially for older people who simply won’t venture out in cold weather if they don’t feel it is safe. Whilst volunteers might have a role to play, it is important key routes get the priority they deserve.”
The dangers of riding on icy roads were highlighted in three videos posted to YouTube yesterday that show riders coming to grief on the slippery surface of the Bristol & Bath Railway Path on Wednesday.
With last night the coldest of the winter so far in England, Sustrans area manager Jon Usher this morning took to Twitter to advise users of the path: “Take care cycling this am. They'll be gritted on the future, but arrangements won't be in place yet.”
With the cold snap set to continue and snowfalls in some parts of the UK, make sure you read our tips on riding on ice and snow.
The videos were posted to the video-sharing site by user Cycle Pledge, who said: “This is a set of 3 clips that have been trimmed from one film I took with my cycle helmet cam. I always film my ride for protection.
“I edited the original 22 minute film into these 3 clips to illustrate what was happening due to the black ice. Hopefully this will help towards the council getting the path gritted.”
He added: “Many crashes out there today and a couple of ambulance incidents. The council needs to get the gritter out! This is a serious commuting route.”
However, the Bath Chronicle reports this morning that conditions on the path remain hazardous, with a number of cyclists crashing.
38 thoughts on “From Scotland to Southwest England, calls for councils to grit cycle paths (+ videos)”
that is a narrow path for
that is a narrow path for shared use
The grit wagon has been out
The grit wagon has been out today on the B2B path but a few grit bins in places along it would be useful for those times before the grit wagon has been out.
Yep! ‘Hit the deck’ on the
Yep! ‘Hit the deck’ on the B&B path before Xmas :”( . Realised it was ‘frosty’ and slowed down but a patch still got me. Was out on Wednesday but the section around N Bristol is a bit higher and patches of frost were appearing, even though the roads in town were OK. Was on a stretch of road with cars and the edges were frosty; just lost my confidence completely. The odd thing is that there’s always someone who thunders past you. Hard to put a finger on what improves things in these conditions. Wondered whether the MTB might be a better option. If it’s sub 5 degrees, it’s bike/train or, heaven forbid, the car 🙁 for me.
Whilst it seems unfair that
Whilst it seems unfair that only roads are gritted, we have to remember that a cyclist/pedestrian slipping and falling has minimal “third party danger” where as cars/trucks that slide out of control kill people.
If we only have £x to pay for this, even as a cyclist I would rather it was spread on the roads – it gives me less chance of getting squished
It does indeed seem unfair
It does indeed seem unfair that only the roads get gritted, and then that only certain of the roads get gritted. That would be because it is indeed patently unfair. Society has become so focused on motorised transport that it takes absolute priority in almost everything.
People should always come first and for that it is the pavements that should be cleared and gritted first. The number of individual injuries by falling on ice at this time of year is far to high and should not be accepted in a civilised society where there is an alternative. As for cycling, I’d love to be able to ride on properly treated traffic free paths and wish they were treated BUT I’d rather see fewer pedestrians (especially the elderly) suffering injury or being housebound because the pavements are not treated.
Drivers of cars and trucks should be strongly discouraged from driving when conditions are not safe and should be held entirely responsible for any damage or injury they cause when driving in unsafe conditions. The first steps when setting off in a vehicle always include the phrase “when it is safe to do so”, if it isn’t safe we really shouldn’t drive.
shay cycles wrote:The first
Devils advocate; shouldnt pedestrians do this too then? A few years ago (when we had the really bad winter) I saw so many people falling trying to walk on the fully frozen paths and roads when they should have just stayed inside or wore more sensible footwear (but people in cities dont seem to understand you can buy shoes with tread).
I actually bought slip on grippers for my walking shoes as I always walk or cycle rather than drive and had no difficulty, could even run without a hint of slip.
Is it not more to do with the
Is it not more to do with the white paint that they seem to have liberally slapped across the path?
Alb wrote:Is it not more to
I think the point of that white paint is to warn people that pedestrians will be crossing. It may even be an attempt at a zebra crossing without it being legally one. On one side of this crossing is a primary school, so during commuting hours it is going to be busy.
Location on google maps:
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.4652138,-2.5557415,180m/data=!3m1!1e3
I wonder if the school could help with preventing ice in this spot, if it is such a hot spot for it, actually. Presumably they have a stock of grit for their own purposes, anyway.
Entirely symptomatic of a
Entirely symptomatic of a lack of consideration of cycling as a valid transport method. Its endemic across the country and lets face it Bristol is the best of a bad bunch! Its also a rubbish cycle path design but again, by far the best of a bad bunch!
Once Bristol has enough bike paths they might be able to invest in a quad bike or similar to grit it with. I was actually think about this the other day and it probably could be done by bike and a land-drive gritter trailer.
I’d argue that its actually MORE important to grit foot/cycle ways since broken hips and legs are more expensive to the government than bent cars. Do appreciate that the cars also pose a risk to pedestrians/cyclists when they loose control…
No no no!
I get enough grit
No no no!
I get enough grit dissolving my bike in winter already, thanks.
If it’s icy, get some appropriate tyres or don’t ride your bike. I wish the UK took the same approach to car traffic well.
finbar wrote:No no no!
I get
and what are the appropriate tyres?
18mile commute this morning, bus and train aren’t options before you mention them.
Most of the route is on main roads no ice, gritted, etc. a couple of small sections where farm vehicles, hill run off, mean there are short 50-100m sections of ice/slush today.
The issue in the UK is simply one of the weather being massively variable. Today was cold, yesterday warm, and tomorrow warm.
just run a hosepipe and liberal coating of gt85 over the mechs and that sorts most of the salt issues.
mrmo wrote:
and what are the
I recommend Schwalbe Marathon Winters. You still have to be careful, and they are a bit more hard work than regular tyres, but I haven’t come off on ice since I’ve had them.
I think they only go down to 35 though so if you only have a race bike you might be out of luck. I think they make a non marathon winter tyre as well though which goes a bit thinner.
[url]http://www.schwalbe.com/en/newsreader/spike-tyres-test-in-sweden.html[/url]
Not suggesting bike paths shouldn’t be treated appropriately in winter of course. I’m living in Berlin where the bike paths do get swept and gritted but even then the council can’t keep up with the weather and I’m glad of my tyres (though its actually quite mild at the moment…I wonder were all the cold weather has got to… 😉 )
mrmo wrote:
and what are the
schwalbe snow studs. Cheap at planet x
bendertherobot wrote:schwalbe
There is no snow in any of the videos attached, what is the performance like on what are basically clear paths with stretches or patches of ice?
RedfishUK
Snow studs is a misnomer. They have no impact at all in the snow. Riding on snow you instead want the biggest softest tyres you can find. The studs cut into ice though and give some extra grip. I’ve found there’s enough to go up some steep bridges on local cycle paths.
They’re badass: You sound like a tank coming down the road if you’re riding on un-iced surface. The biggest downside is that everyone else (pedestrians, cyclists) think they can go over the same surfaces and inevitably fall over. Then you’ll put your foot down to dismount and help, and end up on the floor as well.
johndonnelly wrote:RedfishUK
Snow studs is a misnomer. They have no impact at all in the snow. Riding on snow you instead want the biggest softest tyres you can find. The studs cut into ice though and give some extra grip. I’ve found there’s enough to go up some steep bridges on local cycle paths.
They’re badass: You sound like a tank coming down the road if you’re riding on un-iced surface. The biggest downside is that everyone else (pedestrians, cyclists) think they can go over the same surfaces and inevitably fall over. Then you’ll put your foot down to dismount and help, and end up on the floor as well.— bendertherobot
Yep. They’re awesome and, at £14 or so, a must. First day with them was hard, added about 5 minutes to my 20 mile commute. But over the next few days they were no slower than my normal tyres. So it looks like it was just me being rubbish. They’re also quite a good alternative to a bell on cycle paths 🙂
Getting the majority of roads
Getting the majority of roads gritted would be a start. If it has to go anywhere I’d rather it went there.
Hmmm.
Low lying black tarmac
Hmmm.
Low lying black tarmac path in wintery conditions….
…and if we have to start gritting every footway and cyclepath in the country as well as all the roads, we’d better start now by employing about 4 million people with shovels.
Here’s how they do it
Here’s how they do it properly in the Netherlands:
There’s a lot of roads…the
There’s a lot of roads…the main ones get gritted. Gritting all roads and all cycle paths whenever there is a risk of ice would cost a fortune and take an army of staff…and even then ice can still form when running water washes the salt grit away.
I think we need to be careful we don’t continue our headlong rush to follow the Americans and always look for someone somewhere to be at fault everytime something goes wrong…we have to accept there is a risk attached to cycling in ice prone conditions. Fat knobbly deflated tyres can help, studded ones can be even better but are often slower/heavier. Not riding a bike reduces all the risk albeit at the cost of inconvenience. Ho hum.
Id imagine a local housing
Id imagine a local housing estate would get more traffic than most cycle paths, so not surprised to find they dont get gritted.
However! What exactly do you expect grit to do on big patches of ice on cycle paths? Without cars running it into the ground and spreading it about its nearly pointless. I say this as someone who has come off on a gritted road that hadnt seen much traffic.
As cyclists have always done over winter, just stick to the roads (or buy appropriate ‘studded’ tyres)
If it’s that icy I’ll take my
If it’s that icy I’ll take my MTB instead, it is much easier to catch a slide and it’s a lot of fun losing it. I hate the thought of cycle paths being gritted!! No!! Just sounds like another way to pass the blame buck, ah, God Bless the UFK….
TBH it’s generally only main
TBH it’s generally only main roads that are gritted.
I don’t go anywhere near a cycle path on my commute through the Wiltshire countryside but would appreciate the B and minor roads being gritted.
Another shout out for
Another shout out for Marathon Winters.
I use paths for about 13 miles out of a 16 mile commute from Tyneside to Durham including the C2C, and none of them have not seen a sniff of grit all week.
They were especially treacherous on Tuesday, with sheet black ice after rain and then snow on top. The winters coped brilliantly with just a hint of squirming occasionally. Only time I came close to slipping was when I stopped at a junction & my foot slid when I put it down as the tyres did not give a hint at how bad it actually was.
Most of them are shared, so have pedestrians struggling to walk as well. We’re not drivers though so LAs don’t care.
Surely a quad with a grit box would be sensible.
Excellent
Excellent
How about leaving your bike
How about leaving your bike on the turbo trainer while there’s ice on the roads?
“How about leaving your bike
“How about leaving your bike on the turbo trainer while there’s ice on the roads?”
Fine for those who only use their bikes for leisure or sporting purposes.
It may come as a shock, but there are actually a number of us who use them as transport too…..
DublinPort wrote:How about
well that’s a bit impracticable for commuters now isn’t it…
I’m just a bit shocked that
I’m just a bit shocked that rather than using their time to warn cyclists about the ice they withdrew to a vantage point to film the carnage?
It’d be nice to have all bike
It’d be nice to have all bike paths gritted. It’d also be nice if they gritted the pavements I have to walk on too. It’s all down to money eh ?
And yes those grippers for shoes are brilliant. So much safer than normal shoes in icy conditions.
Coming off your bike IS
Coming off your bike IS serious, people really should pay attention to the consequences. I suppose there’s not the added risk of cars on cyclepaths.
I came off my bike on an ungritted road before Christmas at walking speed and broke my weeks. It’s been 6 weeks off the bike, lost income and a load of hassle adjusting. It happened so easily. Think about the consequences! It could have been worse if I’d hit my head, but don’t under-estimate how easy it easy for bones to break! I hope everyone in the above videos were ok
These paths could be gritted,
These paths could be gritted, if only they didn’t have the Sustrans endorsed barriers at every single intersection that would block them.
Grit doesn’t work on white
Grit doesn’t work on white paint, I know to my cost, and they are all falling on the crossing. Any scientists out there know why salt/grit doesn’t work on white paint?
Grit does work on white
Grit does work on white paint.
It’s the damp on them following the grit melting the ice/frost that makes them slippy still.
I went down three times last
I went down three times last week on cycle paths that were like ice rinks. You know your tyres suddenly don’t have any grip, you try to slow and stay balanced and then away goes your front or rear wheels. Agghhhh! ! F**k the Council for not gritting the paths.
Solution to icy bike paths:
Solution to icy bike paths: get a recumbent trike – slippery surfaces become a playground, a wonderland of radical drifts and thrilling three-sixties!!!! 😀
3wheelsgood wrote:Solution to
and useless for my route which includes many chicane barriers and bollard nests…
Another example of our
Another example of our elected legal bodies failing to provide a basic service which impacts more than just safety, but a behavioral change which helps the environment, health and economy.
I have hope that someone with a brain will be in charge in my lifetime to sort things out.